First published in Angling Times – Summer 2024
(Re-published here courtesy of Bauer Media)
A few months ago I was very proud to be invited to take part in an interview for the Angling Times during the. It was to be the first of an infrequent series of ‘Big Interviews’ and I must say I was pretty chuffed to be first and also with the way it turned out. Feel free to read it and make your own mind up.
BOB ROBERTS is a man who has achieved more in fishing than most could imagine. In his younger days, the South Yorkshire ace was a force to be reckoned with on the thriving River Trent match scene, before turning his hand to specialist fishing and becoming one of the country’s most respected all-rounders.
This week, he shares his views on some of angling’s hottest topics, and explains why his love for the sport is as strong as ever…

First of all, how are you, health-wise?
I’m doing really well, thanks. The past year has been challenging at times but, overall, I couldn’t ask for more. I owe almost everything to a fellow angler. Leigh Harrison sacrificed a kidney to give me this chance to live again. Over the past four years I’ve received brilliant medical care but, without Leigh, who knows? I might not even be here. The same incurable disease killed my father when he was just 42.
Tell us about your new book about the River Trent. What were your motivations behind writing it?
This is where I sound arrogant. I did it because, if I didn’t, someone else would have a go and mess it up! I’ve tried to cover this magnificent, ever-changing river in depth across 60 years, which is pretty much how long I’ve fished it, through its continuous cycles of change. I wanted to cover my early match fishing years, how I mastered various techniques and became a formidable opponent, then how I fell out of love with match fishing and moved into specialist angling.
It’s staggering how quickly the Trent went from no barbel anglers to being dominated by them. And don’t forget the other species it holds, from huge roach to massive chub and zander.
In the book, I look into the background of the river, and the work of the EA, and I have stories to tell from every era. There are guest chapters, too. The only problem I have is that it is now a huge manuscript! I honestly don’t know at this moment whether it will all fit in one book. Oh, and I’m not sure what it will be called, because I keep changing my mind, but it’s scheduled for launch in early November at the Nottingham Piscatorials Speakers Evening, at Newark Showground.
Over all the years you’ve fished, what are the biggest changes that you’ve witnessed in the sport?
Carp, carp and more carp, I guess! Kids today won’t believe that to see my first carp I had to travel down to London Zoo’s Aquarium. That’s right – the first carp I saw was the then record, caught by Richard Walker, weighing 441b. So rare were carp in these parts, that I doubt I caught one for another 10 years.
Carp were once considered uncatchable, now they’re everywhere, and match anglers measure their catches by the hundreds of pounds. One fish has generated cottage industries and international corporations worldwide.
As someone who’s accomplished so much, what motivates you to keep fishing?
I may have done many things but I’ve not changed – I’m still the young kid who watched a red-topped quill intently. The biggest buzz I get is still watching a float disappear. I also enjoy watching a bobbin drop back, a rod-tip being dragged over by a barbel, catching a carp off the surface or whatever you care to name, but nothing is quite as magical as watching an inanimate object, a bit of buoyant material spring into life, to dip, stutter, lift or simply slide from view.
The strike, the fight, the picture – it’s all part of the dance – but that bite, it’s everything.
Quite honestly, I’m as happy to catch a gudgeon as a giant. I use different tackle, but deep down I just reboot the mindset. For me it is not all about the biggest fish, it’s being there, at one with nature, escaping the modern world, being at peace.

Too many folk spend their lives chasing targets set for them by others. They put pressure on themselves and, when they fail to find that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, they burn out.
Bob’s fished the River Trent for nigh on 60 years. Any angling regrets?
Life’s too short for that. Sure, there have been missed opportunities, particularly in matches, and big fish lost at the net, but get over it! We don’t complain about our strokes of luck, do we?
I’ve travelled the world catching so many different species. Sometimes you’re lucky, and the guide points you to the exact spot where you catch a big fish, but I’ve also spent a whole week in the Himalayas for one tiddler of a mahseer. When you can treat every trip the same you are halfway to success.
Give me the pod of whales that came right up to the side of our boat a hundred miles from nowhere, peering at us over the side. Give me wild elephants, hippos, lions, giraffes, monkeys, the sunrises and sunsets. Murchison Falls, Victoria Falls. Accept what life gives you, be satisfied. I’ve lost a few friends recently. Time marches on, and what wouldn’t I give to have one more day on the bank or share a couple of pints with them?
Is there a style of fishing you’d like to do more of?
Not really. I tend to spend spells concentrating on this or that for a few weeks, or months, as the seasons change, then again [ might not do something again for a couple of years. It keeps everything fresh. I’d get bored if I only fished for one species, one style or on one venue. I’m more of a butterfly flitting from flower to flower!
What do you make of the sewage issue? Can it be resolved?
It’s catastrophic, and it won’t be sorted in my lifetime. Sorry to sound pessimistic, but it will get a lot worse before it gets better. The UK population has expanded by around 20 million since the 1950s, and social resources haven’t kept pace, and there’s no magic bullet. As a country we have one of the lowest emission levels on the planet, but it’s bonkers pretending we can save the world with ULEZ zones, while wrecking our economy. Nor can we keep ploughing money into other countries at the expense of our own infrastructure, schools, hospitals, doctors and dentists. Politicians spend our money, not their own.
Angling has a tiny voice. I’m sick of minority interest groups whose only purpose seems to be attacking the Angling Trust. Our defence force has precious few pennies to work with. These doom mongers refuse to contribute, then demand action. Guys, pay your way! Try being constructive for a change. Give us some practical, workable solutions within the funds available and, while I have your attention, please write in and share with us all the positive environmental deeds you’ve done, the success you’ve had in convincing the general public we have too many otters. I could go on. What practical steps are you taking, and exactly what is it you expect folk to do on your behalf for nothing? Any fool can make a lot of noise and fire arrows from the outside.

Where do you see angling in 2050?
That’s a tough one. We’ve gone from an era where kids were ‘free range) to one where many are reared like battery hens, barely seeing the light of day, permanently offended and attached to a digital device, unsure whether they are a boy, a girl or a teacup! Meanwhile, parents appear afraid to let them out of the house. Mark my words, for fishing, that is a flashing neon sign pointing towards the end.
Angling needs youngsters, desperately. The age profile of anglers is creeping steadily higher and, were it not for commercials where you can park next to your swim, purchase tackle, get something hot to eat, even have access to a flushing toilet, many would have hung up their tackle. We are in trouble. People are looking in the wrong direction.
Who’s the best angler you’ve fished with?
There’s no such thing, any more than there is a greatest- ever footballer. There are great anglers, those who have won against their peers on the biggest stages. There are technically proficient anglers, one- method experts, those with the finest tackle and bait, those prepared to live on the bank, or with the free time and finances to fish whenever and wherever they want. It’s far too objective a question. Each will have their strengths and weaknesses. Fishing isn’t like snooker or darts. Too many variables are out of our control. We have to contend with everything the weather has to throw at us, not to mention the vagaries of the fish themselves.
Access to the right waters is everything. Any fool can learn to cast accurately. And then there are days when the fish practically throw themselves onto our hooks.
To have known and fished with so many great anglers is enough for me. I’d hate to have to choose one to be the best. But I love fishing with Brian Skoyles… He brings pasties and sausage rolls!
There’s a bit of a ‘raffle craze’ going on in the sport, not only to win tackle, but to enter big-money matches too. Is this good for fishing?
Good luck to those buying tickets, I say. It’s a bit of a flutter, a lottery. Anyone can win, which will appeal more to your average angler who knows deep down he’s never realistically going to win Fish O’
The elite match angler is supplied with all his tackle and enjoys a huge competitive edge over the average punter. Why would he want to win more tackle? Billy Superstar’s odds of winning any event are much shorter than those of Fred from the factory. Why on Earth would Billy enter a competition that has a evel playing field, when he can shorten his odds significantly elsewhere? It will be fun, for some, while it lasts.
With angling becoming increasingly specialised, is it still possible to make a name for yourself as an all-rounder?
That’s a very good question. Matt Hayes wasn’t an all-rounder. Nor was John Wilson. Neither match fished to any great standard. The modern scene is restrictive, and everyone seems to specialise, people are pike, zander, carp or barbel anglers. I’m staggered to hear specialists moaning about catching bream and tench, chub, too.
Digital media is changing so rapidly, it’s difficult to know where that’s going, but we do know it will be dominated by advertorials. Truly inspirational and genuinely new educational content will be thin on the ground. Angling Times is the only general coarse fishing title left, but it speaks through a limited number of voices. Unless there’s a route for new faces to break through, then no. Although there are good young anglers coming through, some would say there’s a lack of ‘character’ in our social media-driven age.

Will there ever be another Bob Roberts, Des Taylor or John Wilson?
I’m flattered to be named in such fine company! I genuinely hope we see new talent in the pipeline, but I don’t wish to be shown how to suck eggs by a 12-year-old. I want new writers to have a good few years under their belt and speak from experience, not repeating what they have watched on YouTube. In our heyday we had strong opinions and weren’t afraid to express them. If we were arriving on the scene today I expect we would end up getting cancelled in no time.
It was the job of angling writers to be forthright, but when you upset someone in print it took a month before a response appeared, another month for you to respond and, by then, the chances were you’d already kissed and made up! It’s so different today. Ten thousand bottom-dwellers will have jumped on to the band wagon.
Let’s be perfectly honest, we ‘three musketeers’ were far from academic, nor did we have any media training. John was a hairdresser, Des a gas fitter, and I worked on the railway. We were just fishing-mad guys who told a few tales.
It does seem social media is in the driving seat, but something has to change. Unless folk can get some remuneration for their efforts, then the future isn’t great. You can’t eat vanity. Please let there be some new talent coming through so we don’t end up at the total mercy of social influencers and media tarts, pretty boys repeating and rehashing what has been done a thousand times before.
Safe to say I certainly miss the old days when magazines were flourishing!
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