Tracing the origins of fly-fishing (and hence fly-tying) is no easy task, but we do know that forms of flies have been used to tempt fish at least since Rome thought of itself as the centre of the world – pottery predating Christ depicts the use of feathered hooks. As time went on, simple feathered patterns evolved into a greater variety of increasingly elaborate designs. By the 17th century, the first true champion of fishing as a recreational pursuit, Izaak Walton, regarded fly-fishing as an increasingly important element of ‘The Contemplative Man’s Recreation’.

Many of the fly patterns used today were the product of Victorian times, and one with comparatively well-documented origins is the Greenwell’s Glory – designed in 1854 by Canon William Greenwell. After a fruitless day’s trout fishing on the Tweed, he decided that creating a fly using the inside of a blackbird’s wing might fool the fish. He duly consulted local fly-tying supremo, Jimmy Wright, who immediately set to work on Greenwell’s design. The resulting pattern was astonishingly successful: the next day produced a veritable haul for the Right Reverend, who filled his willow creel, his pockets, and his boots with some fine specimens of Salmo trutta. A century and a half later, Greenwell’s eponymous pattern is still catching fish a-plenty.

A more recent inductee to the fly-tying hall of fame was Miss Megan Boyd. Despite never having cast a fly in anger herself, Miss Boyd was a true fly-tying perfectionist, creating patterns from her home in Brora for over 60 years. Her distinguished customers included the Prince of Wales and her skill was sufficient to earn her the British Empire Medal in 1971. The Megan Boyd, a black and blue salmon fly, bears testament to her talents as a designer, as well as tier, of flies......

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