River Thames Produces one of the Largest Perch on Record!

A remarkable catch has been made at the River Thames in Berkshire by 15-year old George Lovell who has landed one of the largest perch ever to be recorded in the UK, weighing a staggering 5lb 11oz!

This astonishing summer catch falls just short of the current UK record by only 8oz, meaning that come winter time when perch are at their heaviest, the River Thames could well produce a perch surpassing it.

Utilising a Keitech Easy Shiner presented on a Texas Rig, George bumped the lure slowly along the bottom of the river bed allowing the flow to do much of the work. Slowly working his way along the river with his dad (Ben) the flow would push the lure into the near margin where he’d let the lure settle before moving on again. It was during one of these pauses George felt what he described as a small pluck before the line tightened and everything went solid.

A snag he thought, to then be surprised that whatever he was connected to moved off. Seeing the flash of a huge perchy flank George knew he was in for the fish of a lifetime. He’s caught perch to over 4lb previously so has some experience in knowing what a big perch feels like – and this felt BIG!

Despite the fish’s valiant efforts to escape, George’s father was able to safely net the catch. They both instantly knew this perch was one of the biggest they’d ever witnessed from this stretch of river and was definitely a new personal best for George. After the scales confirmed this the guys released their catch to swim off and pack on some more weight for another lucky angler.