Capturing the magic of fishing

To share the joy of fishing with others, he plans to leave a gift in his Will to our charity.

As national angling development manager, Peter is rightly proud of his free introductory fishing sessions on our canals and rivers, which are open to everyone of all ages, backgrounds and abilities. From just 38 events and 937 attendees in 2017, he and John Ellis, our national fisheries and angling manager, have grown the programme to a high of 530 events in 2022, during which 9,879 people enjoyed the sport.

They’ve established key national fishing events, attracting young anglers from England, Wales and around the world. They’ve revitalised junior membership in local clubs, created Let’s Fish! academies, developed school programmes and nurtured talent like Jodie Deacon, who, at 18, is on the verge of an England call-up and is the youngest Level Two coach in the country. In fact, Peter has helped to give a once-dying sport real hope of a sustainable future. And now he hopes a lasting gift in his Will could giving more young people the chance to experience the joy of angling.

“I was about eight when I caught my first fish in the local park,” says Peter in his Wallasey twang. "From then on, I fished constantly. My friend’s uncle introduced me to canal fishing, and every weekend and summer evening, we’d fish all over. That led me to club and match fishing, and by 13, I won my first match, catching the attention of the national selectors – but sadly my parents couldn’t afford to let me go and compete back then. I wouldn’t want any young angler to miss out like I did.”

As I grew older, I got into specimen hunting, travelling the country to catch the biggest bream and tench we could find. Eventually, I moved on to carp and travelled the world for 25 years trying to catch these enormous 50-60 pound fish. But then, unfortunately, in 2004 I had a stroke. I couldn’t walk, so I was in a wheelchair for two years.

It left me with left-side weakness and various other problems, so I went back to pleasure fishing and club coaching to give something back to the sport. By the time I met John Ellis in 2017, and we started to discuss Let’s Fish!, I’d been coaching for decades. I had the design and model all mapped out and knew how to make it work. Here we are, seven years later, and Let’s Fish! is a huge success.”

One of the many reasons Peter wants to sustain Let’s Fish! with a gift in his Will, is the way it passes on traditional fishing skills that are in danger of being lost in an age of instant gratification. “I'm so passionate about Let's Fish! because it prepares young anglers in the right way. It doesn’t exclude anybody. It just offers opportunities. And anyone can take an opportunity. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from. You don’t have to be a certain shape or size and it’s well documented that fishing is a brilliant educational stimulator, especially for those who are hard to reach or people living with autism or ADHD. It teaches calmness and relaxation but also responsibility, accountability and boundaries. I’ve taught fishing as a coach, as a school teacher and as a youth worker in Liverpool. I went to a reunion last week where I met about 20 or 30 kids whom I mentored and coached, who were all so grateful for the guidance we’d given them.

We teach kids to fish in an environment that’s safe, follows a certain etiquette and passes on essential watercraft. You need to understand where the fish are going to be in order to catch them. It depends on the depth of the water, the weather, and the type of fish you’re after. These are the basics that make up 80% of your success or failure. They are easy to learn, but you need experienced coaches like ours to share them with you.”

Yet for all his care and passion for Let’s Fish, Peter has decided that 2025 will be his last season. “I’ve got three grandchildren to spend time with, but I haven’t been fishing myself for years, and I really, really miss it. I still get the excited butterflies in my stomach when I know I’m going fishing. The magic is still flooding through my veins. And I want my legacy to protect the Let’s Fish! Programme so other people can experience that.

Over the years, I've seen all the faces of sheer delight, so hopefully a gift in my Will keeps on sharing that magic. I know what the programme needs to have a sustainable future. So, I want to make sure others can move it forward. Then maybe, when I’m pushing up daisies, somebody will still be walking over them to go fishing.”