Melbourne - The worlds most locked down city

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Protests were a feature of Melbourne's prolonged lockdowns by September, 2021. On Friday September 24 the protests, and those policing them, reached Northcote Plaza, bemusing some of the regular shoppers.Credit:Luis Enrique Ascui

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As the lockdown wore on, some performers, like comedian Simon Taylor, got even more desperate for an audience. He took part of his Melbourne Fringe Festival show to give one-on-one performances for picnickers on September 23, 2021.Credit:Eddie Jim

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A veteran bemoans the events unfolding on September 22, 2021, at the protest at the Shrine of Remembrance.Credit:Jason South

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Victoria police's Public Order Response Team move in on the anti-vax and anti-lockdown protesters at the Shrine.Credit:Jason South

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Victoria Police end the Shrine protest. Credit:Jason South

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Protesters took over the Shrine on the third day of a rolling protest, first sparked by a spontaneous walk-off of building sites over mandatory vaccination rules.Credit:Jason South

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Not all tradies were protesting. This photograph, taken as some were marching in protest against vaccination, shows warehouse worker Daniel Matcham getting the jab at a vaccine clinic in Hoppers Crossing. Credit:Jason South

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Healthcare workers and the hospital system are under serious pressure as the lockdown, and the pandemic, roll on. Yasmine is sitting outside the Intensive Care Unit of her hospital, where she is caring for COVID patients. Credit:Jason South

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Kevin and Pauline Davis had been stuck in Albury at the closed Victoria-NSW border in August, 2021, unable to cross. With Tilly the dog, they were waiting for a week. Mr Davis celebrated his 79th birthday there.Credit:JASON ROBINS

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In July 2021, the Cohealth clinic in Victoria Street, Melbourne, started a pop-up Covid-19 vaccination clinic for the homeless and disadvantaged. Simon was one of the first recipients.Credit:Chris Hopkins

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Every day Chris caught the train to the city for work. Under lockdown, he, like many others, is working from home. He sportingly agreed to head to Officer train Station in his new work attire in July, 2021. Credit:Luis Enrique Ascui

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Lockdown has been especially tough for the young. Saskia Peachey, who turned 22 in July 2021, lives alone. In 2020's lockdown she became an organiser helping others through similar situations.Credit:Justin McManus

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In May, 2021, local football teams were trying to take the field between lockdowns. But because they'd lost condition over the 2020 season, many players were getting injured and teams were struggling for a full complement. Credit:Paul Rovere

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Stacey Binnion, 29, was pictured half way through her stint in hotel quarantine at the Tullamarine Holiday Inn in April, 2021. She had just returned from Paris to visit her family and friends after being separated for 18 months.Credit:Jason South

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The 2021 Australian Open was highly controversial. Players were allowed into the country when many others were not. There was also fear of an outbreak. But, played before empty stands, the tournament was a success.Credit:Eddie Jim

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In September 2020, people were able to emerge from lockdown for outdoor activities with friends. Authorities drew circles in this St Kilda park to keep groups socially distancing.Credit:Justin McManus

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This man became a pandemic celebrity, particularly among children, as he took his hour's exercise in a St Kilda park dressed as a double-masked Spiderman.Credit:Joe Armao

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Stage 4 lockdown. August 2020. Only the pigeons could enjoy the usually busy steps outside the State Library in the city.Credit:Joe Armao

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In July, 2020, the Victorian government invited the army to help Victoria police maintain the lockdown.Credit:Joe Armao

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In July 2020, with the virus rampant, Northcote GP Tamsin Franklin set up a walk-through testing clinic in the car park of her suburban practice.Credit:Jason South

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Through the dark days of 2020, Premier Daniel Andrews gave 120 consecutive daily press conferences. Photographers, bored of the same scene every day, embarked on a competition to bring creativity to their task. This was one of Age photographer Eddie Jim's shots.Credit:Eddie Jim

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Home schooling was on-again and off-again in Melbourne. In July, 2020, it was starting again and Erin Giansiracusa, 38 with her kids left to right Eddie, 7, Billy, 6, Olivia, 3 and Angus, 9, had mixed feelings about what they were all facing.Credit:Joe Armao

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Sikh volunteers were a mainstay of the lockdown era. In the 2020 lockdown they started providing food for international students, and for the locked down tower residents, for free. Pictured are chefs Manpreet Singh, Gurkirapal Singh and Sukhwinder Kaur.Credit:Simon Schluter

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In July 2020, the state government ordered a snap lockdown of a number of public housing towers, including this one in Alfred St North Melbourne, to contain an outbreak. Credit:Penny Stephens

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In April, things looked grim for employees in the State Parliament kitchens under COVID-19 because catering and events had been cancelled. But by July they were cooking 4000 meals a day for nine Melbourne charities including the Salvation Army, Father Bob Foundation and St Mary's House of Welcome. This is head chef Mark Ramsay tasting the sweet potato soup.Credit:Justin McManus

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NSW police were ordered in July 2020 to enforce a hard border with Victoria.Credit:Justin McManus

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The "ring of steel" around Melbourne in June 2020 was enforced by Victoria police with check points and road blocks, like this one on the Hume highway in Kalkallo.Credit:Jason South

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The lockdown scene at the towers in North Melbourne in June. These are some of the thousands of food parcels that, eventually, were organised to go into the towers. Credit:Jason South

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Fear of COVID-19 on surfaces led to a new term entering the language: "deep cleaning". Here's Dilly Fernando embarking on a job in May 2020.Credit:Jason South

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The pandemic has brought some communities closer together. Here's Adrian Perillo and his kids Tom and Alice, who set up a Street Library in their front yard to share books with their community because regular libraries were closed in April 2020.Credit:Simon Schluter

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Steph Lord, a nurse in the Intensive Care Unit, treats one of Melbourne's early COVID patients in April, 2020.Credit:Justin McManus

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In March, 2020, before hotel quarantine was invented, travellers such as Miriam Jones, who had just returned from a holiday in Vietnam, were required to isolate at home.Credit:Justin McManus

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