I have no idea.
But I know some people who wonder if they’ve had a variation of it....
Have a look at this article . It seems some researchers believe the virus didn’t originate from China ....

IF this is the case, I woould imagine this was a variation like the flu does every year
I would also assume no immunity to the new CV.

Dd had similar over Christmas and had steroids from urgent care. We thought it was Asthma related at the time.
She is still breathless now.
She works part time in a shop.

Technically it is possible, it started in China in November. Late in November, a number of schools closed due to a combination of norovirus and “flu like symptoms” some of these were primaries and most pupils would have had the flu spray. I know it’s not 100% effective, but I’ve not heard of many young kids having flu in recent years, before then.

I was accused of being a tin hatter when I said this in work this week! Everyone in the office had a cough that took weeks to shift last December/January. quite a few of my friends had the same (to be fair this was probably me spreading it on Christmas nights out).

Having said that it's cold/flu season, so could just be that.

It's very possible, although I was very ill with a long chest infection last March that really was the most ill I've ever been, and I doubt it was around then. Maybe it's just been a bad season for respiratory infections in general? I'm currently unwell again, one year later, although not with my chest this time (yet).

We definitely had an unusual virus over Xmas. All of us had an awful cough for weeks. I believe there are different coronaviruses tho so most likely it was a common strain and not this new coronavirus.

I wonder the same. I crashed and burned at Christmas with a flu type thing, I haven't been so ill since 1976 when I had proper flu as a kid and was absolutely wiped out. My dad had it too and it was him who first suggested the link. It was the speed I went from 'ok but my throats a bit sore, I think I'm going down with something' to feeling 'I need to take to my bed' horrific which is so not normal for me. It took about 2 hours to go from normal to terrible.

@TheLadyAnneNeville I'm ok now but the cough was awful.

The GP told me they saw a massive spike in people having terrible long coughs and shortness of breath lasting weeks

They said who but probably may have had it

The same for me. Cough in December developed pneumonia and now months later still fatigued and breathing problems. I am sure it was Covid.

It was in France just before Christmas in a case if domestic transmission, so I don't accept that Britain did not see it until March.

It is thought it could have been in France in December. I suspect it could have been in UK, too.

decemberwww.euronews.com/2020/05/05/coronavirus-covid-19-could-have-been-present-in-france-as-early-as-december

In my opinion (based on anecdotal observation and my own long and continuing illness) it was here mid-Feb at least.

If I were one of those pondering I'd be getting the antibody test.

Son in law went on a ski stag do to Bulgaria just before Christmas, wiped out with what we now recognise as Covid symptoms a week later. We all had it to a greater or lesser degree between Christmas and New Year. 6 to 8 weeks before I started feeling on top form again.
Friend is a farmer in a remote(ish) area of Scotland. Had flu/bronchitis/pneumonia on and off since January. Blue lighted to hospital 10 days ago when he collapsed with breathing difficulties. Hospital have told him he is anti-body positive and highly likely he had it in January.

I was on holiday in November (outside of Europe) and am sure I picked it up on holiday. Worse cough I've ever had, lasted months. No cold. Was awful. Chest still not right even now.

Partner had op 30 Dec. He was fine and walking and talking afterwards. Less than 24 hours later he was in ICU on Cpap and had pneumonia. He was in iCU for a week and in hospital for 4. He had to have lungs drained and is still suffering with fatigue and breathing difficulties now. He was tested for flu whilst there which was negative, but have heard that COVID sufferers show negative for flu.
I have asked hospital to retest for COVID but no response

Aside from the having it in dec the real concern is that so many people even confirmed covid are getting long lasting effects. And uk are just going to let it run through. We dont know kids wont end up with asthma from this. They can have pneumonia and have the ground glass lungs

Meant to say when he came out of icu he had a cough of epic proportions and ached everywhere. Had to sleep upright for months. Only recently started sleeping on 2 pillows instead of 10!

DH and DS1 has a terrible cough for a couple of weeks in January, baby DS had a temp for 24h, I had no symptoms. But my parents came down with 'flu' a week after seeing us all around that time. They were both in bed for over a week with a cough and aches, and my DM is convinced they had it. Might suggest they have an antibody test.

I was ill the last week of October, if I had been that ill now I would have 100% said covid, I was sweating, the cough was terrible I offered to sleep downstairs as OH was getting now sleep at all, I was drinking the cough bottles like they were going out of fashion, all kinds of throat sweets, the tickle was so annoying, water constantly, I was ill for weeks and weeks, I even used my daughters spare inhaler to try and open up my lungs, working in a school and doing after school club I spend a fair bit of time outside in the cold so thought I’m out in the cold, probably why I’m getting better, I was coming home and going to bed. Was still ill in December, from early November right through to January my 2 got sent home high temperatures and coughs. Both in bed just drinking, off food and tummy ache. I’d be interested in anti body test.

There's an interesting recent edition of the Coronavirus newscast podcast with the widow of Andy Gill about whether he could have caught it really early. He had toured China though. But apparently his tour manager then went off with another band and then got ill and tested positive, so plenty of opportunity for him and others to spread it around the U.K.

I do wonder. I had an almost full tick list of CV symptoms at the end of November, even down to it appearing to improve before worsening again. I had a blood test in early December as I felt so wiped out and my chest was grim. They said I didn't have a chest infection but my white blood count was low.
Improved and tested just before Xmas and was fine.

I had something awful in a December that turned into pneumonia and they thought pleurisy. I couldn’t say more than one word at a time without gasping for breath. Went to urgent care for the first time in my life as I passed out walking home from Dd nativity play. I was breathless for 8 weeks.

I’ve never had a cough like it. I was coughing until I wet myself and was sick. The pain in my chest was unbearable. Dh kept walking me at night because he honestly thought I was dying listening to me breathe.

I was 39, no health conditions, never been properly ill before.

I also lived right near Heathrow airport and worked in a care home where the residents were in and out of Northwick Park hospital all the time (which was one of the worst hit hospitals later on).

I passed the cough on to Dh, he couldn’t shake it for 8 weeks. Dd was off school with a temp for a week. Teenage Ds was fine.