Sea Angling Competition off Plymouth's Breakwater

Sea anglers line up for a competition held on the breakwater at Plymouth Sound judged by sea angling expert and television presenter Ted Tuckerman. Ted presented a fishing spot called Tight Lines and represented England at international level, first as part of the angling team and then as its manager. Pictured are sea bass and a landed ballan wrasse which wins the competition, both are common to UK waters. The breakwater is an ideal fishing spot only rarely open to the public.

The breakwater was built to protect ships entering the Royal Navy's Devonport Base on the River Tamar. Commissioned by the Admiralty, Scottish engineer John Rennie designed a wall across the body of water known as Plymouth Sound and his son John Rennie with marine engineer Joseph Whidbey carried out the works over four years to 1814 with stones from a quarry at Oreston. A beacon, a manned lighthouse and a fort, the latter named after Prime Minister Lord Palmerston, were added. The fort is one of twenty-eight built around Plymouth and many more built along the coasts. It was briefly a Dive Centre and is now a weather station and a communications' tower. The breakwater and fort are maintained by the Royal Navy.