For decades Fleetwood was one of the UK’s main fishing ports, headed only by the dominant Humberside duo of Grimsby and Hull. A diverse fleet of FD-registered vessels returned to Wyre Dock with continual supplies of whitefish. This enabled the…
Situated against the dramatic backdrop of the Mountains of Mourne in Co Down, Kilkeel harbour today is home to a predominantly shellfish-orientated fleet of prawn trawlers and scallop dredgers. Highly restrictive fisheries management measures for the Irish Sea led to…
Fifteen years ago this week, 168 Scottish boats formed a huge flotilla; a remarkable sight as it steamed under the world-famous rail and road bridges spanning the Firth of Forth. Carried out with military precision, the highly visual demonstration was…
In the latest of an occasional series, Defending Britain, remembering the crucially important role fishermen immediately took on a century ago, John Worrall explains how fishing boats were frequently deployed hundreds of miles from their home ports in support of…
John Addison looks back on a trend-setting succession of anchor-seiners built at Herd and Mackenzie’s boatyard at Peterhead between 1954 and 1961. During the late 1940s and the early 1950s, a number of traditional Danish anchor-seiners from Grimsby and Esbjerg…
As the two nostalgic photos on this page show, some fifty years ago Aberdeen harbour was home to a large fleet of whitefish vessels supported an equally imposing whitefish processing sector. At this time, Aberdeen was firmly established as the…
In the latest of an occasional series remembering the crucially important role fishermen immediately took on a century ago, John Worrall looks back on how U-boats replaced herring as the sole target species of drifters. It sort of made sense.…
Located on the East Neuk of Fife, on the north shore of the Firth of Forth, Pittenweem harbour has a longstanding tradition of fishing. The inshore prawn trawlers and creel boats that fish from Pittenweem today are a long way…
In 2001, the world saw the birth of many new inventions, explorations and entertainment franchises, along with momentous events in history. Casting our gaze to the skies, this was the year that Mars Odyssey was launched as part of NASA’s…
Martin Johns looks back on former fishmarkets at Brixham. Situated on the South Devon coast, in close proximity to Berry Head, Brixham has long been a key fishmarket of both local and national importance. Today, as one of the main…