Percy Anderson, 1930 - 2006

Percy fishing the ??

At the wishes of Percy's family, I have been asked to include on the website this recording of Percy's last radio interview with Keith Arthur (or Arthur as Percy constantly refers to him) a radio presenter on Talk Sport who specialises in Angling. The interview was broadcast at the beginning of 2006, the year Percy died, to discuss "The Complete Angler - A personal tribute to Ivan Marks".

The interview lasts for approximately 15 minutes. First there is some music... "when you're smiling"... a Samaritans advert - how apt - followed by a traffic report. It is so wonderfully Percy that I'm sure that it will bring a smile to your face (if not a tear to your eyes!!!).

Click here to listen to the interview.

Biography

Percy Anderson was born on September 22nd 1930, the second of six children to Renee and George. He first fished with rod and line - a willow stick with a length of cat gut and a bent pin baited with dough - at the age of seven.

Later, under the guidance of top local angler Bob Parr, he progressed to the very pinnacle of the sport and became a household name with a weekly Angling Times column plus TV appearances.

Percy fishing the ??

Although best known for his match angling prowess, which culminated in a Division 1 National Individual Title in 1974 plus several England appearances including a 1977 European Championship success, Percy was a brilliant all round sportsman. He played professional football for West Bromwich Albion, Stockport County and Cambridge United, and was a county level player in outdoor and indoor bowls, snooker, pool and table tennis.

His National Service was spent with the King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, in London. But despite widespread travels at an early age, he settled back in Cambridge where he met his future wife, Pat, in 1960. They married three years later and had two children Tracey and Jason.

In 1962 Percy was approached by Eddie and Diana Sharp on behalf of the local City Council to teach children fishing during the school summer holidays. The scheme was a roaring success, running for 40 years during which time more than 15,000 youngsters, at a conservative estimate, benefited from the patience, skill and generosity of this legend.

For more than three decades, right up until the summer of 2002, he ran junior matches and summer school holiday teach-ins on his beloved River Cam, with help from his almost lifelong club Cambridge Fish Preservation and Angling Society and with generous sponsorship from West's Renault of Cambridge, whose MD Richard West was one of the early youngsters to attend Percy's courses.

Borrowed with the kind permission of Tom Legge from "The Complete Angler - A personal tribute to Ivan Marks" here is the poem written by Percy’s daughter Tracy and read at his funeral service.

A Cambridge Boy

Farewell my Daddy, but not goodbye
Your time has come, your soul must fly

To dance with angels, find the sun
But how we’ll miss my special one

He walks among us for many a while
Weaved your magic, made us smile

Your life was so full of light and tears
We lived it through you, through the years

The golden days they went so fast
The precious times, why can’t they last?

So many loved you, did you know?
I was not ready to let you go

The stars from heaven are only lent
A gift from God, that’s why they’re sent

We won’t forget our Cambridge Boy
You filled our lives with so much joy

Your star will shine now in the sky
Farewell my Daddy, but not Goodbye