Our front page this morning was devoted to the repatriation of Corporal Lee Brownson, of Bishop Auckland, who was killed in Afghanistan.

What brings the tragedy closer to home is that it has emerged that Lee wrote to us last September.

In an email, he says: "I am currently serving with 3 Rifles in Edinburgh. I am due to deploy to Afghanistan in a few weeks for a six-month tour and I like to keep in touch with what is going on in my local newspaper.

"I am a local lad from Bishop Auckland and I am sending you this email to see if it would be possible to send me a copy of the paper at least once a week. If this is possible, I will send the address.

Kind regards, Cpl Lee Brownson."

We wrote back to Lee saying we were happy to oblige. The heartbreaking irony is that, four months later, it is now his local paper's duty to report his death.

Tomorrow, we will publish the first interview with his widow.