One Off Shows
Chris Yates Secret Carp

Duration: 24 minutes
Series: One Off Shows

Chris Yates, one of the greatest angling writers of his generation, begins with a recital of Izaak Walton's musings about carp, written over 300 years ago.

Here Chris takes us to a 'secret carp lake' he knows to hold giant, 'uncatchable' carp, which he takes on with the traditional tactics and tackle we've come to expect.

Chris believes carp are so clever they can "see you through their skins", which explains why he creeps up on them through the undergrowth, braving various nasty flora and fauna as he does so on a perfect summer's day. It's classic footage that we believe has never been broadcast before.

Chris endures a frustrating few hours failing to fool these cunning fish in his first choice of swim, and decides that a rest is as good as a change as he takes 40 winks to muse things over in the midday shade.

Suitably refreshed, our ace resumes his quest in a new spot, and uses some sly watercraft to locate and fool a surface feeding mirror carp, after which he has to work out how to extract it from the weed-infested swim.

Re-invigorated, Chris returns to the scene of his earlier failings and finally tempts a superb, fully-scaled mirror carp that certainly goes over 20lb on his offering of a 'maggot octopus on a size 6'. Of course he weighs neither of his fish: "I do hate reducing a fish to a number,"� he comments.

This is joy of programme; it's just like you're spending a relaxing afternoon with the Passion For Angling co-star; one for those quiet moments when you just fancy a little bit of escapism.

* Note from the technical team * if you are struggling with the sound on this show, try headphones