The first edition of the St Albans, Harpenden, Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield Review went on sale on Thursday October 4, 1973.

It was delivered free to 50,000 homes, which was the largest local circulation, and was also available for purchase at newsagents for 3p.

An editorial on the front page of the first edition said the Review was “a new dimension in local newspapers, bringing you the stories you will want to read –about your town, your neighbourhood, about people and places you know.”

The first splash, “Shops on big alert after fire bomb strikes” was written by John Sinclair, about the hunt for the Welwyn Garden City fire-bomber.

Incendiary devices were found hidden among rugs in Woolworths, and tucked between some novelty hats in WH Smiths, before they had a chance to detonate.

The hunt was on for a young man “of thin build with long, mousy coloured hair, dressed in a knee length, sleeveless suede jacket, grey pullover and jeans.”

The Review also tackled national stories, such as the struggle for young people to gain a foot on the housing market.

Alan Hulks, a 26-year-old car salesman and his fiancée Linda Rump from St Albans had been engaged for six months, and described how they would have to try and save enough money while renting.

Mr Hulks said: “We can lay our hands on £1,000 for a deposit on a house but the cheapest place would cost £9,000.

“I know that to buy a house you have to make sacrifices but we just don’t have that kind of money to start with. I need to earn double to get a mortgage.”

In the same issue a three bedroom semidetached house in Marshalswick, complete with an abundance of mature fruit trees was advertised for £14,500.

Meanwhile the UK’s petrol crisis was exacerbated in St Albans by a “stampede” for petrol, with queues stretching hundreds of yards behind entrances to forecourts, in December.

Archie Lawrence, managing director of Central Garage in Fretherne Road, said: “I think if we placed a notice on our forecourt saying ‘minimum four gallons’ half the cars queueing would go away because they wouldn’t have room to fill up their tanks.”

In the music section, American rock band The New York Dolls, frontrunners of the punk movement, were reviewed by reporter Dave Richard.

He said: “In their search for something new and even more outrageous than flower power, peace signs, long hair and Liberace The New York Dolls have struck on an image which has the whole pop world alight with controversy.”

In the classified section people took advantage of the free advertising by listing their second hand goods, including a “knick-knack bracket”, a 42” wooden ships wheel, and a windscreen for a Morris 1000.

The local Opel garage in Holywell Hill advertised a Rekord II Coupe with a powerful 1900cc engine for £1,757, not including seatbelts.

A holiday in “the English speaking Mediterranean” however would only set you back just £53 for a trip to Malta, where you could shop in British Sterling.

Entertainment wise, the St Albans City Hall played host to “a spectacular traditional family pantomime” starring Patsy Blower as Cinderella and JC Fields as Fanny.

At the back of the paper an abundance of jobs could be applied for, including Cashmores Sheet Steel Division, which required “an intelligent young man, 18 plus” to join their production and stock control section.