Anglia Television presenter Cyril Wilkinson visits eel catcher Johnny Barnes, and is shown the skill of eel catching from the River Delph on the Cambridgeshire Fens.
Genre:
Natural History; Television
Footage of the artificially created waterways - the Old and New Bedford Rivers - and the surrounding marshland of the Cambridgeshire Fens.
Cyril Wilkinson calls on eel catcher, Johnny Barnes, at his home. Johnny shows Cyril his funnel net, which he uses to catch eels from the River Delph.
Cyril and Johnny head to the pontoon bridge, crossing the Old Bedford River, to the place where eel catcher, Johnny, had laid traps the previous evening. Johnny shows Cyril one of the hand-made willow traps. Interview with Mr Barnes, discussing his experience of the traditional work of eel catching.
Johnny takes a punt out on to the River Delph, retrieving his net and catch of eels from the water, returning to dry land and storing the eels in a strong box. Cyril watches from the riverbank.
Featured People:
Johnny Barnes, eel catcher