See my post just above yours - no, it's not new, it's happened since the start of theoretical seating, 1A and 1K may never be open for non-golds, though in my experience that mostly happened on the 744 where the distance between the two seats was relatively narrow, but I've also seen it happen with an eligible pair in 1EF on other aircrafts.

The current social distancing situation may indeed make those things even more important if there are enough other seats available, though equally, BA does not shy away from using the full cabin if it has enough passenger to fill it.