Coronavirus: Idris Elba out of quarantine but can't get home

Idris Elba has said he is in “stuck in limbo” having got through the quarantine period for coronavirus (COVID-19) but is now unable to get a flight home.

The Luther star previously revealed he and his wife Sabrina Dhowre Elba had tested positive for coronavirus while in New Mexico where he had been shooting a new film for Netflix. His home is in London.

Elba, 47, revealed in a video message on Twitter: “We’re both doing okay, still asymptomatic.

“We’ve passed the quarantine period but we’re stuck in limbo. We can’t get a flight back home so we just have to sit still for a little bit. But other than that we’re okay and we’re so thankful that the worst of this has probably passed.”

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He added: “I thought I was definitely gonna to see the worst of it as an asthmatic, but thankfully I came through. And you can too.”

The Thor star admitted he was struggling with ‘cabin fever’ in self-isolation.

He said: “It’s weird because I never sit still. Sabrina never sits still either, I think she’s finding it harder. A bit of cabin fever. But we’re both good mentally - just trying to stay optimistic.”

Elba added: “Just a note to say we’re still here, hope you’re good. We’re going to fight this thing and everything’s going to be cool. Thank you to everyone who sends us the love and the thoughts.”

Hundreds of thousands of UK citizens stranded abroad face an anxious wait for details of rescue flights to be announced. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has set aside £75 million to charter flights from destinations where commercial routes have been severed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Repatriation flights operated from Peru and Tunisia on Tuesday, but details of further flights have not been revealed. On March 23, the FCO advised all UK residents who were travelling abroad to return home.

Hundreds of thousands of people have since travelled back on commercial flights, but Transport Secretary Grant Shapps estimates around 300,000 are still overseas.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said on Monday that only 1,400 UK nationals had been repatriated on flights chartered by the Government.

Elba previously revealed doctors told him he would be immune to the virus for a period of time.

He tweeted: “Dr told us that after quarantine we will be immune for a certain time since our antibodies fought this.”

Since the actor revealed he had tested positive for coronavirus has used social media to address several ‘fake news’ stories circulating.

In one video he said: ““There are so many stupid, ridiculous conspiracy theories about black people not being able to get it...

“This disease does not discriminate… Stop sending that s*** out – it's dumb, silly, and it's going to get more people sick. People need to know facts, need to understand the truth, so they can protect themselves.”

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Another message rubbished a conspiracy theory that celebrities were being paid to say they had the virus.

Elba said: “This idea that someone like myself is gonna be paid to say I’ve got coronavirus? That’s absolute bulls***.

“It’s the quickest way to get people sick because there’s no benefit to me and Sabrina sitting here saying we’ve got it if we ain’t got it. I don’t even understand the logic of that.”

The British actor - who first found fame on HBO show The Wire before becoming a Hollywood star - faced some criticism after it was claimed he had paid for a private test to confirm if he had the virus.

He said: “I think the debate about rich and poor and who’s getting it and who’s not, I think, is not a healthy debate. It’s like, I got a test but I also got Covid. Does that make me preferential? I don’t understand that.”