FISHINGmagic Calendar for 2007 Competition

The ladies were not particularly attractive and the calendar certainly didn't display the company's products, so the obvious deduction was that semi-naked ladies do assist in market sales, that and the fact that Pirelli only issued a limited number of copies thus making the calendar a desirable 'must have' for a certain section of the populous.

Gladly, I was never counted in their number!

Notwithstanding, 'The Cal' as it has affectionately become known in the inner circles, is the standard to which all other pretenders are measured against.

Over the years various tackle manufacturers have attempted to offer calendars with somewhat limited degrees of success and this year the give away freebie calendar from Anglers Mail plumbed new depths of mediocrity that I had only thought existed in day sheets like The Guardian.

Now, most readers of the Guardian are nothing more than 'wannabe' Greens who would be better advised that rather than read the 'green rag' to simply leave their steaks and Sunday joints in the fridge, but paint the bloody thing green and have done with it.

Such is the limited dedication of the Guardian reader!

However I digress, back to the FM 2007 Calendar.

Given that I am obliged to spend so much time commuting between Salisbury and Paris I have been giving the idea of an FM calendar some considerable thought and here are my suggestions, for what they may be worth:

To start with, why does every calendar published have to start in January?

Granted, it is the first month of the Gregorian Calendar and has become a 'standard' world wide, but think about this: an anglers' year starts in June, on the 15th to be perfectly precise with our planning for the 16th, our traditional opening day of a new season. So here we have the first revelation in calendar publishing since Robert Freeman and Derek Forsyth were commissioned in 1964 to design and photograph 'The Cal'.

Accordingly, the FM Calendar will commence on June 15th.

All history buffs will recall that when the Americans finally adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1752 (some 50 odd years after us English) they had to lose 11 days from their previously well loved Julian calendar.

To compensate for this, Wednesday, September 2, 1752 was immediately followed by Thursday, September 14, 1752. This traumatic change resulted in widespread riots and the populace demanding: "Give us back the eleven days!"

I do not expect such similar antics from the angling world as we are far more adaptable than the Yanks, and for those few reactionaries out there who might consider revolting, go ahead - I don't give a damn!

So, the first page of the FM Calendar is now set at June 15th 2007 and it will be a short page only accounting for the 15 days between the 15th and the 30th which I do believe is an interesting similarity with the Yanks losing their 11 days back in the good old 1752.

This one falls two bait boxes short of Peter's specification but will give you an idea of what he's looking for

Now, all we need to do is to decide upon a suitably glossy picture to celebrate the glorious 16th June which I will insist on being a river scene that should include in the foreground at least three bait boxes containing traditional baits.

After all, if I am going to piss-off the majority of the planet with a totally new concept then I might as well go the full Monty and get a hidden plug in for the return of 'proper' baits over the chemically altered monstrosities in use today!

By now all should be getting the idea about the FM Calendar so here is what I will ask you to do:

Over the coming two weeks propose a picture to depict the month of July in the FM Angling Calendar together with a short description stating why this is your choice. Then in the next two weeks we will look at August, and so on to May.

Every two weeks Graham and I will select the winning picture from those submitted to the 'Calendar Submissions Album' (this is an 'open' album) in the Gallery Section for the FM calendar, so that in about six months time we will have a full calendar set of pictures and descriptions that will become the FM Calendar for 2007. Then all that needs to be done is to add the days and dates of the month.

To maintain interest I will donate £10 per winning picture to the angling charity of the winner's choice and FM will bestow upon the winner an FM cap and tee-shirt, so together with your picture and description please state which of the angling charities you wish to have the prize money donated. (Note: the ACA is a good choice ;-)

I believe that we can collectively design a really good-looking calendar that will emphasise what, to each of us, angling is, or should be about.

To assist here are a few pointers:

1. If I want to see pictures of plates of boilies and/or pellets, all I have to do is to buy one of the weekly angling papers - therefore, any picture containing plates of boilies or pellets will be instantly disallowed!

2. Famous anglers should not be depicted. However, the 'committee' do not consider that any of FM's members are all that famous; therefore piccies of any regular contributor are acceptable.

3. The FM Calendar is striving to be new, different and angling oriented, however, you will have as much chance of winning with a picture of a semi-naked lady as you would have of receiving a knighthood in the New Year's Honour's List if you vomited over one of Her Majesty's corgis.

There you have it, there are £110 of my hard earned readies up for grabs for the pictures from July to May, remembering that I have already 'bagsied' the month of June.

Now, it's all up to you.

How to Submit Pictures for the Calendar
Submit pictures for the calendar to the 'Calendar Submissions Album' in editor Graham's section of the Gallery and then post a link to that picture in the forum thread below, saying why you think your picture is the best for that month.

Each month the winning entry will be displayed in the 'Calendar Winners Album' in the Gallery. (Album will be created when we have the first winner).