The name causes confusion. On a British or Irish boat, pollock means Pollachius pollachius, a cod relative with an olive or bronze back, a lower jaw that juts out and a dark lateral line that curves up over the pectoral fin. In North America the same word is used for the fish British anglers call coalfish, and Alaska pollock is another fish again. Ours is the European one. It lives around reefs, rocky ground and wrecks in clear water, sitting a little above the structure to ambush sandeels and small fish, and it eats well, firm and white.
Our pollock boat is Fishing with Andy out of Plymouth, which works the western Channel on full days, out around 07:15 and back about 17:00, for up to 8 people on shared places or a private charter. Of the fish the boat lists, pollock has a recent catch report behind it: in November 2025 Andy took six novice anglers on hire tackle to a reef and a nearby wreck, and they caught plenty of pollock alongside bass and black bream. Most of the bream went back to grow bigger.
The classic method is a soft lure on a long, flowing trace behind a lead, dropped to the bottom and wound back up at a steady pace. A pollock follows, grabs and turns for home, and the first few seconds decide whether you keep it out of the rocks. The boat also jigs and spins, and on calm days pollock will come to lighter lures nearer the surface. The rules on what you may keep have changed; our guide to bass and pollack rules on UK charters explains them.
Questions and answers
Short answers to what people ask before they book. Anything else, ask the captain in chat.
Is pollock the same fish as pollack?
In Britain and Ireland, yes: both spellings mean the bronze reef fish Pollachius pollachius, and many anglers prefer pollack. In North America pollock usually means the fish British anglers call coalfish, and Alaska pollock is a different species again.
Can beginners catch pollock from Plymouth?
Yes. In November 2025 Fishing with Andy took six novice anglers on hire tackle to a reef and a nearby wreck off Plymouth, and they caught plenty of pollock with bass and black bream. Andy sells single places on his full-day trips for up to 8.