Coordinates: 51°47′42″N 0°04′41″W / 51.795°N 0.078°W / 51.795; -0.078

Hertford ( /ˈhɑrtfərd/ or /ˈhɑrfərd/) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. Forming a civil parish, the 2001 census put the population of Hertford at about 24,180. Recent estimates are that it is now around 28,000^{[citation needed]}. The name is Anglo Saxon and means the ford frequented by harts or stags.

Hertford has been the county town of Hertfordshire since Saxon times when it was governed by the king's reeves. By the 13th century, these had been replaced by a bailiff, elected by the burgesses. Charters of 1554 and 1589 established a common council of eleven chief burgesses and a bailiff. Another charter of 1605 changed the bailiff's title to mayor. In 1835, Hertford became a Municipal Corporation; the ratepayers elected twelve councillors, who chose four aldermen, aldermen and councillors composing the council. This body elected the mayor.

Christopher James Hardman (born 26 August 1990, Lowestoft, England to parents Ian Hardman and Karen Elizibeth Clarke), more commonly known by his stage name Lil' Chris, is an English singer-songwriter, DJ and television personality.

Chris rose to prominence in January 2006 at the age of 16 after appearing in series two of Channel 4's Rock School. The TV show saw Gene Simmons (from the band KISS) try to form a rock band out of a class of children attending Kirkley High School (now East Point Academy). In the series, Chris was immediately seen as a contender for the band after revealing that he could sing, play guitar, drum, and write songs. Eventually Chris was selected as frontman and lead singer in the line-up for the band (now named "Hoax UK"). In the final episode the band went on to open for Judas Priest, Rob Zombie, and Anthrax at a concert in Long Beach, California.

A week after the performance Chris was contacted by record producers Ray Hedges and Nigel Butler, who appeared in Rock School to help the class with songwriting. Chris went on to sign a record contract with RCA Records and released his debut single "Checkin' It Out" in September 2006 which reached no. 3 in the UK Singles Chart. After performing a cover of Justin Timberlake's "SexyBack" on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge, Chris then released his debut album Lil' Chris in January 2006. Chris continued to promote and release singles from his album throughout 2007, as well as performing as a supporting act for McFly on their 24 date Up Close and Personal tour throughout the UK. Chris also took part in BBC Three's Celebrity Scissorhands and made guest appearances in episodes of CBBC's SMart and TMi.