So we thought we would raid our photo archives to remind you just how much the Sunderland area loves having a laugh – and we hope it will not be too long before we will all do so again.
1. Damsels in their dress
Sunderland's Boxing Day Dip raises laughs and funds for good causes. Pictured, from left, in 1998 are Charlotte Phillips, Victoria Gettins, Catherine Morrow, Lauren Flaxen, Gemma Smiles and Bethany Rivers. Photo: Sunderland Echo
2. On the right Road
Valley Road Junior School pupils, left to right, Jennifer Ramsay, Michael Graham, Kiel Watson, Laura Smiles, Michael Boyce, David Field and Mellisa Younger celebrate in 1999 after learning the Raich Carter Sports Centre was to be build next door. Photo: Sunderland Echo
3. Hurl of a player
From one Sunderland football legend, Raich Carter, to another. Here's Charlie Hurley on a visit to the club's Stadium of Light ground in 2016. Photo: PHOTOGRAPH BY FRANK REID 2016
4. The Little Waster
Wearside legend Bobby Thompson knew how to make them laugh. Here's the comedian meeting some of his fans at the Sunderland Empire in 1981. Photo: Sunderland Echo