Our good friend Graham Nicol sat down and read Chris Newton's book on Hugh Falkus. See what he thinks.
This biography was written several years previously but for a variety of reasons I only recently sat down to read it and without question it is the best I have ever read. Chris Newton took on a monumental challenge in documenting the life of Hugh Falkus but nevertheless has written a fascinating book and I heartily recommend everyone who has read any of Falkus’s works read this as he was quite a colourful character.
He was a man of many talents having been a spitfire pilot, director of natural history films and angling writer and was regarded highly, by those in the know, for all these abilities. However another set of attributes that he was notorious for was that he was a terrible womaniser and heavy whisky drinker both which caused him to lose friends in abundance.
Born in 1917 Hugh’s early years were largely unadventurous and his life became interesting from the commencement of the Second World War. He was shot down, captured when forced to make an emergency landing and spent all his time in a prison camp. During that time he wrote to his wife, Doris, copiously in an extremely demanding and arrogant manner to the point that it is quite surprising that when he was released she was still around to accept him back into the marital home. This was an early sign of the type of character he was.
Falkus tried hard to become a successful film director but his didactic style did not endear him to many in that industry. Nevertheless over the years he produced many successful natural history films with “Salmo the Leaper” being perhaps one of the most well-known. He also scripted and narrated on the famous Jacques Cousteau series of “Silent World” documentaries.
On the angling front he became famous post the release of “Sea Trout Fishing” in 1962 which, at the time, contained some quite radical and novel ideas and approaches to pursuing this elusive fish. Many of these were developed as he fished the Cumbrian Esk which back then experienced healthy stocks. Sadly this is no longer the case. Subsequent to this several authorities have questioned the originality of some of his ideas as they have unearthed the prototypes from earlier sources. After quite a gap he wrote a follow up “Salmon Fishing” in 1984 which proved a disappointment as there was little new and it was felt that it was more a rehash of many other works. Wetherby, the publisher, were forced to pay him an advance commission which they had never done before to any writer and they were so concerned that they took out an insurance policy on him covering themselves should he die before completion! Furthermore he was adamant that the publication have the same number of pages as Sea Trout Fishing and thus there was an element of padding. One book that is probably underestimated is “Nature Detective” as it shows how knowledgeable Falkus was with our native wildlife.
Focussing now more on the darker side of Falkus he married four times and we believe he fathered four children whom all he abandoned in their early years. He had numerous affairs and these continued well into his later life. One of his wives drowned in a boating accident when he was filming a documentary on basking sharks in Ireland and it could be that this occurred on the back of his lust and desire for distinction. A copious whisky drinker he would get involved in many late night arguments with guests and fellow anglers at Craggy Cottage with the net result being he had only a very small circle of true friends who could tolerate his dark side. The heavy drinking brought on his passing away in 1996 which came as no surprise to those in the know.
Chris Newton unearthed some wonderful information on this man and produced a very honest account of him. In essence a giant in the angling world but an individual who desired recognition and always believed he was right and would go through many friends proving it. A must read.
More on Life on the Edge from Medlar Press