Drone photos of the year 2020: From queues of panic-buyers to empty shopping malls, these pictures tell England’s Covid story

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A selection of drone photos taken over the course of 2020 showcases stunning views across England and reveals how the Covid-19 crisis transformed some UK landscapes. 

Chris Gorman’s aerial images show a perspective of the country that most people will not see.

As soon as the first nation-wide lockdown was announced in March, Mr Gorman said he knew that as a drone photographer and journalist, he would have a “unique opportunity” to capture scenes of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Permission for Commercial Operation (PfCO) certified drone photographer told the Evening Standard he was able to capture the scale of the “surreal" event with his drone.

“I knew that I had a unique angle with my drone to shoot the whole Covid pandemic lockdown story,” he said.

One of the photos that stand out for Mr Gorman is a picture of unsold cars which were stored on a disused runway in Oxfordshire.

Brighton Palace Pier under lockdown in March
Chris Gorman Big Ladder

“I knew that car sales were going to plummet during the lockdown,” said Mr Gorman.

“On the day that I took the picture it was announced that car sales had dropped by 97 per cent. It was a very unusual way to illustrate the crisis.”

Mr Gorman also captured pictures of a deserted Bluewater shopping mall in March and queues of panic-buyers lined up outside the Tesco Extra in New Malden at 5.45am.

Mist flows down the River Torridge in Bideford, Devon on a cold November morning
Chris Gorman/Big Ladder

“I knew that I was, and still am, documenting history,” said Mr Gorman. “We will get out of this pandemic, but we will look back on it like our parents remember the Second World War. This will be a moment in history."

Not all of Mr Gorman’s pictures are Covid related. The drone photographer said his most preferred picture, which features a beautiful wintry scene in the Scottish highlands, is his favourite purely because it is not coronavirus related.

The picturesque shot shows the Glenfiinan Viaduct in Scotland covered in the first proper snow of January.

Mr Gorman’s 2020 library of pictures also features a shot of the sunset over Bosham in West Sussex and the RHS Garden Wisley lit up for its Glow 2020 Walk.

To see more of his work visit bigladder.co.uk.

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