Home and Away’s Ray Meagher returns to work on the long-running drama

Channel Seven’s long-running drama Home and Away resumed filming on Monday after it was temporarily shut down in March.

And on Thursday, the show’s longest serving cast member Ray Meagher said that he’s excited to finally be able to return to work after two months in isolation. 

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, the 75-year-old who plays Alf Stewart, said: ‘It is so fabulous to be back on set and to get out of the house.’

‘It’s wonderful to be here. We just need to keep our wits about us and make sure we all do the right things,’ he added.

Ray went on to say that management are taking precautions to prevent the spread of coronavirus on set.

‘When you first arrive, it’s a temperature test, and once you’ve passed that then you wash your hands… in fact my hands are cleaner than they’ve ever been I reckon I could perform open-heart surgery,’ he said.

This comes after Ray’s co-star Sam Frost, 31, shared a Polaroid photo of herself in her character of Jasmine Delaney to her Instagram story post and wrote: ‘I’m finally back at work tomorrow.

‘I’m actually not sure if I’ll remember how to be a normal human being,’ she added, referring to her extended time away from the show.

The actress mused: ‘It’ll be like when I’m cruising along in my car, and spotting a police driving behind me. I immediately forget how to behave like a normal human, and start panicking about whether or not I paid that speeding fine in 2014.

‘Then when I finally turn off, I’m like “phew, that was close” even though I wasn’t doing anything wrong,’ she concluded.

Ray and Sam’s return to Summer Bay comes as the soap resumed filming earlier this week on May 25, after it was forced to shut down over coronavirus fears.

It now has strict measures in place to ensure the safety of their cast and crew, The Daily Telegraph reported.

This includes temperature checks, regular cleaning schedules and social distancing.

A Channel Seven spokesperson told the paper: ‘A range of measures will be in place to minimise risk for the cast and crew, to be overseen by dedicated safety officers.

The measures include temperature check on arrival, increased hygiene practices and rigorous cleaning schedules.’

Actors will also be able to socially distance on set thanks to some clever rewrites, the spokesperson continued.

‘Scripts will also be reworked to reduce closer contact, in constant consultation with the cast and crew to ensure the health and safety of all,’ the statement said.