In this episode John is taking James to 3 of his favourite Crabtree locations and much-loved swims on each of them. We are on the Wye and actually in the river getting close to the action chasing Chub and Barbel, then onto an absolutely classic Crabtree swim on the Wensum, before finally retiring to an intimate lake where some real monsters lurk. Our friends demonstrate Crabtree fishing on beautiful rivers and lake. Look out for a real boys-own quest when John and Crabtree Producer, Lester Holcombe go stalking an elusive monster Carp with unforeseen and unplanned results…… Rise of the Fly

And in recent years the young Alfie Russell who is a massive inspiration to me. Keep an eye out for this lad . . . some people just have a gift. Presented by John Bailey, the new series premiered on Quest on January 24 that 9pm. The Discovery network’s biggest UK channel, reaching 1.2 million adults on a daily basis, Quest is accessible to almost 100% of the UK’s households, available on Freeview (38), Sky (154) and Virgin (179). We owe a debt of gratitude to Mark Kitson of Sovereign Superbaits for his contribution to Series 2 – here’s a man with an absolutely unsurpassable wealth of knowledge, and his insights were truly valuable when it came to targeting predators during the filming of Series 2. We caught up with him during filming for an in-depth interview… PB isn’t what I’m about, I’m about fishing! PBs are a personal thing and as long as you are getting enjoyment out of your fishing that’s all that matters.

Big thanks to Lone Angler’s Trefor West for taking time out to speak to us recently – here’s what he had to say on all things angling… Fish to enjoy it. Once it becomes ‘work’, a necessity, an obsession – addiction even – it is very easy to walk away from it and not return. I feel that big-fish angling is now more competitive than match fishing and that is a dreadful shame. ‘Having’ to sit on a lake through all manner of conditions to catch a fish because someone else has already caught it is simply not a reason to go fishing for me. I AVOID catching previously caught fish when I’m fishing for quality fish, I avoid the swims they are caught from. I must be mad but once a fish has been caught, for me it ceases to be wild. Odd aren’t I? On leaving Red Tag he returned to working on a freelance basis and he has his own studio from which he does his design and illustration commissions. It is from here that he also runs an online gallery of his limited edition fishing prints under the name of The fine art of fishing. Bradley, Clive (15 November 2012). "I'm meeting John Bailey in his new role as Mr Crabtree!". mirror.

MR. CRABTREE GOES FISHING: A GUIDE IN PICTURES TO FISHING ROUND THE YEAR. By Bernard Venables. 1958 fifth impression. Most of my angling heroes are in the ground – or in the water. Heroes are for young people because they are revered and looked up to. There are anglers today that I envy which isn’t that great really. I envy them the time to do what they do and fish the places they fish. I am still very much a worker but rather pompously I believe that by carrying on what I do, the message of angling is put before an audience that wouldn’t necessarily see or hear it otherwise. So that envy isn’t real. I think they need to learn the trade from the basics. A lot of young anglers want to go for Carp fishing and catch a 30lb’er straight away. They should learn about all the aspects of fishing before deciding that carp fishing is the one for them. This is what was great about Mr Crabtree, he taught Peter about all aspects of fishing.Sometimes too much and my work suffers. Sometimes not enough because I’ve got too much work. In an average week I will get out for some kind of fishing at least a couple of times. I will fish for ANYTHING – literally anything … coarse, sea, game – they all excite me and my preferred method whatever the species is when I can watch them take the bait, strike – BOSH! year-old Tadhg from Oxford accompanies John to the riverbank for a series of lessons in watercraft and the signs of a healthy waterway. 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. Before I am too old – and that won’t be far away – I would LOVE to catch a proper yellowfin tuna. 150lb would be nice. The trouble is they are rare in the Florida Keys and that’s the only exotic place I regularly fish. Perhaps I could try Mauritius in late April/early May – but that’s Boys’ Trip time. Or the Andaman Islands, even Ascension Island but I think the journey’s a bit of a mare. Who knows, maybe it would be wrong to achieve all our goals; what would we do when we eventually said ‘Done it now’. In Casting for Gold John and James continue their summer holiday angling adventures in search of Tench, Carp and record breaking Crucians at Godalming Angling’s, Johnsons Lake. In this episode John and James try out some real Crabtree float fishing in the Lily pads, as well as more current techniques and get into some really exceptional specimens. Look out for some special Crabtree angling guests in Alan Stagg and Alan Blair and some fantastic surface floater fishing for Carp – will James get another PB? Chasing Shadows Fishing in the Footsteps of Mr. Crabtree is a television series on Quest, first airing in January 2013. It is based on the 1940s comic strip Mr. Crabtree goes Fishing, by Bernard Venables.

I know that, along with being a passionate all round angler, he was very involved in helping and getting youngsters and new people into the sport he loved so much. Henry from Devon and John fish numerous lakes, deploying different methods and tactics depending on the environment and enjoying the natural world as they fish for all species. Forgotten the title or the author of a book? Our BookSleuth is specially designed for you. Visit BookSleuth Fishing in the Footsteps of Mr. Crabtree is what we’re all about – and our book and TV series of the same name are the first steps we’ve taken to illustrate this. We hope you’ll join us on our quest to bring Mr. Crabtree to a new generation of anglers, to share our love of fishing for all species, and to help us spread the word. We are part of a wonderfully diverse community, united by a shared passion. Let’s celebrate that together!

Although best know for his carping abilities, Alan is a complete all-rounder and he relished the opportunity to fish at Godalming Angling Society’s Johnson’s Lake for Crucians. We had a chat while he concentrated on the fishing… MR. CRABTREE GOES FISHING: A GUIDE IN PICTURES TO FISHING ROUND THE YEAR. By Bernard Venables. 1956 third impression. Theirs was a mobile sport, filled with discovery, wonder and piscatorial good fortune – A Crabtree never blanks! John and ‘Peter’ will be targeting coarse fish in this series with dedicated shows for Carp, Pike, Tench, Barbel and Perch, as well as River and Lake specials bagging up on a variety of species.