SKIPPERS AND THEIR BOATS no1: The Spitfire 

Its wonderful that people are still proud to be fishermen, when so much is against them. Brilliant video to really make us all think. x

Great watch and really informative. Thanks so much 😊

Great vlog very intresting.well done all.the best in year too you all

Another lovely vlog Barry, What a great idea to get some of your other skippers to interview. Well done buddy. Keith & Val xx😊😘

Great name for a boat. If i ever bought a boat i would call it unsinkable 2 haha.

The MCA suspected a fishing boat owner wasn't paying proper wages to his deckhand and sent an auditor to investigate him. MCA: "I need a list of your employees and how much you pay them." Boat Owner: "Well, there's Clarence, my deckhand, he's been with me for 3 years. I pay him $1,000 a week plus free room and board. Then there's the mentally challenged guy. He works about 18 hours every day and does about 90% of the work around here. He makes about $10 per week, pays his own room and board, and I buy him a bottle of Bundaberg rum and a dozen Crown Lagers every Saturday night so he can cope with life. He also gets to sleep with my wife occasionally." MCA: "That's the guy I want to talk to - the mentally challenged one." Boat Owner: "That'll be me. What'd you want to know

Well done Barry for giving us an insight into being a fisherman 👍 Keep up the good work you two.

What a great way to start 2024 Barry! "Skippers and their boats" loved this blog and brought back many happy memories when I spent time in 1978 on a trawler "Glorious Dawn" that fished out of Portavogie, here in Northern Ireland. Tailing prawns, sorting fish all done on the open deck. Loved it. Don't think the MCA would've tho lol. These pen pushers need learn how real life works, too wake up and smell the coffee! Total Respect for the small inshore fishermen. Looking forward to what's coming in 2024 on OMAHB Take Care Skipper 👍 Pete

HI Barry, outstanding, thank god for people like you and the fishing community, all around our coast, trying to keep the fishing industry alive. I am ex Coast guard and fishermen. The pressure that is put upon the industry is outrageous and beyond the reach of everyday people like you, and the fishing community as a whole is beyond understanding. Please Keep the faith, love you all. Thanks for the great videos. Barry, keep them coming. Best regards John, North East Coast UK 🇬🇧 😊

Really enjoyable insight to the prawn fishermans life. Long days and hard work. Let's hope people realise what it takes to put their food on the table

Aloha from Hawai'i. Wishing you and the Spitfire all success in the 2024 season.

Brilliant Barry keep up the pressure on the mca.. Skipper of the Rosemary ann from Belfast.. Working out of Eyemouth

Great vlog Barry & what a lovely lad he is. Wonderful to hear his story to. Thanks for posting M8, cheers, John.

Nice video Barry, and great to see how other boats do it 🍻

Happy new year! Thanks Barry and Jeff for this excellent Vlog and your idea. Looking forward to next one. Pete

Excellent program, it would of been nice to have a quick tour of the boat with some details.

That was really interesting .

What an excellent and interesting video Barry. I really enjoyed this one, to get an insight into a fisherman's day / week is really good . Looking forward to the next " Skippers and their boats " Well done.

Another good one Barry, it gives an insight to the daily life of a prawn boat fisherman to those of us not fishing. It's good to see a 50 yr old boat still fishing, I guess it's not easy keeping on top of maintenance. Best of luck and safe fishing for 2024 to Rowan and Crew. You mentioned that The Spitfire was one of the last boats built at Dunbar, would it be possible to do a wee video on the history of Dunbar boatyard?

Very informative and enjoyable watching, what a nice bloke he is.

Very interesting episode Barry. Looking forward to next season.

Smashing video mate. Antony landed his first catch on the market tonight ;-)

This is a great segment. Looking forward to seeing more stories like this.

This was such a great interview I've passed by Spitfire so many times and it was great to hear all about her and see her working. It's so sad to hear that youngsters are being denied the opportunity to learn the trade from experienced fishermen I'm always wondering why so much is exported to Spain and France is it just they pay a higher price. Come on folks buy more seafood and support our hard, working fishermen they're amazing

Great video Barry loved every second of it. And looking forward to all the others to come. Thanks again.

Happy New Year Barry and Jeff Hopefully your year is full of lobsters and Government legislation free. Great video again and great insight into other hard working fishermen and boats. Brilliant 👏

Was in the harbour yesterda and spotted Spitfire. Looks as tough as old boots, and watching another return to harbour in thar water, she would have to be. Also met some nice RNLI ladies who gave me a book on Dunbar's 200th lifeboat anniversary.....and I'm guessing Robert George Brunton is one of yours...

Great new series very interesting 👏

Happy new year to you Barry, Its worth mentioning the MMO in this too with what seems to be more and more desk drivers pushing rules and regulation onto the industry, when they don't know much about, I couldn't get a job regulating the pharmacy industry.

Would ya not put a small wheelhouse on her Barry for the steam in an out Beautiful boat you have it’s a credit to you

I remember the time it run aground on the north breakwater of Ayr Harbour

Enjoyed this Barry well done..as for the gov looking after the industry they have just killed mine by taking pollock of the quota,they certainly weren’t taking the inshore fleet who fish hook and line into consideration,they could have reduced the quota right down but we could still fish but by putting them as by-catch only I can’t even fish for them

Great start to the new year Barry! Well spoken lad who definitely respects his family of fishermen. Maybe you can have a day catching prawns with him. I think it would make an interesting video Baz! All the best for a very successful 2024. Be safe!

Nice one 👍 Happy New Year 😀

of coarse this is their end game to stop knowlege being passed down generations they allready stoped grandfather rights that put a stop to most ridfish fishermen fishing for s.a.l.m.o.n. in rivers its disgusting stoping the children helping at the peir and its because the government want everybody out the game dont let them keep making those vlogs barry your knowledge is pure gold to next generations wanting to fish

What a stalwart of the industry , one question is there any log of running time in her time she must of clocked a few hrs up , I remember her at the scallops

Gday mate this is going to be a good series as i said before in a comment i follow a couple of young lads in tasmania and i was telling them about all the rules a regulations and how some have just packed it in as it is out of control with them the price might be 85.00 a kilo of that the they will get 50 it has just started a new season in november and the catch looked good on there last vlog but what people dont understand is they dont set the price for all the hours and working sometimes very dangerous conditions to get the general public there crays /lobsters and when they see it in the mongers shop at 115 .00 kg they blame the fisherman and this is how ignorant some of the public are ,they see the nice houses and cars but they dont see the terrible conditions these men have to work in all they see is the final price yes they do make some good money but sometimes they barley break even people should watch these videos and they might just change there minds (now you got me going ) anyway take care till the next vlog .

it wasnt a ford it was a 4 cylinder cat fuzz told me he put the 6 cylinder cat in so he would tow the gear remembering saying he built the spitfire for the creels probably why he only had the 4 cylinder fitted to her to start with think it is a 3306 cat remember fuzz also saying he got cat to come and boost it up to 300hp there isnt many boats in the scottish fleet with that sort of power for the size and age of the boat great fun towing over the top of hard ground with the hoppers on

Hi Barry. The Spitfire looks very dumpy in shape. Is there a reason for that. And is trawling a good thing or bad thing. There must be a lot of waste with the wrong catch in the nets

After watching ure video, on spitfire,if this doesn't happen already ,wouldn't it be beneficial, to lobster fishermen like ure self if any bye catch,from small trawles,rather being thrown back dead be kept for you to used by you in your pots,and you not having to go out and fish for bait to us

I thought that BREXIT, was about getting shut of pointless bureaucracy and protecting our fishing industry. Seems nothing has changed. Do EU fishermen have the same restraints?