City fishmonger retires after 50 years as the Codfather
CARDIFF legend Keith the Fish has shut up shop after more than 50 years.
Nestled away in the centre of Cardiff, almost completely surrounded by far newer developments and the massive St David’s shopping centre, Keith and his fish stall served customers for decades.
But now, after about 50 years of work, the 81-year-old has decided to call it a day.
Keith the Fish, also known as Keith Twamley, said: “It feels great sitting here now, I’ve just done a bit of gardening this morning, but basically I’m just relaxing. My customers were not customers, they were friends. And I made sure they got what they wanted.”
He added that a number of his former customers have contacted him since hearing he’s closed, saying they are sad to see him go.
Keith, who lives with his son, said: “It’s been 50 years now that I’ve been running back and forth, looking after my customers.
“But I was serving one person a day on the counter lately. It was all deliveries, so it was worth me packing up.”
Keith used to start his day when most of us are still in bed, or even heading home from a night out. He would wake up at 2.30am to be at his spot in Cardiff city centre for 3.30am five days a week from Tuesday to Saturday.
Some customers have been buying fish from Keith for more than 40 years and he describes them as “friends not customers”.
On a normal day, Keith would be back home in Ely by 3pm, but not before a quick drink at the Highfields pub in Caerau.
Keith can count Lulu and Cilla Black among his many customers over the years
He said back in January 2020: “I get home at 3pm-ish. [But] I’m up every day at 2.30am. Even on a Sunday and a Monday when I’m not working I’m still awake and downstairs. But I go to bed every night by 7pm, see.”
Keith describes himself as “born and bred” in Ely, and has previously spoken about how he and his family got the keys to their prefab home. Speaking previously, Keith said that even celebrities have been customers over the decades – saying that Lulu and even Cilla Black had bought fish from him.
Keith started working when he was still at school and would make deliveries on his bike for a butcher in Ely. He then worked as a fishmonger in the Howells department store in Cardiff.
After finishing at Howells, Keith moved to the old St David’s Market before arriving at his current spot around 10 years ago.
When they decided to close down the market, Keith said the Rapports family helped him find a place where he could continue trading.
Sandwiched between St David’s Metropolitan Cathedral and Marks & Spencer, Keith said there weren’t many options of where he could go.
Keith said that with the rise of supermarkets and heavily packaged foods, including fish, people aren’t used to buying fresh fish any more.
“It’s changed a lot. The fish trade is nothing like it used to be,” he said.