JANUARY
THE year got off to a terrible start for hardcore British nationalists Scotland in Union. The hapless group, once touted to be Better Together Mark II, managed to suffer an embarrassing data leak in which it was revealed that the vast majority of their donors weren’t really “grassroots”, but earls, barons, lords and big businessmen.

This bombshell story provided The National with our first front page splash of 2018 on January 3 – and despite threatening letters from their lawyers, we continued to shine a light on the murky organisation, whose annus horribilis saw them linked with unsavoury extremists, and plunged into financial troubles.

In a year of major tragedies and catastrophes globally, it was a fishing accident in Scottish waters that most touched people here. The sinking of the Nancy Glen fishing boat just yards from her home harbour of Tarbert, Loch Fyne, saw two men lose their lives.

The National:

Duncan MacDougall and Przemek Krawczyk were trapped on board the trawler when it capsized in on January 18. Their colleague John Miller was rescued.

The UK Government refused to raise the Nancy Glen, but a determined campaign by their families and Clyde fishermen saw the Scottish Government step in to help fund the operation that allowed the families to bury their lost ones.

The collapse of the Carillion construction group started a poor year for many big companies. It also delayed the construction of the Aberdeen bypass.

There were celebrations in 2018, including a year-long sequence to mark the 70th anniversary of the foundation of the National Health Service. The events to mark the centenary of the birth of Dame Muriel Spark were already under way when the main celebration took place in the Usher Hall with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon telling of her love for Spark’s work.

Sadly, Andy Murray had to pull out of the Australian Open as his injury woes continued.

The National:

Cranberries singer Dolores O’Riordan was found dead in her bath in her London home.

The National also revealed the extraordinary story of how Mark & Spencer told a customer who complained about the use of the Union flag on Scottish produce that Scotland was now part of England.

READ MORE: M&S tells Scottish customer: You've had your referendum and you're part of England now

M&S told her: “I have received the email from you and I am able to inform you that the national Scottish referendum has taken place and the majority of Scotland decided that the lovely country of Scotland would belong in and stay within the UK and will be a part of the country known as England.”

Still, a lot of Scots had their priorities right – they began stockpiling supplies of “original recipe” Irn-Bru after makers

AG Barr announced they would be changing the recipe.

At Holyrood, the legislation to bring the Crown Estate’s revenues in Scotland into Scottish Government control was published. There would be interesting revelations later.

On Brexit we had the biggest leak yet of the UK Government’s own forecasts of what would happen after March 29 next year – and it was devastating, saying that Britain would be worse off in any scenario. How did Theresa May and her cabal react? They refused to release the full document, a tactic that would reappear.

Trump opened his year with a government closedown and caused international offence when he attacked immigrants from “shithole countries”. He denied being racist, of course.

FEBRUARY
NO doubt about the biggest story of the winter which first really hit home late in the month. The Beast from the East saw freezing winds from Siberia bring massive snowfalls to the whole of the UK, with Scotland suffering the worst of the weather.

The National:

The first ever national red warning for snow was issued right at the end of the month.

A total of 16 people died across Britain, including care worker Elaine McNeill who was found in the snow in Glasgow having died on her way to work. Matt Ward, 20, also died when he collpased on a snow-covered bridge in East Lothian.

GALLERY: Beast from the East pictures from readers and photographers 

The shock resignation of Police Scotland’s chief constable Phil Gormley dominated the headlines early in this month. After just two years in the job, including many months suspended after bullying allegations were made against him, Gormley decided to quit, and he was replaced by Deputy Chief Constable Iain Livingstone. Gormley later became an inspector of a constabulary down south.

February 6 marked 100 years of women’s right to vote in the UK. There were commemorations and celebrations then and later.

The Winter Olympics saw the astonishing sight of participants from North Korea and South Korea marching together as relations between the two enemies dramatically improved.

The Scottish Government announced that the Scottish National Investment Bank would have £2 billion funding.

In the US, a gunman opened fire at a school in Parkland, Florida, killing 17 people. Across America, protests erupted demanding gun control laws.

On Brexit, the Scottish ministers brought forward the Continuity Bill to try to stave off the Tory government’s power grab by which Westminster proposed to retain powers coming back from the EU. The bill would eventually be supported by all parties except the Tories.

It emerged that Trump’s lawyer Michael Cohen had paid porn actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 in hush money for the president not having an affair with her.

MARCH
THE poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter took place in Salisbury on March 4. Skripal and his daughter Yulia, who was visiting him from Moscow, were poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent. The UK Government alleged that the Russian govern-ment carried out the attack which saw the Skripals and a police officer who attended them barely survive.

It would become one of the biggest stories of the year and led to mass expulsions of Russian diplomats across the world, with Russia retaliating.

The brilliant cosmologist and physicist Stephen Hawking died on March 14 after a long battle against a form of motor neurone disease.

The first counter-demonstration of sorts related to Brexit happened in Scotland. In Edinburgh, the Brexit power grab by the Tories provoked a unique rally in which thousands of protesters encircled the Scottish Parliament. The Hands Off Our Parliament (HOOP) demo was a sign of things to come.

READ MORE: Holyrood HOOP protest sends Westminster clear message

Disgraced Cardinal Keith O’Brien died at the age of 80 of complications after a fall. Edinburgh-born author Philip Kerr died at the age of 62.

The National:

In the US, Trump ignored the protests for gun control, fired his secretary of state Rex Tillerson, lost his lawyer John Dowd and started an international trade war. Quiet month, by his standards.

APRIL
THE Skripal affair continued to dominate the news headlines, until a horrific new scandal erupted which engulfed the Tory government – Windrush.

Reports began to emerge of people mostly from the Caribbean who had been arrested detained and even deported even though they were born as British subjects. They were called the Windrush generation after the boat which brought many of them to the UK.

READ MORE: Labour and Tories play blame game over Windrush scandal

Home Secretary Amber Rudd had to defend the “hostile environment” policy of her predecessor Theresa May, but by the end of the month she was out of a job after misleading MPs on deportation targets. Sajid Javid was named as her successor.

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson announced that she was three months pregnant. Davidson said she and her partner Jen Wilson were excited to be expecting their first child in October after undergoing IVF.

The US, Britain and France launched airstrikes against Syria over a suspected chemical weapons attack.

In the US, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg testified before Congress. Billions were wiped off the company’s shares.

The National:

Kenspeckle football manager John Lambie died at the age of 77. The actress Edith MacArthur also died during this month.

On Brexit, the Government suffered defeats in the Lords.

Across the Pond, Trump blasted the FBI for raiding his lawyer Michael Cohen’s office and he denied having any knowledge of the Stormy Daniels case. But he had bigger problems – special counsel Robert Mueller got his hands on many “interesting” documents and emails from the Trump organisation. He’s still perusing them …