Guardians of the reef - our heritage films
Have an hour to spare? Make a cuppa, take a seat and watch all of our films! If not, then choose one of our 5 minute shorts to give you a quick insight into the evolution of crab fishing in the South West.
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What we wore: Fishermen's Clothing through the decades.
Seven minutes on how the clothing worn to sea has changed - from a time before plastics, when waterproofs didn't exist and when the clothes you wore gave you boils. |
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Graham Lynn - Beesands. Skipper, Skerry Belle DH63
Graham Lynn fished a beach boat from the small Devon village of Beesands with his father, before comissioning the Skerry Belle, which fished from the deeper waters of Dartmouth. Photo gallery here |
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Ken Browse - Browse Family, Paignton
In this film, Ken Browse talks about his father, the well known Maurice Browse who was responsible for the building of 34 crabbing vessels - some of which still fish today. Ken's photos are here. |
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John Hutchings, Beesands. Skipper of Tenacious DH95
John hailed from Beesands, before moving his fishing operation to the deeper waters of Dartmouth. In this film, he talks about the day he caught a torpedo. John owned FV Tenacious, which today fishes from Salcombe. We're still working on his photo collection, but it will be here. |
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David Sales - Swanage. Skipper of PE137 Purbeck Isle
David Sales, winner of the Churchill Award for his work with UK/USA lobsters, grew up in Dorset. In this film, he talks about memories of his youth and fishing with Maurice Lane. In more recent years, David was at the forefront of the campaign to designate Lyme Bay as a marine reserve; he even hand delivered a petition to 10 Downing Street. Lyme Bay was eventually designated as a marine protected area in 2007. David's photo collection is being edited, but we've made a start, here. |
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William James Trout - Hallsands Trout Family.
Jim Jimmer Trout, from Hallsands in Devon, remembers the old ways of fishing village life from when he was a lad, including how he would sell crabs to lorry drivers in the local pub and how the community fished for mullet from Hallsands beach. Jim's photo collection needs some work, but it's here. |
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Alan Lander - Chapmans Pool. Expert withy pot maker.
Alan Lander, fourth generation fisherman from Dorset, fished Chapmans Pool for 52 consecutive summers. Alan is an expert withy pot maker and until recently, would demonstrate his skill at events. Willow, or withy pot making is sadly on the red list of endangered crafts. You can still learn how - with Sue Morgan. Alan's photos are here. |
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John Grundy - Salcombe. 'Rent-a-crew'
John remembers his first days at sea, a daring and somewhat risky rescue, and a day he was asked to test the homing instincts of some racing pigeons. A humorous film, containing a single light swearword. John's photos are here. |
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Dave Clark - Hope Cove. Skipper SE114
Dave Clark - also known affectionately as Munster- talks about his fishing experiences from the small village of Hope Cove in Devon. He recounts a tale about Roland Argett trying to wake up a donkey. Dave's photos are here. |
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Steve Cook - Salcombe. Skipper, SE2 Steve talks about his first memories of the sea, scalloping in the Salcombe estuary and winkle picking. We haven't even started on Steve's photos yet. Sorry Steve. |
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Sarah Cardew- Salcombe. The Salcombe Fish Wife.
Sarah, the Original Salcombe Fish Wife, gives us a more modern perspective on fishing from Salcombe, sustainabilty, and all the hard work that goes in to preparing a crab for sale. By the way, it's not cooking them live. We're still building the Cardew collection. |
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Geoff Foale and Terry Cook - Salcombe.
In this film, Geoff Foale and Terry Cook chat together about their fishing memories; from withy pots to catching mullet and transporting crab by train from Kingsbridge. We're still working on their photos too. |
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Michael Dornom - Salcombe. Dornom's Boat Builders.
Mike tells us about navigating in the days before GPS - from marks to Decca. Mike's photos are here. Evolution of potting gear
In this 17 minute film, an array of fishermen talk to us about how potting gear has changed over recent generations - from withy, to wire to plastic and everything in between. Want to see more photos? Click here! |
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Navigating with landmarks Graham Lynn and Winke Steer, both from Beesands, reminisce over a pint, about navigating the seas off Start Bay in the days before DECCA (let alone GPS). East Land, West Land, Gap over Vinster, Star... they all mean something to those who worked the South Devon coast. |