Cornwall - This Fishing Life - Series 2

Episode
Episode 5 - Cadgwith
Broadcast Info
2021 (59 mins)
Description
Cadgwith Cove is Cornwall’s last traditional full-time fishing cove. As boats got bigger, fish stocks declined, and young men left, many of Cornwall’s other coves faded away. But Cadgwith has held strong, for generations sons have followed fathers off the beach and out to sea, now the next generation is set to join the fleet. Thirty-four-year-old Brett Jose is a second-generation fisherman, and his boat Longshot is one of the smallest in the Cadgwith fleet. Brett’s currently fishing part-time, ten years ago he left the cove for a well-paid job on the offshore windfarms. The size of his boat limits the amount of money he can earn from fishing, he’s unable to work through poor weather and can only carry a certain amount of gear. Now, after a decade of working away Brett’s dream of fishing from Cadgwith full-time is about to become a reality, he’s recently invested in a new bigger boat. Lying at the tip of the Lizard Peninsula, rich fishing grounds are within striking distance of Cadgwith. As a true cove it has no harbour for protection. Whilst sheltered from the prevailing westerlies, any weather or swell from the east keeps the boats at bay - a natural quota preventing these waters from being overfished. The village itself is squeezed into a steep sided valley - a single road running through it - flanked by thatched cottages. Once inhabited by fishing families, many are now second homes or holiday lets. Few fishing families still live in the village, but on the beach fathers and sons still work side-by-side. John Trewin skippers the Silver Queen and crew duties are in the hands of his eldest son twenty-one-year-old William. Together they work their way through hundreds of crab pots. Crabs have kept coves like Cadgwith going for generations, but it’s hard monotonous work - hauling and stacking pot after pot. Whilst John might be one of the cove’s most passionate skippers, Will is considering his career options. He left the cove to study sports science at university and has ambitions to see the world. Fortunately for John his youngest son Jamie takes any opportunity to follow his father to sea. The Trewins aren’t the only father and sons working out of Cadgwith. Danny Phillips is one of the most experienced fishermen in the cove and he’s training up his twenty-four-year-old son, Tommy. Tommy has some big boots to fill - his Dad has a top reputation for the quality of his catch, and there’s little he doesn’t know about these fishing grounds. Most of the cove’s boats work pots for crabs and lobsters. Danny and Tommy do things differently using nets to target a wider variety of species. While there might be new blood within the fleet, the old working fabric of the cove itself is now under threat. All fishermen have a rented loft - their store, their workshop and their refuge, but for the first time in living memory many of the cove’s lofts are being put up for sale. The future of the lofts within the cove’s historic Winch House is set to be decided by the end of the summer.
Genre
Economics; Business Studies; Culture

How to cite this record

The Open University, "Cornwall - This Fishing Life - Series 2". https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/ou/search/index.php/prog/238469 (Accessed 10 Jan 2025)