Joan Collins was set to star in film 'The Pike' shot on Lake Windermere

Excert from 'The history of Low Wood Bay

Former English Lakes Chairman and Managing Director, Michael Berry, recalls the details in his book about the history of Low Wood Bay…

'A very enterprising Mancunian, having seen the American thriller  Jaws, decided if the New England coast of the USA could have a man eating fish, why not Old England, and if England, why not Windermere and what was big in Windermere? – PIKE. His name was Chris Twemlow. Chris made contact with Low Wood Bay and much pre-planning took place.

He had a firm in Ulverston make a 12 foot pike and inside it was installed a radio controlled motor to propel the fish on the water’s surface. All was set for the great day. City Major Ltd. were to produce, Joan Collins and Jack Hedley were the stars and stayed at Low Wood for some three days.

The opening scene of the film would be a lone fisherman sitting on Low Wood’s northern pier with legs dangling over the jetty side. The camera was to be the eyes of the giant pike looking north to the dangling legs. The camera was to move faster and faster to its prey, and the music, a la Jaws, similarly. There would be a great crescendo, a swirl of water, utter silence and all that was to be seen on the bloody surface of the lake was the fisherman’s hat.'

A Fibreglass model of The Pike at The Watersports Centre

Little is known of the whereabouts of the mechanical pike however Low Wood Bay Watersports Centre are, the proud owners of the life size fibreglass model of 'The Pike' that was produced at the same time as the mechanical version. It is can be seen displayed nose down as our 'catch of the day' outside the Watersports Centre.