ANDREW HERD
Angling historian, researcher and writer, Dr Andrew Herd, was born on 7th December, 1959. Although he very nearly became a professional photographer, Andrew qualified as a doctor of medicine at the Middlesex hospital, London, in 1982, after which he wasted what was left of an already considerably misspent youth working as a surgeon at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital and as the McIndoe Research Fellow at the Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead. Realising that a surgical career wasn’t compatible with an active interest in field sports, he moved north, became a GP and now works four days a week as a doctor and moonlights as executive editor for Waterlog.
Andrew has written extensively on the history of fly fishing and his award-winning book, The Fly, was the result of a decade’s research. A further decade of research later this book is now in its third, greatly expanded edition, The History of Fly Fishing, and is the most authoritative work ever published on the subject. His website - www.flyfishinghistory.com - is one of the most visited angling websites. He has a unique writing style that blends facts with fresh and colourful comments on the valuable and sometimes bizarre background material that has somehow eluded other authors. Andrew translated and wrote the accompanying text for the Medlar edition of the first angling book ever published, The Treatise of Fishing with an Angle.
Trout Fly Patterns 1496 - 1916 is the second volume in The History of Fly Fishing and Salmon Fly Patterns 1766 -1914 is the third volume.
In 2012 Andrew worked with Keith Harwood and David Stanley on a book that celebrates Hardy fishing accessories - Gear and Gadgets. He spent many hours in the Hardy Museum taking photographs of the many and varied 'irresistible' objects.
Andrew is currently working on a new book about early Hardy Catalogues called The Anglers’ Bible due for publication in spring 2015.
Andrew lives in County Durham and is married to Barbara, a consultant physician. They have a daughter, two labradors, two horses, a pony, four hundred dependent finches and an ageing goldfish. In his spare time he fishes, shoots, hunts, stalks deer, ties flies, takes photographs, collects fishing books, enjoys wine, tries to keep the hedgehog out of the dog kennel and continues to research the history of fishing.
'Those of us who are interested in the origins and development of fly-fishing in Britain owe a great debt to Andrew Herd. This one-man powerhouse has put his immense brain at our disposal and single-handedly documented the entire history in Volume I of this trilogy. He has an extraordinary capacity for absorbing and organizing data . . .' David Beazley, The Flyfishers' Journal.
'Every so often is published a book that stands head and shoulders above all others in its field. Andrew Herd’s The History of Fly Fishing is such a book . . . I heartily recommend this book to you. You will read and re-read it many times.' Malcolm Greenhalgh, Fly Fishing and Fly Tying
Angling historian, researcher and writer, Dr Andrew Herd, was born on 7th December, 1959. Although he very nearly became a professional photographer, Andrew qualified as a doctor of medicine at the Middlesex hospital, London, in 1982, after which he wasted what was left of an already considerably misspent youth working as a surgeon at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital and as the McIndoe Research Fellow at the Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead. Realising that a surgical career wasn’t compatible with an active interest in field sports, he moved north, became a GP and now works four days a week as a doctor and moonlights as executive editor for Waterlog.
Andrew has written extensively on the history of fly fishing and his award-winning book, The Fly, was the result of a decade’s research. A further decade of research later this book is now in its third, greatly expanded edition, The History of Fly Fishing, and is the most authoritative work ever published on the subject. His website - www.flyfishinghistory.com - is one of the most visited angling websites. He has a unique writing style that blends facts with fresh and colourful comments on the valuable and sometimes bizarre background material that has somehow eluded other authors. Andrew translated and wrote the accompanying text for the Medlar edition of the first angling book ever published, The Treatise of Fishing with an Angle.
Trout Fly Patterns 1496 - 1916 is the second volume in The History of Fly Fishing and Salmon Fly Patterns 1766 -1914 is the third volume.
In 2012 Andrew worked with Keith Harwood and David Stanley on a book that celebrates Hardy fishing accessories - Gear and Gadgets. He spent many hours in the Hardy Museum taking photographs of the many and varied 'irresistible' objects.
Andrew is currently working on a new book about early Hardy Catalogues called The Anglers’ Bible due for publication in spring 2015.
Andrew lives in County Durham and is married to Barbara, a consultant physician. They have a daughter, two labradors, two horses, a pony, four hundred dependent finches and an ageing goldfish. In his spare time he fishes, shoots, hunts, stalks deer, ties flies, takes photographs, collects fishing books, enjoys wine, tries to keep the hedgehog out of the dog kennel and continues to research the history of fishing.
'Those of us who are interested in the origins and development of fly-fishing in Britain owe a great debt to Andrew Herd. This one-man powerhouse has put his immense brain at our disposal and single-handedly documented the entire history in Volume I of this trilogy. He has an extraordinary capacity for absorbing and organizing data . . .' David Beazley, The Flyfishers' Journal.
'Every so often is published a book that stands head and shoulders above all others in its field. Andrew Herd’s The History of Fly Fishing is such a book . . . I heartily recommend this book to you. You will read and re-read it many times.' Malcolm Greenhalgh, Fly Fishing and Fly Tying