Angling Times

Zander record blown away

2007-07-04T10:17:00.000Z

THE British zander record has been smashed out of sight with this stunning 21lb 5oz specimen, Angling Times can exclusively reveal.
The huge fish, which eclipses Dave Lavender’s existing record of 19lb 5oz 8dr, caught from the Middle Level in Cambridgeshire in March 1998, was taken by 19-year-old James Benfield from the River Severn.
Although a keen predator angler, James actually caught the monster zed whilst on a bream session, after it picked up his halibut pellet, fished in conjunction with a Fox method feeder.
“I only had my bream net with me, and it was a bit of a tight fit to get it in! When it was on the bank, we couldn’t quite believe what we were looking at,” said a delighted James.

* Read the full story of James’ amazing capture only in this week’s Angling Times.

Pair strike pure gold on opening day

2007-06-26T08:34:00.000Z

DECIDING to avoid the rivers on opening day in favour of a forgotten Fenland drain paid off in fine style for Mark Barrett and Chris Ponsford when they struck gold in the form of some huge rudd.

After adopting simple floatfishing tactics with sweetcorn on the hook, Worcester-based Chris came up trumps by landing this enormous 3lb 11oz specimen, plus another over 3lb and several ‘twos’, while Mark weighed in with a cracking specimen weighing 3lb 3oz.

“While my big rudd isn’t the best-looking fish I’ve ever caught, it’s still a huge specimen. I had another of exactly 3lb which was one of the most beautiful fish I’ve ever seen.

The pair fished maple-flavoured Van Den Eynde corn to catch their rudd, while Mark also tempted a brace of common carp weighing 21lb 4oz and 18lb 4oz on Mainline Maple-8 boilies..

Biggest Pike...

2007-06-22T08:49:00.000Z

ONE of the biggest pike to grace the pages of Angling Times has been landed by an English angler during a fishing holiday to Ireland.

The mammoth 40lb 1oz specimen was banked by Lincolnshire-based rod Nigel Greaves from the mighty 20,000 acre Loch Mask after he fished a small copper spoon in a shallow area of the venue.

The catch comes as no surprise to the nation’s leading predator anglers, among them pike supremo Nev Fickling, who knows about Mask’s potential having caught a 38lb 8oz specimen from the water a decade ago.

“Mask is a venue that will always be worth fishing. It’s a ‘man’s’ water,” said Nev.

Bumper carp catches continue!

2007-06-20T14:49:00.000Z

Angling duo Sean Howard and Matthew Kirk had a bumper session catching 12 fish between them, which included a thirty each.

Fishing the lilies and margins from peg 12 on Temple, Sean Howard bagged 6 fish, which included a 32lb 6oz common. Sean fished plastic corn and a Banana food boilie over pellet to tempt the big common and 5 mirrors weighing 27lb 13oz, 26lb 6oz, 25lb 12oz, 23lb 7oz and 23lb 6oz. Fishing in the next peg 13, Matthew Kirk also bagged 6 fish, which included a new PB in the shape of a 31lb 11oz Ghost. Fishing Richworth KG1 baits over hemp and pellet, Matthew also caught 5 mirrors weighing 27lb 5oz, 24lb, 23lb 5oz, 23lb 4oz and 19lb.

Regular Khi Gregory also managed a 5 fish bag during his weekend session catching a very pretty mirror weighing 31lb 10oz, a ghost weighing 21lb 4oz and commons weighing 28lb 4oz, 25lb and 22lb. Khi fished peg 9 fishing his Icelandic Red baits to the island margins and lilies.

Other anglers to catch were regular Ray Harding who bagged 4 fish topped by a 25lb mirror. John Breen who caught a 24lb 8oz mirror and a 17lb common, David Evett who caught two fish, the best a 24lb 4oz common and Duncan Ansell who caught a 20lb 10oz leather.

Turning to the Old Lake, there were a number of multi bags reported in the week, which included two fish over 25lb, however we are still waiting for details of these fish. Other catches included Mark Savage who caught a 22lb 3oz mirror, James Lilley with a mirror weighing 22lb 8oz, Ben Laverton who caught a 4 fish bag topped by a 20lb 6oz common and Sean Youlton who managed 3 fish topped by a 21lb 8oz mirror.

Great start to season for 10-year-old

2007-06-18T12:00:00.000Z

Ten-year-old schoolboy Bradley Evans got his river season off to a flying start on the Glorious Twelfth - he tempted this 8lb barbel from Dick’s Hole on the Royalty Fishery in Christchurch with a luncheon meat hookbait.
Bradley, whose father Mel runs the popular Royalty View Guest House overlooking the famous venue, had a helping hand from barbel guru Ray Walton who was fishing nearby.

Chub record goes again

2007-06-06T11:38:00.000Z

BRITAIN’S chub record has been beaten again following Andy Maker’s capture of a 9lb 5oz specimen from the same southern Stillwater which produced Steve White’s 9lb 3oz specimen a month ago.
Carper Andy and his son Tom, from Maidstone in Kent, spodded big beds of bait to target the venue’s prolific stock of big carp only to end up scaling down their tackle after they started catching some of the lake’s huge chub.
Fifteen-year-old Tom was the first of the Greys-sponsored pair to get in on the action as he banked four 7lb chub to a new personal best of 7lb 14oz – incredibly he had never caught the species before this, their first trip as members to the exclusive water.
But it was 40-year-old roofer Andy who made history when the massive chub picked up his Mainline test boilie fished at range over a huge spodded bed of chopped boilies, hemp and mixed pellet.
“This venue could well produce the first-ever double-figure chub,”
predicted Mainline and Korda sponsored Andy.

2007-06-05T11:41:00.001Z

An angler has been banned from fishing for two and a half years and fined a total of £400 after leaving a rod unattended and fishing with three rods whilst only holding a single licence. Khan Marshall, 21, of Temple Dene Avenue, Staines, appeared before Woking Magistrates Court on February 9, 2007 and was fined £200 for leaving a rod unattended and a further £200 for fishing with three rods but only holding a single licence. In a rare move reserved for persistent offenders, the court banned Marshall from holding a rod licence for the next two and a half years after taking into account a string of prosecutions dating back to 2002. The court heard that on the July 10, 2006 Marshall had left his rod unattended at the Twynersh Fishing Complex in Chertsey, Surrey contrary to a national byelaw. A month later, on August 13, Environment Agency enforcement officers discovered Marshall at the same fishery using three rods but with only a single rod licence which contravened Section 27(a) of the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975. "Mr Marshall has a long history of flouting the laws of fishing in this country," explained Fisheries Enforcement Officer Graham Haynes. "From his first warning letter in 2002 he has appeared before magistrates three times for failing to hold a rod licence and giving false names and addresses to officers, racking up a total of £650 in fines and costs. "It is very rare for an angler to be banned from holding a rod licence, but this extreme measure was taken because of Mr Marshall's persistent offending. If he is caught fishing within those two and a half years he can expect his equipment to be confiscated, as well as finding himself in court again." According to the Environment Agency, more than £600,000 was paid in fines and costs by more than 4,400 illegal anglers during 2006 for fishing without a rod licence. In addition, 40 anglers received cautions from the courts. In the first month of 2007 more than 500 cases of fishing without a valid rod licence were brought in front of the courts by the Environment Agency, resulting in nearly £70,000 in fines and costs. Cautions were also issued to eight anglers. Fishing for salmon, trout, freshwater fish and eels in England and Wales requires a licence from the Environment Agency. Failure to have a licence is an offence and those caught fishing illegally face penalties including fines of up to £2,500. The protection of vulnerable fish stocks and increasing fishing participation are among the Environment Agency's key environmental objectives. The money raised through rod licence sales; some £ 19 million a year, is invested directly in fisheries work that benefits all anglers as well as protecting the environment.

Source - Fisheries.co.uk

Year's biggest bream brace landed

2007-06-04T11:38:00.000Z

THE biggest bream brace of the year has been taken by Dai Gribble from a large Home Counties gravel pit.
The Environment Agency worker from Stafford took fish weighing 17lb 4oz and 16lb 4oz just an hour apart after baiting a long range mark heavily with a mixture of pellets, wheat, groats and hemp and presenting an 11mm halibut pellet over the top.
Read Tuesday's AT for full details of the amazing brace.

Biggest carp brace in UK history

2007-06-04T11:36:00.000Z

THE biggest carp brace in UK history has been taken by Jon McAllister with fish of 59lb 2oz and 47lb from the The Manor Farm syndicate in Kent.
The 38-year-old tiler from Kent took the amazing quick fire double from a weedy corner of the lake, beginning with the ‘The Northern Linear’ at an impressive 47lb just two hours after casting out. After rebaiting, he then rested his swim overnight, and then took the big one – the much sought after Annie – early the next morning.
Full details and pictures of the catch in next week’s AT.

Ireland back to its best

2007-06-04T11:28:00.000Z

IRELAND has long been heralded to be one of Europe’s leading venues for big bags of bream, and it’s easy to see why when it produces nets like Andrew Bradley’s 215lb haul.
The Gomersal, West Yorkshire-based angler took the huge bag, plus another of 174lb, during two day-long visits to a stillwater in County Cavan which he prebaited the evening before each session with 30 balls of groundbait.
Read next week’s AT for details about the location Andrew visited, plus the tactics he adopted..

Church banks 'catch of a lifetime'

2007-06-04T08:06:00.000Z

TWO casts was all angling legend Bob Church needed to take an incredible brace of big carp, topped by this stunning 44lb lightly scaled mirror.
The Northants-based specimen angler took the new personal best fish, along with another mirror carp of 22lb, from a seven-acre East Midlands stillwater.
See Tuesday's AT for full details of Bob’s ‘catch of a lifetime’.

National Fishing Festival gets the thumbs up from the governing bodies

2007-06-01T09:21:00.000Z

This years ambitious plans to host a National Festival of Fishing have recieved an enormous boost, as the sports governing bodies have this week announced their support.

Over half a million people are expected to take part in the event this year which begins on the 21st July with National Fishing week and carries on right throughout the summer holidays with the ‘Take a friend fishing Campaign’.

Sean O’Driscoll, the chairman of the Angling Trades Association, (ATA), who are responsible for delivering this initiative on behalf of the industry, had this to say, ‘ we are delighted with the news that the NFA, NFSA, S&TA and FACT are all committed to this years plans. The objective of this campaign is simply to introduce large numbers of non-anglers or lapsed anglers into our sport, irrespective of the discipline’.

It is clear to all parties that angling, like many other traditional sports, is suffering from a lack of newcomers. ‘There are so many alternative sports and pastimes available to all ages’ said Paul Bagaley, the chief executive of the National Federation of Anglers, (NFA), who went on to say, ‘participation campaigns such as National Fishing Week and Take a Friend Fishing are key to the health of the sport. We at the NFA are extremely committed to such campaigns and our Clubs & Coaches are being encouraged to participate every step of the way’.

National Fishing Week for many years was recognised as a coarse fishing campaign, but since the ATA’s involvement it is becoming the participation event for the whole industry. David Rowe from the National Federation of Sea Anglers, NFSA, commented, ‘the NFSA had little to do with National Fishing Week until about 3 years ago. We had always created our own participation events; however being part of the whole media bandwagon that surrounds this National campaign definitely benefits our clubs, coaches and members enormously. We are very proud to be part of National Fishing Week and will also be encouraging as many of our members to take a friend fishing during August’.

Like everything in life these days, the Internet is making a big difference. The speed at which information can be relayed across all sectors of the industry is such a benefit, Paul Knight of the Salmon & Trout Association made this very valid point, ‘in previous decades it was often more difficult, cumbersome and expensive to activate effective campaigns with our own members, let alone members and fellow enthusiasts from the Coarse or Sea sectors. Now all we do is have a brief conversation, send an email, attachment and website link and within no time at all, we know what is happening, where when and how.
We are able to communicate so much better and this is having a positive effect on the industry’.

Richard Wightman from the Environment Agency, who continue to pledge both monetary and grass root support for these initiatives is delighted with this news and said, ‘I am delighted to see so much cooperation and interaction between the sectors of angling. This will have a positive impact on the sport this summer and should introduce many newcomers to the environment of Great Britain.’

For further information on National Fishing Week & Take a friend fishing you can visit their websites on:
www.nationalfishingweek.co.uk
www.takeafriendfishing.co.uk

Fly fishing beginners day 'a great success'

2007-05-10T09:18:00.000Z

If you hear only stories of division between angling disciplines, it may come as a pleasant surprise to know the Angling Times Team asked us "fluff chuckers" to come over to their on-line forum to give advice on their newly created Game Fishing Board http://forum.anglingtimes.co.uk/forumlive/
Not only did we receive a warm welcome from the "maggot drowners" we soon found ourselves overwhelmed for requests on advice such as; tackle, how to get started and where people could get lessons to help them break into Fly-Fishing without spending a lot of money up front, i.e. a "Try before you Fly!" option. It soon dawned on us that a "beginners day" was the only way forward!.
Trying to keep things informal and affordable, we were able to find people prepared to travel from all parts of the UK to give up their May Bank Holiday to "Buddy-a-Novice" at a small Stillwater in the East Midlands region.
From London, Liverpool, Malvern, Birmingham, Lincoln and Derbyshire we had our "Buddies" travel purely on a voluntary basis to lend a hand on the day, then just as we were wondering which one of us was going to get the short straw on the casting lessons, we got word that a professional APGAI instructor was offering his services. Andy Smith www.fishconsulting.net agreed to be our Lead instructor and suddenly our rag-tag bunch of amateurs could breath a sigh of relief.
I cannot emphasise enough how having a professional instructor such as Andy made such a difference to the students. While not forgetting our buddies who equally gave freely of time and tackle, the tuition given by Andy/APGAI is first class.
As for the venue, again we were lucky, we didn't have far to look to find a small picturesque still water just a few miles off the A1 near Grantham. A lovely little trout lake tucked away on the Lincs/Leicestershire border in the village of Buckminster was the perfect venue to "borrow" for the day courtesy of the owner Buckminster Farms and the Fishery Managers Nigel and Sue Smith (Tel: 01476 860297, Email: fishing@buckminsterfarms.co.uk). Buckminster is quintessential England and the estate lake is neatly maintained, safe, easy access, well stocked and has very easy casting over 90% of its area, all-in-all the perfect beginners venue. Buckminster Farms offered the students £10 "2-fish" tickets and Sue and Nigel even provided BBQ where Sue cooked some of the fish we caught in delicious oriental sauce with rice and salad.
Making sure we had safety in mind, we had trained first aid people amongst the buddies, everyone wearing caps and sunglasses, and a very thorough safety talk on the do's and don'ts for the day by Andy Smith. Casting Lessons on the ample grassy area was followed by lunch and at this point Andy being pleased with the progress by all the students, we tackled up and headed for the lake. The EA had provided all the students with a license dispensation for the day, so trained/armed and legal we set about the noble art of fly-fishing.
It wasn't 30 minutes into the fishing Session when our youngest student of the day, seven year old Joe Robinson was into a fish!, helped by his Dad who was one of the buddies on the day Joe scooped himself first fish prize presented below by Andy Smith. Windy conditions eventually got the better of us and by 4pm most people had caught fish or lost them in the process of landing as the fighting quality of the Buckminster Trout got the better of a few people.
Finally, we have to say a huge THANKYOU to Steve Cole at Angling Times and Russell Hill from Trout Fisherman who donated 3 Fly-Fishing rods as prizes, we also had a Scierra fly vest, Game Fishing book, Orvis fly patches and a Fishing Day with Dinner thrown in for one of the Buddies all donated by www.anglersvoice.com.
We will be working with Trout Fisherman and Angling Times to try and repeat this in different areas around the UK so if you know of any Coarse Angler or fishing beginner that would be interested in joining one of these days, please join us on line and we'll see what we can do. Anyone living in the Lincs/Leics/Nottingham/Northampton area who wishes to have paid lessons on a one-to-one or small group basis would be well advised to contact Andy Smith and arrange a day at Buckminster Lake.
Kevin Swinscoe

Benson banked at 55lb

2007-05-09T09:26:00.000Z

A PACKET of shelflife boilies was all Shaun Park needed to bank the country’s biggest common carp - the mighty ‘Benson’ weighing a whopping 55lb 14oz.
The 31-year-old from Hunsbury, Lincs, more than doubled his personal best by taking the huge fish on only his second session at Bluebell’s Kingfisher Lake.
Shaun used a Dynamite Baits Source boilie hookbait, fished in conjunction with a pva stick over a bed of 60 free offerings.

Double figure tench equals PB

2007-05-08T10:51:00.000Z

Tony Ward visited Startops Reservoir on the Tring venue to tempt this 10lb 2oz tench.
The local 51-year-old fished groundbait feeder tactics at 60 yards over a bed of hemp and maggots to catch the personal best-equalling fish. He also caught a 12lb 2oz bream in the same session.

Wellington linear ends winter-long campaign

2007-05-01T15:20:00.000Z

ONE of Wellington Country Park’s more elusive residents has recently graced the net of Ken Beech in the form of this stunning 38lb 12oz linear.
The 36-year-old Angling Intelligence consultant saw several carp showing in a weedy area in front of his swim, so rather than risking poor presentation in the weed he baited a clear area near where the fish were showing with 1kg of Dynamite Baits Monster Tiger Nut boilies.
Later that afternoon a steady take occurred and Ken found himself attached to the stunning linear which he has been after all winter.
25lb Sufix Black Silt hooklinks tied to size 8 Korda Wide Gape proved successful.

Hinders boss banks 31lb mirror

2007-04-30T07:56:00.000Z

A RECENT four fish catch was topped by this cracking 31lb 6oz mirror for Bryan Jarret on a Gloucestershire syndicate water.
The Hinders boss fished close in with PVA bags of Hinders Blitz Multi Mix and Mini Combo Pellets and a 12mm Blitz boilie on the hair.
His haul also consisted of two twenties including a 28lb common.
Bryan got the fish to the net with a Fox 10lb Illusion hooklink fixed to a Fox SSC hook. This was fished in conjunction with an Atomic Dung Bomb lead.

Lane continues good form

2007-04-27T08:21:00.000Z

GREG Lane’s rich vein of form on a tricky Cambs syndicate water has continued, most recently with the capture of this superb 28lb common carp.
Long range tactics proved successful for the 21-year-old from Ely, Cambs when he cast a single Mistral Baits pop-up to a showing fish at 120yds.
Greg mounted his hookbait on a size 7 ESP Stiff Rigger hook tied to a 15lb Korda Hybrid hooklink.

Schoolboy masters pole tactics for impressive haul

2007-04-26T09:20:00.000Z

HANDLING six metres of pole is no easy task, but young Tom Supple managed the feat with no trouble at all to bank this 4lb 2oz bream, plus a common carp of 12lb 8oz, during a recent visit to a stillwater near his Bridgend, Mid-Glamorgan home.
The seven-year old schoolboy used double red maggot on a size 16 hook and 3lb 2oz line to land both fish during a trip with his father Keith.

Loch Lomond guide bags 22lb predator

2007-04-24T16:07:00.000Z

AFTER struggling to get a bite for most of the winter on venues in the Lake District, Russell McDonald headed to a stillwater closer to his Rawtenstall, Lancs home to take this 22lb pike, his tenth fish over 20lb from the water.
In bitterly cold conditions, Russell (36) who works as a guide on Scotland’s Loch Lomond, tempted the predator on a deadbait jack pike in just 3ft of water from his only run of the day.

4lb 4oz stripey banked after 20-year angling break

2007-04-24T08:04:00.000Z

AFTER a 20-year break, Ray Newman returned to angling with a bang by banking this huge 4lb 4oz perch on one of his first trips back in the fold.
Ray (57), from Holland-On-Sea in Essex, took the new personal best stripey during a session at Narborough trout and course fishery near King’s Lynn in Norfolk, beating his old best of 1lb 4oz – caught 22 years ago – and the lake record (3lb 4oz) in the process.
The memorable catch came at the end of a day spent taking smaller samples on simple floatfishing tactics, with two casters on a size 16 hook accounting for all of Ray’s fish.

Historic trout brace landed

2007-04-23T09:48:00.000Z

THIS huge 23lb 6oz Ferox trout and another specimen tipping the scales at 22lb made up the biggest brace of the species ever landed.
Stephen Pounder made the historic capture during a seven-day stint on the daunting Loch Awe in Scotland that saw him bank six fish for an impressive 77lb 4oz total.
Read full details of the catch in tomorrow’s AT.

Angling museum in the pipeline

2007-04-20T08:03:00.000Z

Angling Times can exclusively reveal plans this week for the UK’s first ever National Angling Museum…and is calling for readers to provide items to fill it.
The project is the brainchild of Neil Freeman, the highly respected entrepreneur behind Angling Auctions who is so ‘embarassed’ by the lack of such a facility for anglers that he has decided to go about creating it with the help of the National Trust.
Neil is currently in the final stages of securing an exclusive location at the Trust’s Mottisfont Abbey Estate near Romsey, Hampshire, to build the proposed 750m2 acre site. The estate already receives 140,000 visitors per annum, so seen as an ideal place to raise the profile of angling.
Read full details of the ambitious project, plus details of how you could help, in this week’s AT.

Yet another 3lb roach for Stone

2007-04-19T07:58:00.000Z

TOM Stone rounded off his campaign at roach mecca Linch Hill in fine style by banking this 3lb 6oz specimen, part of a superb five-fish catch which also included redfins of 3lb 1oz 8dr and 2lb 15oz 8dr.
The impressive haul, taken during a 48-hour session at the prestigious Oxfordshire venue, means that Tom (33), from Storrington in West Sussex, took eight fish over the magical 3lb mark in just four short trips this season - an incredible strike rate of big fish considering the number of smaller shoal fish which inhabit the water.
Read all about Tom’s successful tactics in this week’s Angling Times.

Dace record holder bags monster catfish

2007-04-17T14:52:00.000Z

BRITISH dace record holder Simon Ashton swapped his beloved River Wear for Spain’s mighty River Segre to take this impressive half albino catfish weighing 183lb.
The 31-year-old from County Durham took the huge specimen during a week’s holiday with friends on the river above Mequinenza, beating his old pb for the species by over 50lb in the process.
Read the full story in this week’s Angling Times.

4lb stripey tops trio of speci perch

2007-04-17T08:32:00.000Z

THIS massive 4lb 12oz perch was the pick from a trio of fine specimens taken by Mark Darnell during a short session at Grange Farm Fishery, near Tetford in Lincolnshire.
The 34-year-old van driver from Hull tempted the new personal best, along with other stripeys weighing 2lb 6oz and 2lb 2oz, on worm hookbaits.
More details in tomorrow’s AT.

Stars out in force for Barbel Society Conference

2007-04-16T09:20:00.000Z

THE Barbel Society has announced a star-studded line-up for their annual conference at the Hinckley Island Hotel in Leicestershire on Sunday 13th May.
As well as talks by Stuart Morgan, Lee Swords, Fred Crouch, Dave Mason, Graham Elliot and Ashley Burton, the event will also feature a vast array of tackle stands, bait and rig tutorials, and a Wallis casting tutorial from Chris Lythe.
Leading lights such as Pete Reading, Trefor West and Peter Wheat will also be on hand to answer questions.
Doors open at 8.30am and to secure a place, send an SAE and a cheque for £20 made payable to the Barbel Society to Phil Betteley, 95 Elworth Road, Sandbach, Cheshire, CW11 3HJ.

Carp session produces pb bream

2007-04-11T11:18:00.000Z

A FOUR-day roach session on a day ticket carp water only produced five bites for Matt Brown – but they resulted in a personal best carp of 23lb 10oz and this pb bream weighing 10lb 3oz.
The Doncaster-0based Don Valley Specimen Group member was fishing bolt-rigged maggot feeder tactics to a gravel patch amongst silt at 40 yards to catch the fish, plus another carp of 19lb 5oz, an eel and a roach of 2lb 1ooz.
All Matt’s fish fell to single red maggot hookbaits and were beaten on short 0.11mm Reflo Powerline hooklinks and size 20 Kamasan B611 hooks.

Suffolk Water Park produces 26lb pike

2007-04-10T11:23:00.000Z

THIS 26lb 8oz pike fell to Gary Sargent’s floatfished livebait on the penultimate day of Suffolk Water Park’s predator season, smashing his pb by more than 17lb in the process.
Haverhill, Suffolk-based occasional angler Gary was fishing with friends in the shallows on the Ipswich fishery’s Big Fish Lake when he took the huge specimen.
Full details in this week’s AT.

'The Parrot' breaks River Dove barbel record

2007-04-05T09:57:00.000Z

THE River Dove barbel record was broken no fewer than three times over the final weeks of the season, but it was John Pawlowski who finished top with this 16lb 4oz specimen.
Stoke-on-Trent-based John caught the fish known as 'The Parrot' – because of its snub-nosed appearance – during the last week by legering a Dynamite boilie and PVA bags of pellets in the margins.
Welder John, who set a personal best of 16lb 13oz when he caught Red Belly from the Great Ouse some years ago, put the catch down to ‘being in the right place at the right time’.
“The fish gave a decent fight, plodding and powerful, and I knew it was a good fish,” said John. “Once I opened the mesh I knew which fish it was and that it was 16lb-plus.”
He beat the new river record with a 25lb Kryston Mantis hooklink and a size 6 Owner hook.

Four speci roach banked in single session

2007-04-04T08:04:00.000Z

THESE four pristine specimen roach formed just part of a sensational net of the species taken from a local stillwater by Dorset–based specimen hunter Tim Norman.
Tim, from Sturminster Newton, adopted simple floatfishing tactics to catch more than 60 redfins in just four action-packed hours on the water, including this quartet of 1lb 15oz, 2lb 1oz, 2lb 7oz and 2lb 9oz.
Double red maggot presented on a size 18 hook with 2lb mainline proved the winning combination for Tim.
For more big fish news check out Angling Times.

Carp water produces 2lb 10oz roach

2007-04-03T13:04:00.000Z

A ROACH session on a day ticket carp water in the Midlands led to Adam Robert’s capture of this new personal best 2lb 10oz roach.
The Don Valley Specimen Group member fished a bolt-rig set up featuring a 50gr Kamasan Black Cap swimfeeder and short, 1.5ins Reflo Powerline hooklinks to tempt the big redfin with a red maggot presented on a size 20 B611 hook, beating his old best of 2lb 8oz caught from Tyrham Hall near Doncaster.
The Doncaster-based welder then headed back home where he managed to catch perch to 3lb 4oz legering lobworm hookbaits on a northern match venue.
For more big fish news check out this week's Angling Times.

Warwick bags 200lb catfish

2007-04-03T08:30:00.000Z

FRANK Warwick kicked off his catfishing career in spectacular style by banking this enormous 203lb specimen from Spain’s River Segre on his first ever trip targeting the species
Better known as big carp angler, Frank (47), from Wilmslow in Cheshire, took the huge cat while fishing with fellow carpers Jason Cann and Ardy Veltkampts, but almost missed out making the memorable catch after discovering the tackle he had taken with him to Spain wasn’t up to the job.
More details in this week’s AT.

Monster bagged on return to angling

2007-03-30T07:56:00.000Z

A TRIP to Blenheim Palace’s estate lake in Oxfordshire saw 79-year-old Rowland Warren smash his personal best for perch out of sight with this plump 4lb 9oz specimen.
Having only just taken up fishing again after many years away from the sport, Rowland had to wait all afternoon for the big stripeys to go on the feed, but when they did he enjoyed a period of frantic action, banking the big one plus others of 2lb 8oz and 3lb, along with two tench to 5lb 8oz.

Error found in Sensas Final results

2007-03-28T15:06:00.000Z

AFTER checking the results from last weekend’s Sensas Challenge 2007 Final, match organiser Mark Downes has revealed that the scores were wrong and in fact Leicester Sensas, not Kamasan Starlets were the champions.
Fished on the Stainforth & Keadby Canal over two days to international rules it was originally thought that Downes’ Starlets team had triumphed over Leicester by 1.5 points but after rechecking the scores, Mark admitted that an error had been made on day one and that Leicester had in fact triumphed by that 1.5 point margin.
“I’ve already apologised to Leicester and ensured the trophies are on their way to them,” Mark said. “I came across an error from day one that basically swung the result the other way around so congratulations to Leicester Sensas and good luck to them in the French final in October.”

Father and son bag speci chub brace

2007-03-28T09:00:00.000Z

Chub don’t come much bigger than the two Thames specimens caught by Robert Erdwin and his son Mark (pictured).
Retired, 65-year-old Robert, from Three Mile Cross in Berkshire, banked a personal best 8lb lump, while his 28-year-old son Mark managed one almost as big at 7lb 8oz, another pb.
The pair legered 15mm halibut pellets during an all-day session on the river at Pangbourne on the penultimate day of the river season.
They fished with 2oz running leads, 7lb Reflo Powerline hooklinks and size 8 Kamasan hooks over a mixture of trout pellets and liquidised bread.

Dream stillwater brace for Storey

2007-03-27T11:24:00.000Z

ALAN Storey has made a final assault on this year’s Drennan Cup by catching a 4lb 11oz perch and a 3lb 9oz roach from a southern gravel pit in the same session.
The Witney, Oxfordshire-based specimen angler feeder-fished maggots over a hard gravel bottom in one of the venue’s less popular swims to tempt the stunning brace, which included the new personal best stripey.
The magical catch is the icing on the cake for Alan, who has had a memorable season, setting no fewer than 11 personal bests for a range of species.
Full details in Tuesday's Angling Times.

Solved: monster pike mystery

2007-03-26T15:01:00.001Z

FOLLOWING an incredible response from readers all over Europe, Angling Times can exclusively reveal the amazing truth about the monster pike featured on last week’s front page (pictured).
Many people originally believed the fish was from a lake in North America, while others thought the Baltic region or the Rhineland area of Germany a more likely location.
Estimates on its possible weight, phoned in by numerous renowned big-fish anglers, also varied wildly, with most putting it at somewhere between 50lb and 65lb.
In the end it was a call from an AT reader in the Netherlands which brought the mystery to a close.
Read the full story in Tuesday's Angling Times….

Another twenty for legend Bob

2007-03-26T09:38:00.000Z

ANGLING Times legend Bob Church capped off a great winter’s pike fishing with the capture of this 21lb 8oz specimen.
The Northants-based England fly-fishing international turned specimen angler targeted a local Northamptonshire gravel pit with a white and red diving plug to tempt the fish, his seventh twenty of the season.
Full details in Tuesday's Angling Times.

UK Carp/Daiwa Championships

2007-03-21T12:33:00.000Z

UK Carp is launching the biggest competition the carp world has ever seen… with a staggering £20,000 first prize up for grabs.
The UK Carp/Daiwa Championships is a national pairs event run across the country at some of Britain’s top day ticket venues and club waters, such as Bluebell Lakes, CEMEX’s Sandhurst, and Suffolk Water Park.
The event will be based around regional 24hr qualifiers and anglers of all ages and abilities are eligible to take part. The winning pair will make it through to a 30-team grand final on Linear Fisheries’ prolific Brasenose venue.
Entry is £200 per pair, per qualifier and an entry form will be printed in the new issue of UK Carp which is in newsagents now.

2007-03-19T17:36:00.000Z

ANGLING Times is this week launching a quest to find the truth behind the capture of this stunning monster pike, thought to be the biggest ever caught by rod and line anywhere in the world.
Pictures of the huge fish, which some believe could weigh anything up to 60lb, first began doing the rounds last year, although pictures of it have never before made it into print in the UK.

If you are the captor, or know him, or know anything about the catch, please contact Angling Times on 01733 465673.

Fin-Perfect Stour Redfin

2007-03-16T16:31:00.000Z

Coloured water conditions have seen the big roach of the southern rivers go on the feed, as the aptly named Dave Roach found during a recent trip to the Dorset Stour.
The 52-year-old from Bournemouth banked one of the best redfins of the season – this immaculate 3lb 3oz specimen – from the middle reaches of the river after adopting maggot feeder tactics and presenting two red grubs on a size 20 hook.

Get In There Jacob!

2007-03-16T16:26:00.000Z

Start them off young – that was Stuart Gillespie’s thinking when he took his four-year-old son Jacob fishing on the River Devon.
The delighted youngster caught this perfect perch on a worm while fishing the a stretch of the river near Newark on Trent from Stuart’s father-in-law’s back garden.

Double Crowns Return

2007-03-16T16:22:00.000Z

After over 20 years away from the sport, Bernard Glover crowned his return with a new personal best barbel weighing 11lb 8oz.
Bernard’s son Sean encouraged his dad to accompany him on a trip to the Bristol Avon where he legered luncheon meat to tempt the impressive specimen.

Garlic Spam's A Winner

2007-03-15T14:34:00.000Z

IT WAS a case of more haste, less speed when John Doyle snapped his rod in his rush to get to his favourite barbel peg - but it didn’t stop him banking this 15lb St Patrick’s Stream specimen.
An hour after arriving, John found himself back in business and, with a replacement rod, was attached to his new personal best which found his large piece of legered garlic spam too tempting to resist.

Pike Biggest to A Lady

2007-03-15T14:26:00.000Z

THIS massive 39lb 8oz pike caught by Lyn Baker is the biggest ever landed by a lady angler.
The 32-year-old Specsavers manager, from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, tempted the specimen with a floatfished sardine during a day afloat on 500-acre Scottish venue The Lake of Mentieth.
Lyn smashed her previous best twice in two hours during the Pike Anglers' Club event, landing a staggering 61lb 1oz brace of predators.
"I just sat there shaking for about 40 minutes - it was a truly amazing feeling," said Lyn.

Tel Targets The Rivers

2007-03-15T13:59:00.000Z

Carp legend Terry Hearn managed to tempt this beautiful 4lb 2oz perch during a session on a stretch of the tidal Thames in London.Drennan-sponsored Terry floatfished a small chublet under one of his father Barry’s homemade floats to tempt the specimen stripey.The Boxhill, Surrey-based carper also managed a trip to Berkshire’s River Kennet where he trotted a single white maggot on a size 18 hook to catch a brace of big dace weighing 1lb 6dr and 13oz 8dr.

Study That!

2007-03-15T13:56:00.000Z

A SIX hundred mile round trip saw Andy Dalby smash his chub personal best when he scooped up this 7lb 9oz Dorset Stour specimen.
The Chub Study Group chairman legered a cheesepaste wrapped boilie under the rod top on a flooded river to tempt a fish which beat his previous biggest by over a pound.

THIS WEEKEND!

2007-03-13T16:29:00.000Z

The best fishing show of the year is finally here! This year’s event promises to be better then ever, with new features, great shopping and fishing celebrities it really is Europe’s biggest and best fishing show.
Visit the Angling Times Live Super Theatre and the UK Carp Theatre where you’ll be able to get advice from John Wilson, Matt Hayes, Terry Hearn, Steve Ringer and more plus be entertained in our great quiz, A Question of Fishing. Manufacturers will be showcasing their latest products and you’ll be able to try it all out at the show. They’ll be free coaching from the PAA, simulators where you can experience catching big fish and you can shop ‘til you drop in our retail village.
Whether you’re a coarse, carp, game or sea fisherman the Go Fishing Show is a great day out for anyone.

New Trent Record

2007-03-13T15:55:00.001Z

Kevin Speed smashed the River Trent barbel record out of sight with a massive 17lb 2oz specimen from a tidal stretch of the east Midlands waterway.
The huge fish made one half of a stunning brace for over 30lb and fell to a homemade 18mm barrel-shaped fishmeal boilie to beat the existing Trent record - Ray Bayes’ February 2005 fish - by 10oz.
“I’ve only been barbelling for about three years and my previous best was about 9lb, so when I caught the 13lb 4oz fish just before midnight I was over the moon,” Lincoln-based Kev told Angling Times.

Twentieth 30lb Pike

2007-03-13T15:50:00.000Z

PIKE enthusiast Derek MacDonald made fishing history this week by banking his twentieth 30lb-plus pike in the shape of this 30lb 5oz specimen.
Corby, Northants-based Derek drift float-fished a large trout livebait to tempt the huge predator during a session fishing top trout water, Elinor Fishery near Thrapston in Northamptonshire.
The capture makes Derek only the second-ever predator angler to reach the incredible 20 fish milestone, behind Nige Williams.

Speed Feeder tactic leads to 10lb barbel

2007-03-08T11:19:00.000Z

WENDY Perry continued her recent run of form with the capture of a 10lb personal best barbel taken from the River Ribble.
Using the ‘speed feeder’ method used by Bob Nudd published in a recent edition of Angling Times, the angler from Oldham, Lancs, took the fish with a maggot hookbait.

Enter now for the Maver Pairs

2007-03-07T15:22:00.000Z

Places are filling up fast for the UK's biggest and best pairs match, the Angling Times Maver Pairs. The national competition, which sees 25 eliminators take place around the country, kicks off on April 28 with the final on August 18 at the Maver Larford Complex.
There are still pegs left for many of the qualifiers, but they are filling up fast. So, for your chance to win the £10,000 first prize for the winning pair, check out the Maver Pairs page within the Match section on this website.

Old Bury Hill produces speci crucian

2007-03-07T10:01:00.000Z

THE famous Old Bury Hill Fisheries in Surrey has fished well all through the winter and it continued to do so when it produced what’s believed to be a 4lb 5oz crucian.
A single red maggot offered on pole tackle and a size 20 hook was enough to tempt the fish that was landed by Mark Seymour, a local angler from Morden.

UK Carp launches 'the biggest prize in carping'

2007-03-06T12:44:00.000Z

A cool £20,000 first prize is up-for-grabs in the newly launched UK Carp/Daiwa Championships, a national pairs event run across the country at Britain's day ticket venues and club waters.
It's open to anglers of all abilities and ages and is based around regional 24-hour qualifiers. The winning pair will make it through to a 30-team grand final on Linear Fisheries' prolific Brasenose.
More details can be found on the website Homepage.

Everard banks another brace of 2lb roach

2007-03-05T16:00:00.000Z

RIVER roach specialist Mark Everard has been at it again, this time banking a superb brace of specimens that tipped the scales at 2lb 12oz and 2lb 7oz.
After finding the conditions against him on his latest trip to the Bristol Avon, Mark, from Great Somerton in Wiltshire, had to work several miles of river to locate the fish.
The combination of a feeder packed with liquidised bread and a breadflake hookbait proved the winning combination, with 4lb mainline and a size 12 hook completing his set-up.

Empson ends three-year quest for a '20'

2007-03-05T09:45:00.000Z

A THREE season-long campaign for a 20lb pike from his local rivers finally ended in joy for Doncaster-based Trevor Empson after he banked this River Torne specimen weighing 21lb 12oz.
The Don Valley Specimen Group angler floatlegered a lamprey section to tempt the new personal best, which comes only a few weeks after he banked a 20lb 2oz specimen from the Stainforth and Keadby Canal.
Trev is now targeting a stillwater with the aim of completing a memorable hat trick of Yorkshire ‘20s’.

Go Fishing joins forces with Sky Sports

2007-03-02T10:44:00.000Z

The UK's premier fishing show, Go Fishing, has joined forces with Sky Sports to bring you the all-new Angling Times Super Theatre at the March 16-18 NEC event.
Sky is the home of televised fishing in the UK and Ireland, with programming dedicated to your favourite sport that provide fantastic viewing all year round.
Viewers of Sky Sports will be familiar with Tight Lines, Sky’s weekly magazine show dedicated to all things angling. Presented by Keith Arthur, the show features special guests, features, a viewers’ phone-in and tips from the top. It’s a fun-filled hour and must-watch viewing.
Sky Sports shows live coverage of Fish 'O' Mania, the UK’s leading coarse fishing match in July with £25,000 up for grabs for the winner, together with shows such as Bass Fishing, Thinking Tackle and Carpfest, Carpshow and Extreme Carp.
And don’t forget to check out skysports.com, which boasts its own fishing section featuring the latest news, programme schedule, tournament information and links. Go to skysports.com for more information. For more details on the show log-on to www.gofishingshow.com

Storey banks three Thames 'sixes'

2007-03-02T09:09:00.000Z

Oxford-based big fish angler Alan Storey looked to follow up his impressive roach and perch catches with a big chub
He succeeded in style by slipping his net under three Thames ‘sixes’, topped by a new personal best specimen weighing 6lb 15oz.
Three months of short evening sessions and consistent baiting up saw Alan finally strike gold during a trip to a town stretch of the river in the Oxford area.

Yet another 'double' for Smith

2007-03-01T15:45:00.000Z

‘MAKE mine a double!’ - that’s what Phil Smith was looking for from Wales’ River Taff and that’s what he got in the form of this 11lb 5oz barbel.
Coventry-based Phil has now banked ‘doubles’ from 16 different rivers so far this season – he netted five barbel on his latest two day trip, topped by an 11lb 13oz specimen.

Fishing aids kids' 'social development'

2007-03-01T09:41:00.000Z

Taking your child fishing is a magical experience, but it also has the huge benefit of playing an important role in a child's development.
That's according to Dr Julie Coultas, a social psychologist with a particular interest in education: "Children love taking part in what they see as an adult's activity and they can gain a huge sense of achievement in catching a fish."
Jessica (pictured) and Ben Williams, aged eight and five, from Bridgnorth, are both keen anglers who love spending time fishing with their Dad because it's 'exciting' as Ben puts it.
This news follows the announcement that the Go Fishing Show, taking place at the NEC between March 16-18, is offering free entry to all accompanied under 15s. There will also be an array of child friendly attractions, including professional coaching and a treasure hunt.
For more information log-on to: www.gofishingshow.com

7lb chub tops 'best fishing session in 20 years'

2007-02-28T14:29:00.000Z

BOB Reynold’s decision to go fishing instead of tackling some DIY proved a wise one after he enjoyed his best fishing session in over 20 years, topped by the capture of a huge 7lb 5oz chub.
By the end of the visit he’d landed six chub for a 30lb total and the biggest fish of his impressive haul beats his previous biggest that stood at 6lb 1oz that was taken from the same venue just a week before.

Biggest chub of season banked

2007-02-28T09:26:00.000Z

THE biggest river chub of the season so far – this stunning 8lb 4oz specimen - has been taken by Danny Taylor from the Dorset Stour.
The fitness instructor dropped into the only fishable swim on a free stretch of the southern river and legered a new, ‘secret’ fishy bait under the near bank to get the all-important bite within just two minutes of dropping in.
“I thought I’d caught a record when I first saw it in the net. And to think I almost didn’t bother getting out of bed because the weather was so bad,” said Danny.

Chew Valley produces three 30lb pike

2007-02-27T11:07:00.000Z

ONE of the UK’s most productive big pike waters continues its rich run of form with the capture of three 30 lb-plus specimens, topped by a fish weighing 34lb 6oz.
Tony Squibbs took the giant, which beat his personal best for the species by over 20lb, on a mackerel deadbait during a recent visit to Chew Valley Reservoir near Bristol.
For the full story check out Angling Times, on-sale today!

Worm 'the size of an eel' tempts perch brace

2007-02-26T11:34:00.000Z

AFTER an afternoon’s fishing on the River Don was scuppered by floodwater, Lee Swords decided to head to a nearby commercial lake, where he enjoyed some great perch sport and banked this superb brace scaling 2lb 15oz and 1lb 9oz. The Sheffield-based chef fished chopped worm in the feeder and a lobworm ‘the size of an eel’ on the hook to tempt his fish during a short afternoon session.

Theo bags Bristol Avon speci roach

2007-02-20T16:19:00.000Z

A SHORT evening session spent targeting the Bristol Avon’s roach led to Terry ‘Theo’ Theobold’s capture of this new personal best 2lb 7oz roach.
The 49-year-old, from Caldicot in Monmouthshire, adopted maggot feeder tactics to fool the specimen, plus others of 2lb and 1lb 14oz from the middle reaches of the Wiltshire river.
Terry has since been over to the Hampshire Avon to take an even bigger 3lb 2oz specimen, which will be in the 27th February edition of Angling Times.

Keith swaps rod for make-up brush

2007-02-19T14:43:00.000Z

Ever the TV professional, Tight Lines front man Keith Arthur was overjoyed to get his hands dirty when Angling Times’ very own marketing princess Leynah Bruce paid a visit to the Sky Sports studio.
Aided by his guest on the show, Korda’s Danny Fairbrass, Keith was more than happy to help apply Leynah’s make-up prior to their meeting about Sky’s involvement at the forthcoming Go Fishing Show.
Feel free to give Keith ample stick in the Angling Times Forums!

pb pike falls for 'kebab rig'

2007-02-19T10:59:00.000Z

THIS new personal best 15lb pike was caught by Linda Billington on a Mick Brown ‘kebab rig’ or lamprey chunks.
The 49-year-old sales manager, from Luton in Bedfordshire, also caught fish weighing 10lb and 8lb during her piking session on local fishery Park Farm.
She beat the fish with a size 2 catfish hook and a 30lb Fox Carboflex trace.

Thames session produces nine perch over 3lb

2007-02-16T15:58:00.000Z

THIS cracking brace of big Thames perch was part of an incredible catch of the species made by John Gard that included nine fish over 3lb.
Wading a stretch of the lower Thames, the Richmond-based black cab driver trotted lobworm and red maggot hookbaits to tempt the brace of specimen stripeys weighing 4lb and 3lb 10oz, plus a raft of other lumps.
He ended his session with 21 perch, seven of which weighed over 2lb and eight over 3lb, including two at 3lb 10oz and two at 3lb 8oz.
Full story in next week’s AT.

See the stars at Go Fishing

2007-02-15T14:25:00.000Z

Number one media personality Keith Arthur will be the host of this year’s brand new feature, the Angling Times Live Super Theatre. Here you'll get money-can’t-buy advice and see great demonstrations from the World’s top anglers. Matt Hayes, John Wilson, Danny Fairbrass, Dean Macey and Kevin Green will take you behind the scenes of your favourite Discovery and Sky Sports series.
Bob Nudd and Des Taylor will be the team captains in the Angling Times quiz of the year, A Question of Fishing. Bob and Des will be joined by Matt Hayes, Steve Ringer and many more special guests as they battle it out to prove who really is a fishing mastermind. Bait-Tech will also be supplying a FREE sample of bait for everyone who attends this session and Tight Line ‘Live’! Keith Arthur will also be hosting Tight Lines ‘Live’ where special guests including Steve Ringer will discuss what’s going on in the fishing world.
Visit the Angling Times stand and not only will you get a FREE AT goodie bag but you can enter our fantastic competition exclusive to www.anglingtimes.co.uk to win a superb MAP M-16 Power pole. And make sure you visit the website stand and say hello!

Centrepin tactics lead to 21lb pike

2007-02-15T08:41:00.000Z

THE drains in and around Spalding in Lincolnshire are renowned for their predator potential, with many fine-looking specimens like this personal best 21lb 8oz pike on offer for those prepared to put in the legwork.
It was taken by Ian Thompson, from Stamford in the same county, and fell to a deadbait which the 30-year-old presented using an ancient centrepin reel.
Over the course of the same day Ian, and his brother Dean, took a number of other fish, including a new personal best of 13 lb 12oz for Dean.

Solitary bite leads to 4lb 13oz perch

2007-02-14T14:53:00.000Z

GEOFF Collins had to wait all day for a single bite on the Great Ouse, but he wasn’t complaining after it lead to the capture of this superb personal best 4lb 13oz perch.
The 39-year-old marketing manager, from Rushden in Northants, took the fish just as the light was fading on a quivertipped lobworm.
The fish comfortably beats Geoff’s previous personal best fish of 3lb 12oz, caught from the same river two years ago.
See this week's AT for more details….

30lb pike tops 19-fish haul

2007-02-13T09:01:00.000Z

GEORGE Cskonka thought he’d be in for a good days piking when he left for a session on the River Wye, but never expected to experience ‘his best days fishing ever’ by taking a staggering 19-fish haul topped by this huge 30lb 8oz predator.
The unbelievable catch, which was taken a year to the day that George banked a 32lb personal best pike, began soon after he cast out his floatfished deadbaits first thing in the morning.
Full catch details in tomorrow’s AT

Smith stuns speci world

2007-02-12T14:04:00.000Z

PHIL Smith continued to stun the specimen world this week by catching yet another double-figure barbel from another river – this time a 13lb 9oz specimen from the River Ivel.
Big fish man Phil fished used maggot-feeder and bait dropper tactics to tempt the lump form the Great Ouse tributary in Bedfordshire on three red maggots Superglued to a hair.
Full story in tomorrow’s AT.

Video exclusive: World Record Common Carp

2007-02-09T15:49:00.000Z

See live footage showing the capture of the World's biggest common carp. Caught by German angler Dieter Markus Stein, the fish weighed an amazing 84lb 2oz. To view the footage enter the Video section and click on 'exclusives'.

Maggot tempts huge River Lea chub haul

2007-02-09T11:45:00.000Z

WAGGLER-fished maggot has accounted for one of the biggest chub hauls of the season so far – topped by this 8lb pb for north London angler Brigepal Singh.
The 39-year-old carpenter fished the ‘Conkers’ stretch of the River Lea at Broxbourne in Hertfordshire to fool the lump, plus others weighing 6lb 10oz, 6lb, 5lb 15 and four other ‘fives’.

90lb pike haul comes from River Nene

2007-02-08T17:15:00.000Z

STEVE Rudkin had a red letter day when he banked 10 pike for an impressive 90lb total during a session on the banks of the River Nene near Peterborough.
The angler from Stamford, Lincs, netted pike to a best of 16lb 8oz when he presented small floatfished livebaits, which also proved the downfall to five perch to 1lb 8oz.

Lobworms tempt 3lb perch

2007-02-08T08:22:00.000Z

A BIG bunch of lobworms on a size 6 hook proved the downfall of this new personal best 3lb 5oz perch for Colin Hebb.
The 23-year-old market trader from Tickton in East Yorkshire caught the impressive specimen on float tactics from a venue near Beverley in the same county.
“I think it is the biggest perch to ever come out of the lake, so obviously I am delighted,” said Colin.

Tackle shop owner banks two 100lb Siamese carp

2007-02-07T10:35:00.000Z

OXFORDSHIRE’S J&K Tackle shop owner Joe Taylor has banked two 100lb-plus monsters during a fishing trip to Thailand, topped by this 112lb Siamese giant carp.
Being guided by Jean-Francois Helias of Fishing Adventures Thailand, Joe tempted the huge specimen fishing a bread and coconut-based hookbait.

7lb+ chub caught from Hampshire Avon

2007-02-06T11:54:00.000Z

BARBEL Society conservation officer Pete Reading continues to get amongst the Hampshire Avon’s big chub with the capture of this 7lb 8oz specimen.
Pete targeted a stretch of the middle river with feeder fished single maggot on a size 18 hook to catch the specimen, plus two others weighing 6lb 2oz and a fiver-pounder.
For more big fish news make sure you buy Angling Times, on-sale every Tuesday.

Margin attack produces two 20lb pike

2007-02-05T12:50:00.000Z

A POPPED-up mackerel presented in the margins of Richworth Linear’s Hardwick Lake led to ‘Soggy’s’ capture of this impressive 24lb 10oz pike.
The Paignton, Devon-based angler was later woken by his alarm at 3am by a 25lb 14oz specimen which picked up another popped-up mackerel cast out 70 yards.
Both fish beat his previous best for the species of 16lb 8oz.

Mekong catfish record broken

2007-02-05T09:14:00.000Z

THE World giant Mekong catfish record has officially been broken following the capture of a 76.3kg (167lb-plus) specimen caught by a local angler from Bungsamran Lake near Bangkok in Thailand.
Nopphong Phromcham played and netted the huge fish within International Game Fishing Association (IGFA) rules, breaking the previous record by over 13kg.
The Thai angler was fishing with ‘Kiwi’, a New Zealand-born guide working for British tour outfit Siam Fishing Tours.
For more details on fishing opportunities see www.siamfishingtours.com, or call 01322 402705.

Everard banks 450th roach over 2lb

2007-02-03T16:58:00.000Z

DOCTOR Mark Everard reached a milestone in his long roach fishing career this week by banking his 450th redfin over the 2lb barrier.
Mark, from Great Somerford in Wiltshire, visited his usual Wessex river to bank a cracking brace scaling 2lb 12oz and 2lb 5oz, with both fish falling to feederfished breadflake.
More details in next week’s AT.

14lb barbel comes from River Trent

2007-02-02T14:30:00.000Z

THE upper reaches of the River Trent have been kind to Steve Rowen this season, with a string of big barbel falling to the Staffordshire rod, including this fine 14lb 8oz specimen.
After fining down his tackle to tempt a bite, Steve duly tempted his 24th double of the current campaign on an 8mm halibut pellet.
Full details of Steve’s amazing season in next week’s AT.

Seven-year-old banks huge perch brace

2007-01-31T16:35:00.000Z

HOOKING your first fish must be a real buzz for any seven-year-old, but when he landed a 7lb 12oz brace of perch Jack Morrison quite rightly got a little over-excited.
Fishing at a southern stillwater with his father John and uncle Bernie, Jack waited all day for a bite, and was finally rewarded an hour into dark when his feederfished maggot hookbait was picked up by a huge 3lb 13oz perch.
“I was overjoyed to see him playing the fish in - he got so excited and kept shouting ‘I’m in, I’m in!’,” Jack’s father John told Angling Times.
As if that wasn’t enough, the schoolboy then proceeded to hook another giant 10 minutes later while his father was away in his uncle’s swim.
“The next thing I know Jack’s shouting ‘I’m in!’ all over again and I couldn’t believe what I was seeing when an even bigger perch came to the net – my brother and I ended up biteless at the end of the session,” admitted John.
Jack beat both fish on 4lb mainline and a 2.6lb hooklength to a size 18 hook baited with double red maggot.

Big cat falls for Peperami hookbait

2007-01-31T12:21:00.000Z

HAVING left his bait in a mate’s van, Shaun Smith decided to cast out with all he had – Peperami – and proceeded to hook this 48lb 2oz cat on his first cast.
The 26-year-old builder, from Brightlingsea in Essex, cast three ‘Rami hookbaits to an island in the middle of the Basildon venue he was targeting while he waited for his friend to return with the forgotten bait.
But his lack of boilies didn’t prevent him from hooking the big predator which beat his previous best for the species by over 20lb.
“I hooked the fish within 20 minutes of casting out and then spent 40 minutes playing it – it took me all over the lake and I thought I’d never get it to the bank,” said Shaun.

Warwick pool produces haul of 2lb perch

2007-01-29T16:00:00.000Z

A SECLUDED pool near Warwick produced a great haul of perch for Ian Hannaby, topped by this brace of 2lb 14oz specimens. Fishing pole and lobworm over chopped worm against a marginal tree, the Nuneaton-based angler also included perch of 2lb 2oz, two weighing 2lb 3oz, 2lb 4oz and 2lb 7oz but he couldn’t quite set a new personal best, that still standing at 2lb 15oz from the same venue.

Youtube clip angers pike anglers

2007-01-29T11:57:00.000Z

An on-line fishing video showing a pike being battered to death with a large stick is being condemned by pike anglers nationwide. The clip, entitled 'Fishing at Carnwaife, Scotland' shows two so-called pike anglers laughing whilst they repeatedly hit the flapping fish.
The Pike Anglers Club has contacted Youtube to complain and request the video be removed. You too can show you disgust at this video. Simply click on the video link below and click on the 'Flag as inappropriate' link that's placed directly below the video screen. This informs Youtube that the video should be removed.

The video link is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2b-ydP6elUI

First ever pike session produces huge brace

2007-01-29T09:45:00.000Z

THE fishing gods were certainly smiling down on James Moore as he celebrated his birthday with his first ever pike fishing session and banked a huge brace of specimens tipping the scales at 28lb 7oz and 27lb 12oz.
James (25), from Waltham Abbey in Essex, visited a local gravel pit with his friend Adam Raby and, after spending a few fruitless hours fishing with spinners, decided to move to the other side of the lake and try floatfishing smelt deadbaits.
The decision paid dividends, and within an hour James had banked both fish - believed to be the two biggest in the lake - with the help of 15lb mainline.
“I love carp fishing, but this session was something else and I’ve already booked some more holiday to have another go,” James told Angling Times.
“Adam was really pleased for me, but he was also gutted because I just turned up and caught the lake’s two biggest fish”

Billing Aquadrome pike match planned

2007-01-26T16:13:00.000Z

PIKE anglers in Northamptonshire are being invited to attend an open match at Billing Aquadrome on Saturday 2 February.
The venue, which hasn’t been pike-fished for a number of years, promises to throw up a few surprises, with a number of fish over 20lb thought to be present.
Entry is £10, half of which will go into the prize fund.
Contact Mark Harrison on 07739 902052 for more details.

Breadflake tempts brace of 2lb roach

2007-01-26T14:46:00.000Z

TRADITIONAL roach fishing tactics proved the downfall to this pristine brace of river specimens weighing 2lb 5oz and 2lb 2oz for Angling Times regular Dr Mark Everard.
It’s the biggest brace of redfins that the river expert from Wiltshire has put on the bank for a couple of years, and he tempted both fish with lumps of breadflake mounted on a size 12 hooks. Full details in next week’s AT.

Huge carp caught from UK drain

2007-01-25T15:35:00.000Z

A TIN of sweetcorn and a handful of boilies is all Mike Payne needed to lure one of the biggest carp ever to come from a UK drain – this stunning 36lb 8oz giant.
Within the space of a few weeks fishing, the 53-year-old from St Neots banked the big one, along with a cracking linear carp of 28lb and a common of 22lb 8oz.
All his fish fell to Nutrabaits tutti frutti boilies on a short stiff link and size 8 hook.
See next week’s AT for the full story.

16 roach over 2lb banked

2007-01-25T11:12:00.000Z

SIMON Marshall is celebrating this week after taking one of the greatest roach hauls of all-time.
In an incredible four-and-a-half hour spell on a secret southern stillwater, the Oxford-based angler took a remarkable 16 over the 2lb bracket, topped by a trio of three-pounders to 3lb 2oz.
The catch, which ranks among the best in fishing history, came just a week after he made headlines in Angling Times with another hat-trick of 3lb-plus redfins.
“It’s been a brilliant spell and the second trip was like nothing I’ve experienced before,” said Simon. “I had my first bite within 10 minutes of casting out and then in the next 50 minutes had roach of 3lb 1oz, 2lb 14oz, 2lb 12oz and 2lb 7oz. Fishing doesn’t get much better.”
See the full story in next week’s AT.

Dace session throws up 14lb pike

2007-01-24T11:16:00.000Z

A DACE fishing session at the River Monnow in Wales threw up a real surprise for Kevin Clarke after his double red maggot was snaffled by this 14lb 2oz pike.
The Cwmbran, South Wales-based angler said: “After about half an hour of feeding my chosen swim, I started fishing and on the third trot down banked a quality dace of around the 10oz mark.
“I then enjoyed great sport for a while, until suddenly my swim went dead. On my next trot through my float shot violently away and on the strike my rod almost bent in half!
“Whatever I hooked shot across the river like a rocket. After playing the fish up and down the thankfully clear stretch of river for a while, I managed to net it and saw that my tiny hook was lodged fair and square in the corner of its mouth.”

Clattercote produces 158lb carp and tench bag

2007-01-23T10:25:00.000Z

AFTER reading in last week’s AT about how scaling down your tackle can get you extra bites in winter, Gary Cook headed to Clattercote Reservoir, near Banbury in Oxfordshire, to put theory into practice….and was rewarded with this new personal best carp of 25lb 4oz!
Gary, from nearby Abingdon, took a further 12 carp and 11 tench for a total bag of 158lb, with all his fish falling to feederfished double maggot on a size 18 hook which he presented just off the marginal shelf.

Kids go free at Go Fishing '07

2007-01-22T14:14:00.000Z

The 2007 Go Fishing Show promises to be bigger and better than ever before. With celebrity appearances, free coaching, all-new demonstrations, the latest new gear plus loads of tackle to buy, make sure you're at Birmingham's NEC on March 16-18.
And what's even better is that if you bring the kids along they'll get in for free. Go Fishing is keen to show kids what Britain's number one sport is all about, so not only will they get in for free, they'll also be treated to free coaching from the Professional Anglers Association (PAA) as part of Go Fishing's Young Rods initiative.
We'll bring you more show news as and when it happens.

Huge pike trio from the Stour

2007-01-22T09:25:00.000Z

BARRY Seabrook had one of his best sessions ever when he braved stormy conditions to land a huge trio of pike topped by this cracking 28lb 2oz specimen.
The predator hunter from Herne Bay, Kent, also took fish weighing 18lb 6oz and 15lb 2oz during the trip to his local stretch of the River Stour.
All his fish fell to mackerel deadbaits legered to far bank features.

3lb perch caught from K&A canal

2007-01-19T14:00:00.000Z

A FEW hours spent fishing a short morning session on the Kennet and Avon canal saw Matt Brown tempt this 3lb 1oz perch.
Don Valley Specimen Group member Matt, from Doncaster in South Yorkshire, legered lobworm hookbaits and light bobbin indicators to reduce resistance to the shy-biting stripies.

EA puts call out to Fenland anglers

2007-01-19T13:56:00.000Z

ANGLERS targeting the Great Ouse and other rivers in the Fens are being
urged to watch out for two non-indigenous, invasive species that are
spreading around the country like wildfire.
Anyone who spots either American signal crayfish or Chinese mitten crabs
are being encouraged to report sightings to their regional EA representative.
For contact details check-out the EA website at www.environment-agency.gov.uk

EA stands by barbel stocking policy

2007-01-19T13:54:00.000Z

THE Environment Agency this week stood by its present policy regarding
the stocking of barbel into stillwaters.
It claims that the latest scientific study into the growth rates of
barbel in lakes backs up its common practice of only allowing barbel to
be introduced into 'suitable' stillwaters.
The study by EA fisheries scientist Ayesha Taylor, which Angling Times
exclusively reported on last July, concludes that water quality
determines whether barbel can thrive in stillwaters and points to the
fact that the species doesn't mix well with large numbers of carp.