Secret Angler

Introducing the Secret Angler Blog, offering commentary and criticism on angling matters. Read the first post here secretangler.home.blog

@Feargal_Sharkey The latest project for saving chalk stream salmon secretangler.home.blog/2026/04/30/pro… #salmon #chalkstreams

@JackPerksPhoto Crows do this too. And probably other species.

Back in 2015 I did a One Show peice with Deborah Meaden at my local reserve Attenborough Nature Reserve looking at Robins and how they are actually thugs to each other! They fight to the death and will rip out each others eyes given the chance!

@Feargal_Sharkey Estimates of water company pollution archive.ph/RN2ub

@DavidSn04250275 @JackPerksPhoto secretangler.home.blog/2020/01/27/how…

@JackPerksPhoto His river monsters series was such dross though……

I met Jeremy Wade a charity fishing match several years ago to see who could catch the smallest fish. It was great fun and have since fished many times with him and it also lead to him narrating my film "Britains Hidden Fishes"

@Feargal_Sharkey More than one kind of shit in our rivers theguardian.com/science/2026/a…

Fishing videos at Sportfish Spring Spectacular secretangler.home.blog/2026/04/18/mor…

@JackPerksPhoto Did you see any fish?

Chapter one of my book "The Great British River" starts with the source where and how the river starts. This is the River Liza in the Lake District with a rare instance of a British river actually being gin clear! Book is available online now!

Don't buy UK-caught cod, now at a dangerous point in decline of population theguardian.com/environment/20…

Changes to the way we fish. secretangler.home.blog/2026/04/06/the…

When is a designer not a designer? secretangler.home.blog/2026/03/04/des…

@TroutSalmonUK The greenwashers of the aquaculture industry. secretangler.home.blog/2026/02/19/the… #aquaculture #salmonfarming

@Feargal_Sharkey @hantsconnect You get these morons driving off roads, often illegally, everywhere in the country.

"CHALK STREAM ROW". Hampshire Country Council @hantsconnect might want to rethink their strategy on this one especially as the alternative route, through the village, take a whole 1 MINUTE. Show some leadership shut down Mill Lane. dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1…

Review of Marina Gibson's book, Cast Catch Release. secretangler.home.blog/2026/01/16/cas…

@EnvAgency Hailed as a "significant environmental turnaround". We shall see but sounds like EA bluster to me. theguardian.com/environment/20…

@AST_Salmon @SalmonAlliance @GWCT @WildFishCons Is science research into salmon declines fiddling while the fish head for extinction? secretangler.home.blog/2025/12/20/her…

Misconceptions about trout stocking secretangler.home.blog/2025/12/12/bai… #troutstocking

@rbrooks45 @PrivateEyeNews Dodgy geezers to the right, dodgy geezers even further to the right.

How @PrivateEyeNews first reported on Reform’s mega-donor (then the Brexit party’s) six years ago…

@sportfishuk Commentary on a few fishing videos secretangler.home.blog/2025/12/04/a-f… #fishingvideos

@JackPerksPhoto Thought about that myself a lot. I don't see much improvement in the offing. This is what I wrote about it 3 years ago. secretangler.home.blog/2022/08/14/rew…

One question I get asked is "What can we do to help rivers" & increasingly I find it a harder and more complex question to answer so i'm throwing it out to you, are we up shit creek without a paddle (quite literally) or is there hope for British rivers and is so what can we do?

@JackPerksPhoto There's been a lot of research into salmon hatcheries and they've been found ineffective in most cases, and possibly harmful. secretangler.home.blog/2023/02/01/boi… secretangler.home.blog/2024/04/09/the…

Atlantic Salmon numbers are crashing to a worryingly low amount in British rivers and I see hatcheries being presented as a solution but what’s people’s thoughts a last ditch effort to keep them going or just slowing the inevitable?