The Trawlerman Read online

  An offering.

  Thanks

  It goes without saying that the trawlermen and their families portrayed in this book are totally imaginary. The Stade boasts a strong fishing community. I’m very grateful to Luke Noakes for taking me out on his trawler. If you’re ever visiting Folkestone, you can sample his latest catch at The Fish Shop at 1 Fish Market on The Stade. At sixteen, Luke was the youngest ticketed trawler skipper in the UK. The man who certified him – and who introduced me to him – is the crime writer and translator Quentin Bates.

  Thanks also to Jake Jones, Darren Cooke, Paddy Magrane, Liz Cowlett, Graham Bartlett, Jasmine Palmer, my editor Jon Riley and my agent Karolina Sutton and the team at Curtis Brown. Much gratitude to the old gang: Roz Brody, Mike Holmes, Janet King and Chris Sansom. And finally, thanks, yet again, to Jane.

  Chapter one of this book was written almost entirely during a workshop I gave that was hosted by Dungeness Open Studios. Many thanks to the artist Paddy Hamilton and co-host Bridget Wilkins who have always welcomed me with tea and encouragement.