Take the current trend amongst certain groups of anglers for using huge amounts of bait. A new technique? No, the professional barbel anglers of the Thames half a century and more ago habitually baited with many stones of groundbait and thousands of worms to keep the best lays filled with fish. The old pro’s were…

Malcolm like me fishes for everything in fresh and saltwater with a fly rod – but he does it a lot better than me. If you’re new to fly fishing on streams and rivers then get hold of Malcolm’s book Trout Fishing In Rivers published by Witherby, it’s excellent. Another excellent book you shouldn’t be…

The vast majority of carp over 2lb are caught on boilies in this country but this is not because carp will only eat boilies, it is because they are convenient to use and easy to obtain. However with a huge amount of boilies being put into waters up and down the country the carp now…

Well funnily enough it’s quite appropriate for this piece for a variety of reasons. What I want to tell you about is a technique for pike fishing that I’ve been using for several years now. One which, like the old Spike Milligan song from which I took the title, is a little bizarre but which…

From my experience at the waterside over the past few weeks, I feel we will get off to a good start this coming season especially if the weather is mild. Since January there has been a lot of fly life with water temperatures as high as 50 degrees F. Having seen the occasional out of…

Like a good mate Gary had been hard at the live bait catching and in the bucket he unloaded from the car were twelve fit and fat roach and five half pound perch, just what a pike female pike wants for her dinner. The trudge across the fields in the half-light was, as ever, a…

RodsThere is now available a vast array of rods suitable for pike fishing. You can walk into almost any decent tackle shop and find rods that will fit the bill. As a general purpose pike rod I would recommend a rod of twelve foot with a test curve of around three pounds. This would be…

If someone is not a fisherman it must be hard to understand the sorts of feelings that go through our minds and bodies at times like this. Lake Nasser is, I would guess, most freshwater fisherman’s Mecca, a dream water where you can catch crazy fighting fish bigger than you are – and be in…

I know that I am not alone in this, so it is a good time to talk about the welfare of our pike and zander stocks. Although often portrayed as ferocious predators, once on the bank these fish are amongst the most delicate you will ever come across. Big pike and zander are rare creatures….

All habitat work on fisheries has come to a full stop. Thankfully anglers have shown great responsibility by staying away from the rivers and streams. Most walkers have stayed off the public footpaths and away from the fields. It’s surprising what the prospect of a 5000 pound fine will do! Sadly many irresponsible dog owners…