CAN NATION'S FAVOURITE BECOME THE NEXT 'KING'?

Following the recent passing of the British record carp, we look at the principal contenders for the Parrot’s vacated crown...

TWO of the biggest carp ever seen in Britain have died recently, leaving many anglers to wonder which fish could be the next record-holder.

The official British best, the Parrot, which topped out at 68lb 1oz, was found dead at the beginning of August, while the controversial Big Rig, which reached 71lb 4oz but was never ratified as a record due to the high weight it was stocked at, died in July.

There is no shortage of up-and-coming carp which feasibly could challenge for the title of the UK’s biggest carp within the next season or two, but none would be more popular than the mighty Burghfield Common.

When it was caught by Scott Lloyd in April at an all-time high of 62lb 8oz, the outpouring of congratulations from the carp community reached a level rarely seen. And, having put on an astonishing 7lb-plus since its penultimate capture by Dave Lane in 2014, it’s not out of the question that this ‘nation’s favourite’ could scale the heights reached by the Parrot.

Fisheries Ecologist Dr Paul Garner pointed to a number of factors in the fish’s favour.

“Burghfield is an expansive, rich venue with plenty of natural food, including lots of signal crayfish. It’s a great environment for carp. What’s more, this fish is a hardy creature, a survivor, and isn’t getting stressed out by getting caught every five minutes. It would only have to put on another 10 per cent of its body weight to take the record.

“Like many anglers, I think the Burghfield Common is the rightful heir and I’d be delighted to see it crowned the country’s biggest one day.”

All of us here at Carpfeed couldn’t agree more.