Editor's note: This is the 47th article in the COVID-19 Global Roundup series. Here is the previous one.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to announce plans for easing a month-long coronavirus lockdown as early as this week after he returned to Downing Street on Sunday night.

Johnson, who is due to be back at work on Monday after recovery from COVID-19, has discussed with ministers the idea of "modifying" the lockdown rather than lifting it, to get across the message that restrictions will remain in place even if workplaces and schools start to reopen.

As expectations for lockdown loosening began to echo across the country, Britons were seen increasingly defying social distancing rules and stay-at-home orders. 

Thousands of people headed to DIY stores, parks and beaches on Sunday as the latest figures showed an upward trend in the number of people leaving their homes, the Daily Mail reported. 

With a wet weather approaching in the UK, people took advantage of the fading hot and dry conditions that brought sunshine around the country this weekend. Large queues at DIY supermarkets, throngs of people enjoying the sunshine on beaches, and strollers in several parks in London formed a picture of relative normalcy. 

It comes as some fast food chains such as McDonald's are planning to re-open in May, while some including KFC and Burger King have already opened a handful of branches.

While the urge to return to normalcy is felt throughout the country, the new daily coronavirus cases and deaths have not abated. The official number of deaths related to COVID-19 in hospitals across the United Kingdom rose to 20,732, up by 413 in 24 hours, while confirmed cases stood at 152,840, up by 4,463.

Britons are not alone in their resistance to the existing restrictions. The temptation of being able to bask in the sunlight in swimsuits has also driven many in the United States to flock to the beaches. 

In California, a summer-like heatwave during the weekends seemed to be the main cause for people to head out to the Pacific Coast. While beaches in Los Angeles and San Diego Counties remained closed, some in other counties are still open to beachgoers and became packed by tens of thousands over the weekends.

Governor Gavin Newsom acknowledged that the hot weather may have tempted many Californians to gather outside, but he insisted that staying home and practising physical distancing are the only way to keep flattening the curve in the state. 

"You have the power to literally save lives," Newsom tweeted. 

While defying self-isolation orders, many beachgoers did appear to be following social distancing guidelines. The police were also seen on the beaches to keep people in line with these rules. 

According to Sky News, the Lovers Point Park and Beach, near the city of Pacific Grove, was closed by police as it became too crowded and people were not observing the restrictions.

California has so far recorded 42,164 cases and 1,710 deaths. Friday saw the deadliest day in the western state, with a reported increase of 115 from the previous day. 

Elsewhere in the United States, many Americans are also thumbing their noses at the deadly coronavirus and seeking sanctuary in the sun, sand and waves of beaches. Under a cloudless blue sky with balmy temperatures and soft breezes rolling off the water, Tybee Island proved a powerful weekend lure Saturday for residents in the southern state of Georgia.

One day after Governor Brian Kemp allowed a limited reopening of thousands of businesses, several hundred people were enjoying Tybee Island's sprawling South Beach.

Locals said Saturday was the busiest beach day of the year so far for Tybee Island, a laid-back tourist destination on Georgia's Atlantic coast.

On Friday, Kemp gave permission for some small businesses to re-open statewide, including barber shops, bowling alleys and nail salons, provided protective health measures were in place.

COVID-19 cases in Georgia stood at 23,481 as of Sunday, and deaths 916. 

While the authorities in Britain and the two U.S. states did not choose to close the beaches as a response, Sydney's residents who flocked to its iconic Bondi Beach last week weren't so lucky. 

As thousands of people headed there in drove amid an unusually warm autumn spell, Australian officials felt prompted to close the tourist-attracted beach immediately. 

Health Minister Greg Hunt said the crowds on the country's most famous strip of sand were "unacceptable" as he reported the number of infections across Australia had risen sharply.

New South Wales state police minister David Elliott announced Bondi's closure, warning "this is going to become the new norm" if people did not comply with regulations that prohibit more than 500 people gathering at a non-essential event.

In addition to Bondi, many of Sydney's other famous beaches were closed on April 19, a day after Bondi was closed.

Elliott also said lifeguards who patrol the state's many beaches will conduct head counts and, if there are more than 500 people at any one location, the beach will be closed and people ordered to move on.

While many are desperate for any return to normalcy - and an escape from self-imposed isolation, not all crowds are formed by leisure seekers. 

Last week, Bangladesh saw an enormous crowd converging around the funeral of Jubayer Ahmad Ansari, a top Islamic preacher. In defiance of a nationwide coronavirus lockdown, some 100,000 people gathered in the eastern town of Sarail to honor the 55-year-old popular preacher and seminary head, who died on Friday.

Police had previously agreed with the family of the late religious leader, that only 50 people would attend the funeral because of the risk of spreading the disease. But when tens of thousands of Bangladeshis emerged, local police said they were helpless to stop the crowds. 

Fears that the event could rapidly spread the highly infectious virus have prompted officials to launch an investigation into how some 100,000 people were able to attend the funeral. 

Bangladesh imposed a nationwide lockdown on March 26 as coronavirus spread across the country of 168 million people. Though the country has registered a relatively small number of cases and deaths, authorities have conducted very few tests and experts say the number of cases is higher than officially recognised.

New rules ban more than five people taking part in prayers in the country's 300,000 mosques, but police are reportedly struggling to enforce these rules. 

(Cover: Amid a heat wave, people flock to the Pacific Ocean during the novel coronavirus pandemic in Huntington Beach, California. /AFP)

(With input from agencies)