'Bloody awful': British defence minister describes having COVID-19

Having COVID-19 was "bloody awful," British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said on Monday, saying that the virus had sapped his energy, reduced his will and temporarily taken away his sense of taste and smell for days.

Asked by Sky News how it was to have COVID-19, Wallace said: "Bloody awful if you want the honest truth."

"It wasn't severe but it mentally taps your will because it comes and goes, it ebbs and flows," said Wallace, who was infected with the virus at the end of March. "I sat on my own in my flat in London for 8 days and I lost taste and smell, and it's a sort of energy sapping thing that reduces your will."

"But it then disappeared and I took some more precautions but in the end I went back to work," Wallace said.