Chris Dawn has died

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mark williams 4

Guest
It is with great sadness that I learned a few minutes ago that my old friend and mentor, Chris Dawn, has died.
Chris had a cancer scare two years ago, and unfortunately discovered this year that it had returned. His courage in the last few weeks has been truly remarkable.
I had worked with Chris for 27 years, and his Dawn Patrol in Angling Times was not only the inspiration for me to write about fishing, but for scores of others. He was a fantastic journalist, always enthusiastic, and able to paint a picture with words. His articles for Trout Fisherman were, I am sure Russ Hill won't mind me saying, often the best reading material in the magazine.
On a personal level, I will miss Chris very badly. But I am aure FM will agree that angling has lost one of the best angling journalists of this era or any other.
 
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Ron 'The Hat' Clay (ACA-Life Member)

Guest
I am so sad to hear this.

Chris Dawn was one of the great angling journalists and editors, in the mould of Jack Thorndyke. As you say Mark his picture features in Trout Fisherman were superbly written and produced.

Only recently he did a picture feature with Pete Cockwill on Avington.

Sincerest condolences to all his friends and family.
 
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mark williams 4

Guest
I have had a long chat with Pete Gathercole and Dave Phillips. Dave calculated that Chris started work on AT in 1968, and joined from AM, so he had a long career. Dave said he was ten years old when he started reading the Dawn Patrol.
Pete also told me something interesting. Despite Chris's long career on AT and TF, he didn't catch his first double-figure trout until this spring, when he knew he had little time left.
In typical 'Dawnie' fashion, instead of catching one, he caught three this spring, one a truly superb fish from Elinor.
 
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ED (The ORIGINAL and REAL one)

Guest
So sorry to hear about Chris -
Deepest sympathies to his family

I first met Chris in the sixties/seventies when we (Roger Harker and I) did a weekly feature in AT called "In the Swim with the Big Fish Men"



Also around that time working for AT were Nick Fletcher and photographer Billy Goddard ......
 
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Ron 'The Hat' Clay (ACA-Life Member)

Guest
Mark,

During the mid 60s, I did quite a bit of work for the Anglers Mail. Do you remember it was printed on Green paper. I think Chris Dawn was involved then, but there were two other editorial people that come to mind.

One was John Piper and the other was Len Cacutt I think. And then there was the Editor. I can't bring the name out of my grey cells. Maybe you can.
 
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mark williams 4

Guest
Ron. I don't remember the editor of AM then, mainly because I was only 11 years old at the time! I presume Roy Westwood wasn't there at that time?

Ed clearly hasn't forgotten Nick (still fishing, and still as interesting as ever). Bill Goddard was at the stroke unit of Peterborough hospital at the same time as my mother-in-law, and had suffered a bad stroke but was still coherent if hard ton listen to.

Bill had a second life down in the south west, and moved to Dorset. In only know this because the male nurse looking after him at a care unit wrote to Emap to let us know he still fondly remembered his days at AT.

I wrote to this person asking him to remember me to Bill, but didn't get a reply.

Yesterday, someone said to me in relation to Bill and Chris: "Lord save us from the Grey Men." Both were amazing characters, so deeply flawed and yet so interesting. I now work in an industry dominated by people with a 'top down perspective' and 'helicopter view' always 'flying a kite' and using other worthless phrases to cover for the fact that they know sod all about anything.

Half cut, Chris was still sharper than all of them put together.
 
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ED (The ORIGINAL and REAL one)

Guest
What a character Billy Goddard was --I remember Roger and I practically carrying him down a field on one of the meres (after we'd been for a liquid lunch in a local hostelry)He was supposed to be doing some photos of us for an AT feature ....
 
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Ron 'The Hat' Clay (ACA-Life Member)

Guest
Mark,

I don't really remember Roy Westwood. He came after my time.

And I do apologise for insinuating that you might be as old as doddering old me.

It's just come to me. The first editor of AM was John Ingham. He was a lovely bloke who wanted to encourage my writing and photography even more. He did publish a centre spread of mine ca 1970 on fishing in SA.

I wonder if he is still with us. He would have been in his late 50s in 1970 I guess.
 
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Chris Bishop

Guest
There's an interview with him in last week's covering the launch of AM and his years in charge. Fascinating stuff.
 
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mark williams 4

Guest
For anyone who knew him, Chris's funeral is at Marholm Church, Peterborough, on Wednesday 7th June at 2.15pm. The wake will be at the Green Man (Fitzwilliam Arms) Marholm afterwards.
 
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ED (The ORIGINAL and REAL one)

Guest
If I was nearer I'd be there Mark ....Sadly it's a bit too far
 
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