John Wilson, who played a pivotal role in reviving European angling in the 1980s through his Go Fishing television programmes, is leaving England and moving to Thailand. He has put his stunning Norfolk lakeside property up for sale and will move to Thailand later this year. “We’ve had enough of the cold weather,” John said. “I don’t want to die an angry old man moaning about otters and cormorants, so I’m moving to Thailand. I’ve lost interest in fishing here.” He has bought a  a six-acre site with a three-acre lake, and has already ordered what he describes as “big, hard-fighting fish like arapaima and catfish” for the lake. A key factor is that his wife Jo has arthritis and the extended run of bitterly cold UK weather has exacerbated that condition. He expects to moving in October or November, subject to the sale of his house. John’s Go Fishing television programmes have played a core role in encouraging thousands to take up fishing. He was voted The Greatest Angler of all Time in a 2004 poll by readers in Angling Times, and more recently was named as one of the ten most influential anglers of the past 160 years by The Field magazine. He was awarded an MBE in 2009 for services to angling, and was elected to the International Game Fish Association’s Hall of Fame in 2010. If you’re going to lift this story, please credit Classic Angling