BY ADAM THOMLISON

TV Media

Q: Why did we have to wait so long for the 2020 version of “Big Brother”? It seems like an ideal show for the COVID-19 era. Test all the contestants to be sure they are COVID-free and

then put them in isolation where they will be perfectly safe.

A: You’re right that “Big Brother” is better suited than most shows to film during an isolation period, but even a show about isolating people from society had to make some concessions to the pandemic.

The producers were reportedly just starting to cast the new season when the outbreak hit, so they decided to make it an allstar version instead. Those cast members had already been vetted and were familiar with the show, meaning the producers didn’t have to continue looking around for new blood.

But there were still precautions they had to take. The Houseguests had to quarantine ahead of starting the show and be tested repeatedly, in order to ensure they didn’t just give it to each other inside the house.

Then they had a crew to worry about. The eventual solution for them was, according to gossip site TMZ, a sort of off-camera “Big Brother” scenario.

The crew, who need to be there to bring supplies into the house, set up the competitions and do all the other necessary but unseen tasks to make the show work, had to work inside their own quarantine bubble, liv

ing in RVs next to the “Big Brother” house. They reportedly rotated in and out with other crew members so that they got a bit of time off.

Q: I know James Bond’s code number is 007, but was there a 001?

A: The answer depends on what you consider to be canon in the James Bond universe — that is to say, what constitutes authentic James Bond content. Neither author Ian Fleming, who created the character in a series of novels, nor Eon Productions, the company that adapted those novels into a mega-grossing film franchise, gave us a 001.

But if you take a more liberal approach to canon, then 001 does exist — he’s a senior agent who appears briefly in a novel written by Raymond Benson.

After Ian Fleming died, his estate allowed other authors to carry on writing Bond novels — a controversial but popular practice. Benson was one of those authors, and in his book “Doubleshot” he gives us the only reference to 001.

In a sense, this is a case study justifying the practice of allowing other writers to carry on an author’s work (and copyright) after death. Fleming had created a rich spy world with plenty of unexplored avenues.

Indeed, Fleming himself actually gave us the smallest number of 00 agents. His books only mention five, including Bond himself.