21/12/2024
Classic Angling celebrates its 150th issue. In it, you'll find...
James Babb pens a heartfelt tribute to his close friend John Gierach, the wonderful writer whose books encapsulate the essence of true fishing.
A seemingly ordinary selection of badges stunned the
audience at Angling Auctions by climbing to a price of £3000. We explain the appeal.
Michael Daunt, who has just died, taught Jeremy Paxman, Chris Tarrant and Eric Clapton to cast a salmon fly. He was affectionately known as known as The Bounder – and lived up to his scandalous reputation.
John Bailey mourns the death of Batsokh, his Mongolian guide and friend, whose camp was the place where many anglers caught their first taimen.
There's a flourishing collector interest in tobacco-related items, especially in old cigar boxes decorated with some fine angling art, writes Steve Woit.
Lang's latest auction saw some fine lures sell for his prices – but this was the first sale in the auction house's history that did not feature a single reel.
One of the greatest books on salmon flies has just been sold for £8000 – and Chares Phair's 1937 classic was written by a man who never penned another book or article.
All our Yesterdays from a 1932 edition of The Fishing Gazette complains about the Bolsheviks spoiling the chance to catch a 160lb taimen in Siberia
Wallace Carney, the greatest authority on Mitchell reels, has died aged 73. He created the Mitchell Reel Museum and the Mitchell Mates website.
Hardy is still riding the wave of its most famous reel by creating a limited edition of its 1912 Perfect.
The elite Flyfishers Club of London has finally voted to admit female members into its august halls. A vote by members saw 75% vote in favour of the move.
Jason Lewis discovers a wonderful gamebook from 1912, listing 30 years of fishing and shooting adventures by a captain of the Irish Guards.
A new box of a dozen salmon flies has just sold for £7000. Its appeal? The Farlow box was one of only two, and the other was given to King Charles III.
We look back on the days when maggot breeders were prolific advertisers in the fishing magazines of the day, doing a roaring trade in mail-order bait.
Recreational angling plays a crucial role in providing food for many nations, a worldwide study covering 81 countries has shown.
The world's largest freshwater eels are found in Australia and New Zealand, where fish as large as 50lb are caught. And their pursuit is a lot older than you might think.
The ancient Egyptians were pioneers of angling for pleasure, as distinct from catching fish just to eat them, writes Keith Harwood.
Neil Freeman questions whether a UK march for cleaner water that attracted 15,000 people will really result in any changes from the water industry.
Dave Townsend, fresh from admiring a large quantity of Aerials that he had just been consigned, takes a closer look at the iconic reel and its many faces.
Our book reviews include works on chalkstream chronicler Dr Edwin Barton, a fine work by Bob Roberts on Nottingham's river Trent, the rough life of fly-tyer Rube Cross and how one man built a prized fishery.
The rarest family of Mitchell reels in the 500 series, with its unique forked foot. Dries Hanzens reveals more about a fixed-spool that few collectors have ever seen.
Two competitions between the French and British
Angling promoted the entente cordiale well before any official signing with a pair of friendly international contests between England and France in the early 1900s.
A wood reel that has just sold with five others at auction for £375 turned out to be an ultra-rare model, one of just two known
How many lives might have been saved if the French frigate Medusa, which sank in 1816, had carried sets of survival fishing kits, now a standard article for seagoers?
Keith Arthur mourns the end of the Talksport radio programme Fisherman's Blues that he pioneered, and recalls how it nearly foundered on the very first broadcast.
and lots more.
