Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Leeds Live
Leeds Live
National
Samuel Port

The 140-year-old legendary fish in Leeds Kirkgate Market confusing children

There is a fish in Leeds Kirkgate Market that stands out from the rest. It’s unlike any other fish in the market - maybe even throughout the whole city.

The preserved pike, which sits pride of place at a fishmonger’s stall, is a very old specimen and has been turning heads for 140 years. It’s become synonymous with TE Bethell Best Quality Fish and has been passed down from generation to generation of different owners.

But it's been confusing some children who pass-by in the city-centre market, who think the size of its tank is "cruel". They've also asked where the water is.

Read more: Leeds market 'stinky water' bag burst all over fishmonger who had to strip

Current stall owner Suzanne Lemming, 57, loves the cheeky looking pike, which has been preserved since 1882. Suzanne says the little rascal was caught in Stradsett Lake in Norfolk all those years ago.

Suzanne said: “It is eye-catching, everybody who knows us knows that fish. People who recommend us go, ‘girl in red [myself] and pike in’ middle of the counter’.

The pike was caught in in Stradsett Lake in Norfolk (Samuel Port)

“We’ve never had a nickname for it. Children make the best comments about it. We had a little girl who said ‘It’s really cruel is that’.

“I asked ‘Why is it cruel?’ She said ‘Because he can’t turn around in that small tank!’

“We’ve had people, mainly children, ask where the water is as well.”

Suzanne bought the stall in 2001 and first saw the pike in the market when she started working there at the age of 18 for a Saturday job.

Fishmonger Suzanne Lemming, who owns TE Bethell Best Quality Fish in Leeds Kirkgate Market (Samuel Port)

“I took a year out of school to work in the market and never went back,” said Suzanne. “Working with fish does become a passion, wherever I go now, the first thing I do is buy at a fish-mongers.”

Historically, fish taxidermy was achieved by skinning it, mounting it and then painting it. Methods have since changed because this method can result in deterioration if the fish is stored in the wrong climate. Fish can also be hollowed out and injected with embalming fluid to keep it preserved. It is not known which method was used for Suzanne’s pike.

Leeds Kirkgate Market’s origins date back to 1822 as an open-air market in Briggate. Although it opened in its current form in 1981 after many years of construction.

To get the latest email updates from LeedsLive, click here.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.