Loveable Rogue

This forum belongs to Bill Quinlan.
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The Sweetcorn Kid
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Loveable Rogue

Post by The Sweetcorn Kid »

I heard, through the grapevine, that Bill was the first of the "Secret Squirrel Club".

Martin James told me that, whilst fishing at Redmire and doing well, he was asked what he was catching the fish on. Well he was catching on Sultanas, but his reply was "Corn Flakes"!!! The excited anglers hurried off to purchase the new wonder bait and proceeded to fish in hope they would empty the place. Needless to say they caught nowt and Bill continued his hauling with a smug grin on his face. :wink:


Does anybody else have any Quinlan related stories they can share??
SK
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Gary Bills
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Re: Loveable Rogue

Post by Gary Bills »

The Sweetcorn Kid wrote:I heard, through the grapevine, that Bill was the first of the "Secret Squirrel Club".

Martin James told me that, whilst fishing at Redmire and doing well, he was asked what he was catching the fish on. Well he was catching on Sultanas, but his reply was "Corn Flakes"!!! The excited anglers hurried off to purchase the new wonder bait and proceeded to fish in hope they would empty the place. Needless to say they caught nowt and Bill continued his hauling with a smug grin on his face. :wink:


Does anybody else have any Quinlan related stories they can share??
I don't think Bill was alone in being secretive: when Jack Hilton landed the Bishop and wrote up his original account, he said his bait had been "little grey slugs,", but he was using sultanas too... Perhaps Jack and Bill had a pack to keep their baits under wraps at the time, at the dawn of the particle era? Yates, in Casting at the Sun, alludes to the secrecy of the Redmire syndicate members at the time, doesn't he? if I recall correctly, when he told one member that he was catching on sweetcorn, the response was - "OK, what are you really using?"

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The Sweetcorn Kid
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Re: Loveable Rogue

Post by The Sweetcorn Kid »

Indeed, and I seem to recall "Racing Beans" being something totally different too. :think:
SK
The Compleat Tangler

“Imagination is the real magic that exists in this world. Look inwards to see outwards. And capture it in writing.”

Nigel 'Fennel' Hudson



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Gary Bills
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Re: Loveable Rogue

Post by Gary Bills »

The Sweetcorn Kid wrote:Indeed, and I seem to recall "Racing Beans" being something totally different too. :think:
I suppose everyone just wished to keep their "edge". Being on the Redmire syndicate must have been a pretty intense experience at times, in those days. Everyone knew that a record was on the cards.

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The Sweetcorn Kid
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Re: Loveable Rogue

Post by The Sweetcorn Kid »

It was the fugurehead on UK Carp fishing. The guys must have known that the holy grail was in there and that it was just a matter of time until one of them struck gold. No wonder there was a pact of secrecy surrounding the members. I wouldn't have shared my secrets either in the same situation.........

I guess those fishing Redmire were no different than the guys sat around Conningbrook hoping for Two Tone.......
SK
The Compleat Tangler

“Imagination is the real magic that exists in this world. Look inwards to see outwards. And capture it in writing.”

Nigel 'Fennel' Hudson



Click here for my Youtube Channel...
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeoyLH ... 5H4u8sTDgA

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Gary Bills
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Re: Loveable Rogue

Post by Gary Bills »

The Sweetcorn Kid wrote:It was the fugurehead on UK Carp fishing. The guys must have known that the holy grail was in there and that it was just a matter of time until one of them struck gold. No wonder there was a pact of secrecy surrounding the members. I wouldn't have shared my secrets either in the same situation.........

I guess those fishing Redmire were no different than the guys sat around Conningbrook hoping for Two Tone.......
In a way, SK, indeed; - for you could make a comparison between the Bishop and Two Tone, in that both fish gave several anglers their PBs, and both ended up being the British Record. But I suppose the difference between Conningbrook and Redmire is that, almost beyond any question, Redmire's largest fish never came out... Perhaps they are still there? I know you have your eyes on a certain linear mirror, SK (?), and then there is Bismarck, isn't there? - with sightings into recent years, according to the Redmire Forum...

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The Sweetcorn Kid
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Re: Loveable Rogue

Post by The Sweetcorn Kid »

Conningbrook and Redmire are worlds apart, but I know what you mean. Thats what makes Redmire as magical as it was, and still is. It's the unknown that is important, as with Connigbrook the mystery was solved, just a case of fish and wait for your turn to hold her and hope that she's up in weight from her previous capture. With Redmire, it would be a totally new fiosh nobody knew existed.

And yes, that Linear mirror has my name on it. :wink:
SK
The Compleat Tangler

“Imagination is the real magic that exists in this world. Look inwards to see outwards. And capture it in writing.”

Nigel 'Fennel' Hudson



Click here for my Youtube Channel...
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GloucesterOldSpot

Re: Loveable Rogue

Post by GloucesterOldSpot »

The Sweetcorn Kid wrote:Indeed, and I seem to recall "Racing Beans" being something totally different too. :think:
I've had lots of carp on racing beans. Dead cheap too.

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Martin James
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Re: Loveable Rogue

Post by Martin James »

Nothing new in bait secrecy it’s been going on since I was a youngster; back in the 1800's anglers had a secret bait. I was probably about 10 years of age when I started fishing junior club matches. I would let everyone think I was using bread paste or flake with some gentles in reserve in the summer months. In fact me and my granddad would go out the day before the match and collect caddis grubs which were and still and are deadly bait which I often use. When everyone was on Kite Kate paste. I was on potato baits but I let everyone think I was on the same Kite Kate paste. Another bait I used a lot of in 1960 was sausage meat and liver paste. I first used it for tench. It was also good for chub barbel and carp. On one occasion I deliberately left the top of my flask open that held some frozen baits. Within a week 5 anglers were using what they thought was my bait of the time. I just continued with soft potato baits and caught my share of carp. When I was into serious match fishing we went to tremendous lengths to stop other from knowing what baits and tackle set up we would be using. It’s all about competition. The one bait I was always honest about was bread and mashed bread as a feed. Most anglers didn't use bread on the hook and those that used bread as a feed prepared it all wrong. So it wasn't a problem. Even today most anglers don't think I catch lots of barbel on bread.

Ron Clay

Re: Loveable Rogue

Post by Ron Clay »

What many remember most about Bill Quinlan was his habit of brewing tea from the water of the lake or river he happened to be fishing at the time.

Frank Guttfield described his tea as extremely strong, sweet, thick and gooey. I once spoke to an employee of Thames Water (I was selling them filters at the time for the removal of cryptosporidium) and mentioned that I often brewed my tea from local gravel pit water. He mentioned that as long as you boiled it for at least 5 minutes, the water was fit to drink.

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