Awarded an OBE in 1974 as recognition for a football career that included a World Cup win in 1966, Jack Charlton went on to gain even greater recognition across the Irish Sea. Having taken the Republic of Ireland to a World Cup quarter final in 1990, Charlton was awarded an Honorary Irish Citizenship, made a …
Okay, so he’s only a fictional character and technically not a even person but Jeremy Fisher (no relation to Nick Fisher) is surely worthy of inclusion. The creation of Beatrix Potter, Jeremy Fisher is a frog who lives in a house among the buttercups at the side of a pond. One morning it begins to …
The poor old sand eel lives a life not unlike the minnow – constantly looking over his shoulder. There are two species common in British waters, the lesser and greater sand eel – and it is the lesser (Ammodytes tobianus) that plays such a key role in the food chain. Just about everything bigger than …
Probably our most well known flatfish and certainly one our most highly regarded culinary fish, the plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) is one of the few sea fish to have appeared in Bits and Pieces that isn’t under threat. Not growing particularly huge, the shore caught record is a little over 8lbs in weight, the plaice is …
Congratulations on producing such a marvellous magazine.
Okay, so maybe Fishpool is desperately trying to put a positive spin on a really damp summer, but we fishermen (and women) love the rain… Don’t we? A dank, wet day is accompanied by low light levels which may prompt species such as plaice to feed more happily in shallow water. The salmon and sea …
Where do we start with worms? They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, they catch just about everything that swims and if we put a tiny bit of effort in, they’re free! In our gardens and on our lawns (particularly on damp nights) we find lobworms – perfect for perch, champion for chub …
Aaahhh, the wonderful Lake District. Inspiration to authors such as Arthur Ransome and poets like Wordsworth and Coleridge. It was also home to Beatrix Potter, whose former cottage is now a museum close to Esthwaite Water. Esthwaite is one of the smaller lakes of the Lake District – though at 280 acres size is relative. …
In North-west England, overlooked by the Cumbrian Fells to the north, and sandwiched between the towns of Barrow in Furness to the west and Lancaster and Morecambe to the east, is the largest expanse of inter-tidal mudflats in Britain. Morecambe Bay covers more than 120 square miles and is world renowned for its cockle beds …
Fish and Chips. Yes please – lots of salt and vinegar, perhaps a pea fritter on the side and even though it is a dinner guaranteed to deliver Fishpool a major dose of indigestion, he or she simply cannot resist. Aside from the tradition within the meal itself, there is also a lovely, and very …
Gulls really do get a bad rap – especially in our towns and cities. Every summer we go slightly hysterical as they swoop down to steal ice-creams from toddlers and chips from defenceless OAP’s. ‘Cull them!’ we cry, ‘Something must be done!’ Well, surprise surprise, there is something we can all do. Stop feeding them. …
