Anniversary coincides with the prospect of a new lockdown in Italy as well as some startling statistics: 3 million covid-19 cases and 100,000 deaths. On this day last year former Italian premier Giuseppe Conte made an announcement that shocked the world: the entire country would be plunged into lockdown to combat the rising threat from coronavirus.

In a late-night televised address on 9 March 2020, Conte outlined the draconian measures which followed local lockdowns in northern areas of the country, including Milan and Venice, already reeling from the deadly grip of covid-19. The nightmarish announcement, days after Italy shut down its schools and museums, came as the total number of coronavirus infections in Italy at the time neared 8,000 and the death toll reached 463.