Pound for pound, fish is small fry for the British economy – but it has long been vital to our sense of sovereignty. From skirmishes with Dutch boats to the Cod Wars and Brexit, Ros Taylor finds out why fish matter so much to us. Maritime historian Richard Blakemore and marine biologist Bryce Stewart join the show.

 

Richard Blakemore is an Associate Professor in social and maritime history at the University of Reading. He’s the author of Enemies of All: The Rise and Fall of the Golden Age of Piracy, published by Pegasus Books.

 

Bryce Stewart is a senior research fellow at the Marine Biological Association.

 

Voiceovers are by Seth Thévoz. The MPs quoted are James Johnson (Kingston-upon-Hull West), Patrick Wall (Haltemprice) and John Prescott (Kingston-upon-Hull East).

 

The extract from the Shipping Forecast is from a five-hour YouTube compilation.

 

I drew on The fishing industry (Commons Library), The Cod Wars Explained (Imperial War Museum), Rethinking Sovereignty and Security at the Maritime Frontier (Coventry University), Fisheries Management in United Kingdom Waters After Brexit (Robin Churchill), Eaux britanniques: les poissons de la discorde (France Culture), and The Sovereignty of the Sea (T W Fulton).

 

MORE JAM TOMORROW was written and presented by Ros Taylor. The producer was David Turnbull. Music was by Dubstar. MORE JAM TOMORROW is a KTC production.