> AWA Writers

Below you will find a sample of the AWA membership. Any AWA members not listed who wish to be, please send a picture and short biography to info@anglingwriters.com and your details will be added.
Click on a writers photo to see the full picture.


Doug Lock

Doug with 13.5lbs Spring Salmon taken on a Kilbarry Stud Fly, Click to enlarge
Doug Lock is a professional Salmon Fly Fishing Instructor & Guide on the Munster Blackwater in County Cork. (REFFIS GAIA SGAIC/STANIC)
He is also an Affiliate Member of the Fly Dressers’ Guild. Doug writes the monthly Blackwater column for Trout & Salmon magazine. You can find more information about Doug on his website: www.speycast-ireland.com

Bob Roberts

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A double-gold medal winner with Daiwa Goldthorpe in the NFA Championships, Bob went on to win the televised 1997 UK Masters Angling Championship which pitted the 'best of the best'against each other in a variety of disciplines . With a track record of success that encompasses match, specialist and carp angling, he has written for practically every major fishing publication in the UK plus forays into Europe and the US. During his 6-years in the editors chair of Advanced Carp Fishing he firmly established the title as the UK's most popular carp title.
Today he writes a specialist column in the Angling Times, contributes regularly to Improve Your Coarse Fishing and has a weekly slot in a regional sports paper. This column in 'The Green Un' has won him the Local Paper Columnist Of The Year twice in the past three years. A regular guest on TV angling shows, he hosted his own series on a Humberside cable channel and has featured in more than a dozen angling videos. His only book to date, The Complete Book Of Legering, is still regarded as the definitive work on the subject though he is currently working on a revised edition that is already twice the length of his original. You can find out more about Bob and his angling at www.worldofangling.co.uk

Chris Clark

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Chris is 53 and became a full time Angling journalist after a serious accident in 2001. Located in the new forest Chris writes weekly columns for the Southamton Daily Echo, Bournemouth Daily Echo, Anglers Mail, Monthly Sea Angler and has also written two books.

Chris participates in all forms of angling but favours surf casting, been a member of the England team for the past ten years. He is also the coach of the England junior team and a Member of NFSA, SAMF, EFSA.  

Fiona Armstrong

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Fiona Armstrong is a broadcaster and writer. She has fronted programmes from politics, to antiques, to cooking, but her main love is fishing and she has had her own TV series, Fiona on Fishing. She has written two fly-fishing books and writes for magazines and newspapers, including Trout and Salmon.
She is an occasional presenter of Sky TV's Tight Lines fishing programme - and although her filming work has taken her to places like Niagara Falls and Alaska, where she caught her biggest fish, a 30-pound salmon, she is happiest on the banks of the Border Esk in Dumfriesshire, where she lives.

Chris Ogborne

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Chris is England's most capped International. Having represented England continuously since 1982, he has three World Championship gold medals to his credit, was national Champion twice, as well as European Champion.
He currently lives and works in Cornwall, running Kernow Game Fishing. The business specialises in taking parties (groups, Corporate, or simply fishing oriented) out on the wild lakes and rivers in the region. He has a self contained luxury holiday cottage for rental as part of these packages. His speciality is surf fishing in the Atlantic for bass and mullet, phenomenal sport that is rapidly growing in popularity.

John Andrews

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I am an author, fishing and country writer and dealer in second hand and vintage fishing tackle.
Last year my first book "for all those left behind" was published in hardback by mainstream. It was longlisted for the william hill sportsbook of the year 2002 and i have been shortlisted for the wh smith and national sporting club best new writer 2003 award off the back of it.
I have two columns, "cane and fable" on the Angling News website and "pitching the fly" in Classic Angling. the former consists of fishing tales and the latter is my diary of a second hand fishing tackle stall holder. I also write features for Classic Angling, The Field, Waterlog and Jack magazine on subjects as wide ranging as gudgeon, che guevara, old land rovers and anything with a London angle.
I am currently working a novel, and live above the New River in Stoke Newington, London. I used to drink in the Middleton Arms, which was the original home of the 19th century Stoke Newington anglers but which was sadly knocked down last year. Coffin leads were suspended in pint glasses in memoriam.

Russell Symons

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Russ has been shooting pictures and writing for Sea and Fly fishing magazines for over thirty years. During which time he has held two IGFA World records, won a gold Medal from the British Conger Club as well as holding several European records. He is a qualified Coach, licensed by the Salmon and Trout Association to instruct in Game fishing and is National Federation of Sea Anglers Coach Tutor.
You can find out more about Russ and his fishing on his website : www.reelfoto.com

Martin James

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Martin James International salt and freshwater angler, consultant, writer, author, TV presenter and broadcaster. His Autobiography "Up Against It" (Which incidentally was launched in the Houses of Parliament) was written to raise funds for Crossroad Carers. Martin’s work has taken him too many places, the Amazon river, its tributaries and jungle lakes of Brazil, Columbia, Peru and Venezuela. Some of this work being extremely dangerous at times. He has spent a lot of time in Canada a place he loves for its wilderness and the wildlife. Especially some of the more northerly part of the country up towards the Arctic circle.
He has fished all ovr the United States both in fresh and saltwater.A favourite fish is the steelhead of the Pacific North West, the Deschutes river in Oregon being his favourite place, he has fly fished for coho salmon in Puget Sound close to Seattle. Nile perch and tiger fish on Lake Nasser,. One venue he enjoys to visit is the Persian and Arabian Gulf, which he feels could be the next big saltwater fly fishing venue in the world. Martin’s best bonefish weighed in at 9lbs from Green Turtle Cay. Other fish he has taken are the barracuda ,jack crevales, sharks, snappers and other species of the warmer climes which can be found in this idyllic area of the world
In the cold European salt water he has caught cod ,whiting, bass, pollock, coalfish, tope conger eels and many more species.. Martin has taken many trophy size carp, bream, tench, ,rudd, perch, chub including one of 5-12-0 on a fly also pike to just over 30lbs on a fly .
For over 25 years Martin has taken his BBC Radio audience with him on his travels around the world. In 1993 he was awarded the prestigious Richard Walker trophy by the National Association of Specialist Anglers. The award is full size bronze bust of Britons top angler who died in 1985 . Martin was given the award for his outstanding contribution to the world of angling and the environment. In 1989 Martin was presented with an Illuminated Scroll by Lord Mason of the Anglers Conservation Association at a special lunch at Fish Mongers Hall in the City of London. The first person to receive such an award. Recently Bradford City Angling Association awarded him the Frank S Whiteley Memorial Cup for outstanding services to the Association.
Each year he raises thousands of pounds for his two charities. Multiple Sclerosis and Crossroads Carers much of this from his writing and speaking engagements. Several Members of Parliament have sought his knowledge on the environment and angling. For the best in angling tune in to BBC Radio Lancashire’s At The Waters Edge 7-30pm Thursday evening Saturday at 6-0am on 95.5 103.9 or 104.5FM The programmes can also be heard on the internet www.bbc.co.uk/lancashire his web site address is www.martinjamesfishing.co.uk

Len Colclough

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The award winning travel writer now specializes in fly fishing around the world and is at home with his fly rods on diverse rivers, streams, lakes, and at sea.
He has written of trout in The Lebanon, Morocco, and northern India: salmon and pike in Alaska, Scotland and Ireland, mainly on the dry-fly; the amazing sailfish and barracuda in the Arabian Gulf, and he does not believe there is any species that will not take a properly presented artificial fly.
An accomplished broadcaster he once completed a one-hour BBC radio programme with a fly-casting lesson – surely a first on air – and his regular bank side companions include Dame Diana Rigg, Fiona Armstrong, Rory Bremner, George Melly, Geoffrey Palmer, Booker prizewinner Graham Swift, and other celebrities who have taken rod in hand to escape the limelight. And he too is happy to escape by lucrative “ghost writing” in recent times.
Len’s first book “Continental Motoring” (Contemporary Press) was a runaway best seller and lately he has edited the successful “Lessons From The Fish.”

Chris Sandford

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Over the last decade, Chris Sandford's name has become synonymous with vintage fishing tackle. His collection ranks amongst the finest in the UK and his knowledge of the subject is reflected in his regular articles in the angling press. He is currently enjoying great popularity with his "Golden Oldies" column in The Angling Times (now in its 8th year). His articles in "Waterlog" magazine not only focus on his angling travels, but also take a wry look at many other piscatorial subjects.
His latest international angling TV series for The Discovery Channel, "Just Fishin ...with Chris Sandford" produced in 2002, is currently enjoying continuous reruns in the UK.
Chris is a regular broadcaster on radio too: The Fishing Spot on LBCs "Night Line" (1993-1995); "Dirty Tackle" on BBC Radio 5 Live (1995), and his other television appearances have included Channel 4's "Screaming Reels" (1994) , Sky TV's "Tight Lines" (1995/6), BBC's "The Great Antiques Hunt" (1996) , C4's "Collectors Lot" and The Auction Channel's Sky TV programmes (1999 & 2000). While in the USA in 2000 he was also invited to appear on Bernie Schultz' ESPN programme "The Lure Collector" and show some of his collection.
An actor by profession, Chris is best remembered for his numerous TV and film roles in the 60's and 70's, namely as Coronation Street's singing window cleaner "Walter Potts" and "Sid" one of Tommy Steele's mates in the movie "Half a Sixpence".
In the late seventies Chris moved into the sound recording business and is now one of Britain's best known commercial voice over artists - sel hling us everything from bathroom cleaners to chewing gum!
His commercials production company "Hobo Radio & Music Productions Ltd" is one of the most awarded in its field and its work is constantly heard nationwide on commercial radio.
His first book, "The Best of British Baits", which traces the history of artificial lures from Izaac Walton's silk minnow through to the 1930's, has become an immediate bestseller amongst tackle collectors worldwide. The first supplement to be added to this successful publication focusing on Bait Mounts,was published in 2001.
Similar to TV's "Antiques Roadshow", The Chris Sandford Vintage Fishing Tackle Roadshow is seen regularly at game fairs and angling exhibitions across the country, giving valuations and advice on vintage tackle collecting. This project raises money for SPARKS (SPort Aiding medical Research for Kids)

Graham Mole

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Graham Mole has, he thinks, the unique distinction of having got an award of some sort from the AWA in each of the five years they’ve been going. He puts it down to other people being far too busy fishing to remember to do it…. A TV producer/journalist by trade he now writes for Trout and Salmon magazine as a freelance. For 19 years he was a member of the famous Abbotts Barton fishing club (Skues and Halford both fished it) and he was heavily involved in the campaign to save the club being evicted by the local wildlife trust. He belongs to both the Salisbury and District club and the Portsmouth Services Fly Fishing Association in order to have the choice of seven rivers, all for less than the price of just one day on an expensive stretch of the Test. He specialises not so much in fishing as the conservation and political issues around the sport. He lives in Bishopstoke (the Itchen just happens to run through it)

Tom O'Reilly

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Tom O'Reilly wrote and illustrated his first fishing book, The Spirit Of The Pond, at the age of nineteen. It was published by Macmillan in London and by Shoeisha in Japan. From then on he has written three other titles, Fishing- An Infatuation, The Waters Of Life and The Wild Rover. He is also an irregular contributor to various angling magazines and also writes and illustrates a 1000 word weekly column in the Western Morning News, for which he won the A.W. A's Best New Writer Award 2002 (see photo). In 1999 he founded the literary society for his favourite writer B.B. He and his wife also run an angling publishing company, The Little Egret Press, (www.l-e-p.com), which specialises in fine limited edition books. He lives with his wife, Claire and two daughters, Emily and Katy in Cornwall.

Peter Lapsley

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Peter Lapsley has been fishing for trout, sea trout and grayling in the UK and overseas for over 45 years, and owned and ran a successful rod-letting trout fishery in Hampshire for several years in the 1980s. He is a member of the Game Angling Instructors Association (GAIA) and holds the Salmon & Trout Association National Instructor’s Certificate (STANIC) and the Advanced Professional Game Angling Instructor’s (APGAI) Trout, Sea Trout and Fly Tying certificates.
Peter has written, co-written or edited nine books on fly fishing including the best sellers, Fly Fishing by J. R. Hartley, and J. R. Hartley Casts Again. His latest book, River Flyfishing: the Complete Guide, will be published in September 2003. He has contributed countless articles to a wide range of British and overseas game angling and field sports magazines, and writes a regular, monthly column for Fly Fishing & Fly Tying.
Although he now lives and works in London, fishing chiefly on the chalk streams of southern England, Peter is a regular visitor to the Falkland Islands and retains a passion for the lovely wild-trout waters of Scotland, Wales and the West Country. He is married with two grown up children.

Gareth Purnell

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Gareth Purnell edits the AWA’s 2002 Angling Magazine of the Year, Midland Angler. He was also the AWA’s Angling Writer of the Year in 2001. He began his angling writing as a freelance for Angler’s Mail before joining Angling Times in 1991. He quickly progressed to be news editor of the weekly before becoming editor of the biggest selling angling monthly magazine in Europe, Improve Your Coarse Fishing (circulation 68,000 copies sold per month). He edited there for four years before becoming launch editor in chief of the angling website www.anglingtimes.com When that closed, he took redundancy from Emap and was snapped up by David Hall publishing to relaunch the old Midland Angler, which was the popular ‘official organ’ of the Birmingham Anglers Association in the 1950s. The launch was successful and Midland Angler is now the best selling angling title in the region. Gareth also owns and edits the very popular website www.total-fishing.com , which has three very busy forums for coarse, carp and sea anglers. He is author of several books and CD roms on angling including ‘The Encyclopedia of Fishing’ and has appeared in many angling videos. A freelance, he is also a busy financial journalist and edits the property magazine Move With Us as well as writing a lot for Mortgage Introducer and What Mortgage. Gareth also writes the angling columns for the Birmingham Evening Mail and the Sports Argus. He was born in the USA and has fished in the World Championships for them for the last eight years, his best finish being 16th overall in 1996.

Dexter Petley

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Born 1955 in Wealden village of Hawkhurst. On my birth certificate father's occupation says ratcatcher. Idyllic but poor childhood roaming the village boundaries with fishing rod poaching roach from farm ponds and wild trout from miniscule streams. Failed 11plus, went to Swattenden Rural School for Boys where I learned pig breeding, gardening, scrumping and other rural craft. Expelled for political activities aged 16. Read books for 3 years, decided to become a novelist, then worked on farms, factories, woodyards till wanderlust took over. Moved 35 times in 27 years on 4 continents. Moved to France in 94 on a quest for deserted lakes and self-sufficiency. Carp angler, but equally happy with a float and a home-made maggot. Organic gardener, old Land Rover nut. Though currently living in a caravan in Burgundy mountains, aim soon to build a yurt and live out life on solar power and permaculture. Save the planet.
Writings: Regular contributor to Waterlog since 2000. Specialise in the darker, off-beat, wry humour side of angling, especially in France. Have published three novels: Little Nineveh, Polygon 95; Joyride, Fourth Estate, 99; White Lies, Fourth Estate, 03. Joyride even has a carp on the cover, a fishing novel among other things. Currently at work on France-based large non-fiction fishing project.

Tony King

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Born in the early 50s so I am now in my 6th fishing decade. Started fishing in Dorset and Hertfordshire as a child. 60/70's Art school education (on the chalk streams)I have fished in all the Oceans but the cold ones, and on most Continents, mostly off my own back and on the cheap, or "red coating" for angling tourist operators. Managed a bonefish camp in the Bahamas, and acted as a fly fishing consultant in Africa, United States, Australia, and Europe.
I cast a fly rod like a dream but still have nightmares. Still love coarse and sea stuff but my geographical location means most of my fishing is for Sea trout and Salmon and other game fish. Registered fly fishing instructor and advocate the fly for anything you can get to take one. Instruct and Guide fly fishers in the Scottish borders and will take parties warm saltwater fly fishing(inshore, and offshore) in the Caribbean and the Indian Ocean, Salmon fishing in Norway and North America, or trout fishing in some pretty wild locations about the planet. Current Chairman of R.E.F.F.I.S. and vice Chair of G.A.I.A. Work as conservation manager on my local river, and do habitat improvement consultation. (Led a project that won the Wild Trout Trust conservation award in 2001). I have written for most of the current U.K. fly fishing/game fishing mags at some point, some more than others.
www.floatingline.com
www.flyfishing.fsbusiness.co.uk


Fred Buller

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Fred Buller is truly catholic in his piscatorial tases, fishing with equal expertise and enthusiasm for coarse, sea and game fish. He is renowned for his essays on rare fish species like lampreys and sturgeon but perhaps best known for his books about pike, Pike, The Doomsday Book of Mammoth Pike and Pike and the Pike Angler but his genious doesn't end there. His classic, Freshwater Fishing, has sold more than 57,000 copies and ranks as one of the best selling angling books of all time. In 1977 he joined forces with Dick Walker, Hugh Falkus and Fred Taylor to produce Successful Angling and is currently working on two new titles, Angling, the Solitary Vice and a modern translation and analysis of dame Juliana Berners' Treatyse of Fysshinge with an Angle.

John Olliff-Cooper

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John started his writing career with Angling magazine in the late 1960's, since when he has contributed to most of the better-known hard copy magazines.
Flirted with modernity for a few years, then panicked at the shallow hype of it all, and fled through 180 degrees. Having been properly brainwashed by 1950's Crabtree, John has completely eschewed the use of modern rods and reels for all his British freshwater fishing, and is delighted to admit that his angling life is now a happy attempt to recreate the Corinthian bliss of bygone days.
Loves: his family, Victorian ideals of fineness and duty, the (apparent) loyalty and company of his friends, whole-cane butt rods, twelve-spoke Aerials, roach, misty summer dawns, Under Milk Wood (Dylan Thomas), Mozart, Richard Strauss, Puccini arias, the books of W.M. Hill, the word-craft of Paul Boote, Georgian architecture and furniture, generosity, flats fishing, Vaughn Williams, long thoughtful baths, passionate lovemaking, Boss shotguns, roast lamb, sea food, long trotting, the paintings of David, and the French impressionists, freelining for chub, hot-water-bottles, picnic lunches on the river, gudgeon.
Hates: unkindness, selfishness, flashiness, garish advertising on clothing, ticky-tacky architecture, 1930's Nazi art, carp-fishing buzzers set at more than 40 db., unreliability, garlic, cold soup, cold hot-water-bottles, people who throw litter out of cars, wishy-washy characters, the expressions - lunker, dog's bollocks, shed-full, like like like - the Australian questioning inflection ('I'm just going fishing?), trainer shoes, bass speakers in cars, negativity, dumbing down, political correctness.
Among business interests, owns a flooring supply company.

George V Westropp

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George Westropp, who currently works in fishing PR and contributes articles to a variety of angling media, began his career in Fleet Street. After a start on the City Press, he worked on the Sunday Express, Evening Standard and the Press Association.
Westropp then moved into public relations and after a number of years in consultancy, he joined the City firm of Deloitte & Touche. He was made a partner in the firm in 1985 and was responsible for the communications and marketing department until he retired after 40 years in the City at the end of 2000.
He advised the River Beauly Fishings Company on PR and marketing throughout the 1990’s and was editor, with John Buckland, of the Beauly News.
George Westropp was chairman of the London Press Club from 1990 until 1999 and continues on the board. He was appointed a Trustee of the Salmon & Trout Association in 2002 and is a member of the Royal Horticultural Society Gala Board

Robert Rattray

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I am a partner with the Chartered Surveying firm of CKD Galbraith, formerly CKD Finlayson Hughes, which includes as part of its business Scotland's largest sporting agency which I am responsible for. Sport includes salmon & trout fishing, stalking & shooting - largely for our own retained estates, but also other selected clients. I live near Dunkeld, & work from our Perth office.
My main passion is fly fishing for salmon & trout, & also saltwater flyfishing, & have been engaged in the pursuit of all these species from the moment I could comfortably wield a fly rod. My present job in Scotland gives me a wide remit to travel throughout Scotland & Ireland with fly rod, but I have also been lucky enough to have been involved in the early days in Russia - Kola peninsula, Tierra del Fuego, Cuba & elsewhere, and I continue to make forays overseas on an annual basis. My other great passion is photography & I am able to combine the two, as well as dabbling in writing pieces from time to time. I am a regular photographic contributor to Trout & Salmon and various of the other sporting publications. Some examples of my photographs can be viewed on www.scottishviewpoint.com

John Hotchkiss

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A lifelong salmon and trout fly fisherman who has fished all over the world, and on most salmon rivers in Scotland and Ireland.
Was the Founding Chairman of the Sandiagoski Club, a social club for the salmon fisher who travel extensively abroad, from 1993-1998.
Producer of the hit fly fishing TV series “The Take” shown for the past three years in the UK on Sky Sports. The series was also transmitted on terrestrial TV in Norway and Sweden and on satellite in France, Italy, Portugal and Poland. A re-run of the series is due to be screened on Sky Sports from September 2003 – September 2004. Four years in the making the 23 x half hour programmes feature an international cast of fly fishers fishing the world’s finest waters. Among the many destinations featured countries included Russia, Norway, Greenland, Sweden, New Zealand, and Cuba.
Occasional contributor to Farlows magazine.
John with Veronica Kruger is a director of Hotchkiss -Kruger Associates ltd, the PR consultancy specialising in country interests, food, and luxury brands. Clients include the salmon and trout association, hebridean smokehouse and tower house antiques.

Dave Harper

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Dave Harper’s first fishing experience was in Sweden on a family holiday when a visit to an uncle’s fishing lodge saw him land the largest fish of the day using a crude cane pole. His father caught no fish using rod and reel!
A few years later and a fly rod plus fixed spool reel were given as a Christmas present and a very puzzled teenager had his first UK fishing experience on the Thames at Kingston’s Canbury Gardens (more tangles than anything else!).
But a trip to Hampton Court’s Longwater saw a 3-4-0 tench jump on to his 14 hook and six maggots and the teenage Dave Harper was hooked for life.
Fast-forward to 1979 and the 4th Benson and Hedges Festival fished in Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh and Dave was so inspired by the weights of fish, he wrote to his local paper, the Sutton and Cheam Herald and they published the article.
Thereafter he wrote weekly on match fishing which was fortunately very strong with Dorking anglers such as Ken Collings, Steve Gardener and Rob Mittens who all lived locally justifying space in this series and the Surrey Mirror. Dave also started providing match copy for the Angler’s Mail, working closely with the late John Carding and Bill Howes.
Then in late 1986, Colin Mitchell suggested that Dave apply for the vacant Features Editor job at the Angler’s Mail. In practice, Dave joined the paper with Luke Felton and Richard Howard (now Features Editor) as News Editor in February 1987.
Returning to freelancing later that year, Dave switched to Angling Times to work as match correspondent for the London and South East, a post he has held since.
In 1988, despite still writing for Surrey and South London Newspapers titles, the Croydon Advertiser (now owned by Trinity Newspapers) asked Dave to cover their area which he still does every week, the Times-Herald work drying up in the mid 90s.
Apart from writing, Dave enjoys photography and is the secretary of the Warlingham & District AS of which he has been a member since 1974. He currently produces full colour newsletters for his club and spends time teaching angling as an NFA coach.
Away from fishing, Dave enjoys folk music (those who went to Killaloe may have joined in the sing-song!), plays Scrabble with his wife, Bar Billiards with anyone who takes him on and is an avid bridge player

Dr Ken Whelan

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A passionate angler since the age of four Ken has been lucky enough to have transformed his hobby into a job!! He is a professional zoologist and has worked on a wide range of projects including the biology of the Irish mayfly, the travels of the Irish bream and the management of salmon and sea trout stocks. He has worked for the Inland Fisheries Trust, the Central Fisheries Board and the Salmon Research Agency. He is currently a Director in the Marine Institute. In this capacity he advises on a broad range of policy areas, relating to wild salmon and sea trout, fin fish aquaculture, freshwater fisheries, the freshwater environment and fish habitat
In addition to his technical publications Ken has written numerous angling articles and been involved in the scripting, production and presentation of a range of fisheries and angling related films and videos. His book The Angler in Ireland - Game, Coarse and Sea (1989) is considered one of the most detailed works on Irish angling yet produced. His work at the Marine Institute includes the management of the famous Burrishoole Fishery.
During the past number of years Ken initiated and tutored on the first professional Angling Guide courses to be run in Ireland. He was instrumental in the formation of the Professional Angling Guides of Ireland (PAGI), and is currently serving as President of the organisation. He is a qualified STANIC instructor.

©Copyright 2003 Angling Writers Association