Sick to the gills: Angler lands biggest catfish in the UK – but there’s a catch

Goliath the catfish - Steve Stewart
Goliath the catfish - Steve Stewart

When Steve Stewart landed a 101lb catfish, he thought he might have a good chance of getting his name into the record books.

After all, when the same catfish, nicknamed Goliath, was caught in the same lake in 1997 it broke the record for the largest of that species caught in the UK – and that was when it weighed a relatively trim 62lb.

But despite Goliath now weighing 39lb more, Mr Stewart’s catch will not count. Following a tightening of the rules in 2000 the sport’s governing body excluded catfish from being listed in the record books.

The British Record Fish Committee (BRFC) took the step in a bid to discourage the illegal importation of catfish, fearing they could introduce diseases if placed into UK waters without being checked.

The committee also deemed that as a non-native species, catfish should not be eligible to set records for fish caught in the UK.

It means Mr Stewart’s 20-minute “battle” to land Goliath won’t count, despite the extra pounds the fish has gained in the past 25 years.

“It’s a bit frustrating, believe me, especially given the effort to catch him and reel him in,” Mr Stewart, a grandfather of four, told The Telegraph. “It was an epic battle. We had to get a boat out to bring him in once I’d hooked him and it was quite a struggle. He was slapping his tail and using his weight to try and free itself off the hook.”

Steve Stewart and Goliath - Steve Stewart
Steve Stewart and Goliath - Steve Stewart

What is particularly galling for the 57-year-old is that he is close friends with Richard Garner, who set the record when he caught Goliath in 1997 at Withy Pool in Bedfordshire.

“When I caught Goliath, which Richard caught and set the British record with 25 years ago, I thought, ‘Brilliant! Now I’ve got the bragging rights.’ But then I was told by the BRFC it won’t count officially because they have closed the list for catfish and that species no longer counts for records.”

Goliath is a wels catfish, or Silurus glanis, one of the world’s largest species of freshwater fish and the largest in Europe.

The BRFC ruling angered catfish aficionados, who say the species has been here long enough and should be accepted as home-grown. Goliath could be considered a native Briton, thought to have been spawned in Withy Pond 50 years ago from foreign parents introduced earlier.

Nick Simmonds, secretary of the BRFC, said: “Steve gets the recognition for catching such a huge fish. He’s had his picture taken with it and all that. I’m sure we all appreciate what a special catch this is, but it just won’t count as a record.

“The committee made its decision in 2000 to no longer list catfish records, in order to discourage the import of illegal catfish and because it’s a non-native species, so it won’t replace the record held by Mr Garner.”

After catching and weighing Goliath last month, Mr Stewart returned him to the water, free to add a few more pounds to his ample girth.