Despite the nights drawing in, the temperature plummeting and people fearing an isolated Christmas, the end of the 2020 also brought a significant serving of hope.
The community spirit which pervaded many aspects of life throughout the year continued to be on full show, and was celebrated with the belated release of the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.
Usually announced in June, its publication was delayed until October to factor in the hard work of people across the country making a difference for others during the Covid-19 pandemic.
This included the likes of Ardvar pensioner Margaret Payne, who climbed the equivalent of Suilven on her stairs, and Fraserburgh firefighter John Anderson, who used his experience in disaster-hit regions to co-ordinate help in his community.
More than 1,300 people were recognised in the list, with big names including Marcus Rashford, TV presenter Lorraine Kelly and curler Eve Muirhead featuring alongside the “unsung heroes” of months gone by.
Even more Covid heroes were recognised when the New Year honours list was released on December 30, including Shetlander Nicola Stove who received a BEM or her work with the British Red Cross in the pandemic.
Aberdeenshire Council warned of tough times in 2021, with hefty cuts of up to £60 million on the table as it looked to balance its books for the months ahead.
There was better financial news for Moray Council, however, which was praised for overcoming a £19.5m deficit in 2019 by making “difficult decisions” to axe school crossing patrollers and ease up on the likes of regular grass cutting.
Spirits were lifted in November when the possibility of a coronavirus vaccine came closer to reality, signalling a brighter end to what was a difficult year for many.
With positive results from large pharmaceutical trials, some frontline workers in Scotland received the jab as an early Christmas present, with millions more doses ordered for others to receive in 2021.
The festive feeling was continued when families were able to reunite as coronavirus restrictions were temporarily lifted for Chri
stmas Day, before harsher measures came into force on Boxing Day, with all of mainland Scotland being placed into level four restrictions.
While the ability to meet with others over a plate of turkey came with obvious health risks as the virus continued to rule people’s lives, it also offered a glimmer of hope that the new year may bring with it a little more normality than 2020.
Two further major developments arrived in the days before Hogmanay.
MPs finally approved the EU-UK Brexit trade deal after months of facing the potential of a no-deal Brexit.
And on December 30, the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine was approved for use in the UK, creating even more hope for a better 2021.
October
October 1: Rutherglen and Hamilton West MP Margaret Ferrier is suspended from the SNP after travelling from London to Scotland while coronavirus-positive.
October 9: The Queen’s Birthday Honours list for 2020 is published.
October 11: F1 driver Lewis Hamilton equals Michael Schumacher’s record of 91 race wins.
October 12: A three-tier coronavirus restriction system is introduced in England.
October 15: Kintore Railway station welcomes passengers for the first time in 56 years following a £15m investment.
October 23: A five-level framework for suppressing the spread of Covid-19 is announced for Scotland.
October 26: Nasa confirms the existence of molecular water on the sunlit side of the moon.
October 29: Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is suspended from the party amid claims of anti-Semitism.
October 31: James Bond actor Sean Connery dies aged 90.
November
November 3: The UK terror threat level is raised from “substantial” to “severe”.
November 3: Americans head to the polls to elect a new President. Joe Biden wins, prompting unverified claims of illegal activity from Donald Trump.
November 5: Dominic Chappell, the former owner of BHS, is jailed for six years for tax evasion.
November 12: Gyrocopter pilot Paul Nichol dies in an aircraft crash near Avoch.
November 12: Scotland’s men’s football team celebrate a penalty shoot-out win over Serbia, qualifying for a major tournament – Euro 2020 – for the first time in 22 years.
November 13: Aberdeenshire Council warns it could be facing cuts of up to £60m, as leader Jim Gifford steps down and fellow Conservative Andy Kille takes his place.
November 16: Pharmaceutical giants Pfizer and Moderna announce their coronavirus vaccine has been more than 90% effective during clinical trials.
November 17: The Aberdeen Ardoe House Hotel goes into voluntary liquidation, with 68 employees losing their jobs.
November 20: Aberdeen councillor Alan Donnelly, who was found guilty of sexually assaulting a man, is given a one-year suspension.
November 24: Leaders from all four UK nations agree a national deal to relax Covid-19 restrictions over the Christmas period.
November 25: Scotland becomes the first country in the world to make it a legal duty for period products to be made available for free.
November 30: Clothing giant Arcadia, which owns Topshop and Burton, collapses into administration.
December
December 1: 242-year-old department store Debenhams prepares to be wound up after a takeover bid from JD Sports falls through.
December 2: The UK becomes the first country to approve a coronavirus vaccine for use.
December 8: Margaret Keenan, 80, becomes the first person in the world to receive the Pfizer/ BioNTech vaccine.
December 14: A faster-spreading Covid variant is identified in the UK.
December 16: A court appeal is overturned, allowing plans for a third runway at Heathrow Airport to progress.
December 24: A free trade agreement is agreed between the UK and EU, days before the end of the Brexit transition period.
December 26: Mainland Scotland is placed under level four restrictions.
December 30: Boris Johnson’s Christmas Eve Brexit deal passes in the House of Commons.
