In January, Valerie Bordley, a 60-year-old charity worker from north Watford, flew to Australia in January to watch her sister's husband, and alleged killer, stand trial for her murder.

Valerie's sister, Edwina, disappeared from her Australian home, near Melbourne, in October 1983.

For 23 years Valerie had led a one woman campaign from the other side of the planet to bring her killer to justice. Police eventually discovered her remains in a metal drum in Boyle's garden in October 2006.

Before flying Down Under, Valerie told the Watford Observer: “I've never ever had peace of mind all these years. It's always been there. My two brothers and mother died not having any answers, my husband died in 2003 and I wasn't prepared to die not knowing the truth.”

In February, Boyle was found guilty of shooting Edwina's in the head and stashing her remains for more than two decades. The following month he was jailed for 21 years.

Also in January...Maple Cross resident, Alan Brereton, escapes from a fire in his Kenyan hotel...Plans for the redevelopment of Charter Place collapse...Australian rugby coach Eddie Jones is appointed boss of Saracens...and Watford FC footballer Al Bangura finally wins his fight to stay in the country.

In February, xenophobic leaflets, deliberately aimed at stirring up racial tensions in the town were pushed through hundreds of north Watford letterboxes.

Mayor Dorothy Thornhill furiously rubbished the leaflet, saying they had been sent by a “sick person” who was “systematically trying to discredit the Lib Dems”.

More would be revealed about the person behind the leaflets later this year.

Gary Day, a heating engineer from Bushey, was also hailed as a hero this month, dragging an unconscious man to an open window as flames ravaged his home.

Gary had been carrying out central heating repairs to a home in Ridgehurst Avenue, in Leavesden, when he noticed smoke billowing from the house next door. The 42-year-old kicked in the front door and crawled through the smoke before finding the man and dragging him to an open window. Gary said: “I tried to drag him out of the window but he was in an out of conciousness, so I got my arms through and held his head out of the window.”

Also in February...Elderly residents and Age Concern joined the Watford Observer in demanding British Gas does more to ensure the town's oldest residents are not left without central heating....Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg visited West Herts College...and Hertfordshire's Air Ambulance Appeal takes off.