Mr. Crabtree Goes Fishing: A Guide in Pictures to Fishing Round the Year

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I had another look at my copy of Crabtree at the weekend and particularly the "plugs for pike" chapter. It is feasible to make this cast with the handles on the left but I find it easier to control the reel's rate of spin with my thumb rather than the little finger as per Mr Crabtree. In 1937 a Trent angler named FWK Wallis travelled to fish the Christchurch area and soon caught a 14lb6oz Barbel which equalled the record at the time. i think every youngster beginning fishing should be made to read this cover to cover before even going to local lake, river.

Faithful to the feel of the early printings, this book evokes excesses of nostalgia in the over-forties, and remains of great practical use to beginners. So when we as anglers describe a swim or a venue as very ‘Mr Crabtree’ we have a vision of something a little out of the ordinary; something special and magical. The companions visit many stretches over their two days together, comparing urban and rural waters, discussing the evolution of a river and the positive impact of angling as a community builder. Chip to tape at top of spine and mostly missing from spine edge, covers rather used, prize winner inscription to inside front cover. But the assistant editor did better than that, writing: "I have to say what Bernard Venables cannot say for himself: that he has written and illustrated the best fishing book since Izaak Walton.

A centre pin reel is a joy to use on a fast flowing river in the winter with float gear, and as somone said above there's a revival in their use in the UK. Mr Venables passes on not only the art of fishing, but stewardship of the environment and appreciation of all the fish within it. It was an immediate success and developed into a fishing page, with Bernard as the angling correspondent. Richard Walker, rated by many as the finest all-round angler of all time, said of Bernard's creation, "Until Crabtree, many people regarded fishing as a joke. John Bailey takes a new 'Peter' under his wing teaching him everything he needs to know to catch all the main coarse species using a mixture of traditional and modern techniques and tactics.

So long ago that fixed spool reels were newly on the market, and fibre glass was entirely in the future. This vintage guidebook is filled with articles, photographs and comics and will add so much character to any library it is placed in! Subsequently the Mirror's gardening guru was Mr Digwell and (not many people know this) at one time Paul Peacock, Jack Hargeaves' biographer, was Mr Digwell. Written and illustrated by Bernard Venables, this book has remained a classic since it was first published half a century ago. OK, the plug on the far left looks just like a Flatfish which is a classic plug made by Heddon in the USA and I still fish with them, in fact.Bernard authored the book that inspired a generation to try fishing, through his endearing characters Mr Crabtree and son Peter. V. provided are probably the most practical that you will find anywhere but take note of the illustrations.

Jack Hargreaves, later famed for his wonderful 'Out of Town' television series, said he would handle the subjects, though it turned out he knew little more than Bernard. Somehow John and Rob have captured the essence of angling and of that Crabtree magic with such acuteness it feels that you could be there with them. The Crabtree and the Mr Cherry series of books inspired my childhood , Yes the Royalty is still there and as popular as ever I was in Christchurch at easter and enjoyed a walk along it and gazed longingly at the parlour pool, I was also able to fritter some hard earned away in Davis fishing tackle which is a few hundred yards away. The watercolours are so evocative of the British countryside and its wildlife and delight fishermen and non fishermen alike. Or was there something about the trajectory of the cast that allowed for a longer cast, but a softer or quieter landing when fishing cross-river as apparently is required by the spooky fish in that area?

As if that was not enough he also held the record for Chub twice, once in 1903 and again ten years later, all without the use of halibut pellets. His weekly articles in the Mirror were not just a snap shot of angling but encompassed the passion, the excitement and the thrill of angling and the countryside. Anyway, being errrr, well, near 40, some of the techniques and tackle used in the book both predate me and/or they are different techniques than the men who thought me how to fish ever used. With introductions from the likes of Chris Yates to name but one, you know this is quite a special book. It covers sea fishing, coarse fishing, game fishing, what hooks and rods to use as well as much more.