This is how fisherman using giant magnet to collect scrap metal from the canal bed in Kettering will raise thousands of pounds for charity

Magnet fishing, in which participants cast a line with an industrial sized magnet on the end into rivers and canals, is a past time enjoyed by growing numbers of people around Northamptonshire, with finds ranging from shopping trolleys to World War 1 and 2 weaponry.

Nigel Lamford and Aaron “The Crane” Smith have in their time discovered a BMX, six machine guns, a prosthetic hand holding a barbell weight and a safe containing £600 in gold. Nigel said “I was walking to the pub and I saw someone magnet fishing. The next day I bought a magnet and on my first go I found a BMX and a sawn off shotgun.”

Lamford and Smith have done a variety of charity events in including a battle of the sexes in which male and female magnet fishers competed against each other. Last year’s charity event raised £5000 for Cancer Research UK and this year they hope to raise double that with the possibility to win a car (that they didn’t find in a river!). It will take place on August 21 near Birmingham although the exact location cannot be revealed to avoid people dredging the area in advance. For more details go to go to the Northants Magnet Fishing Facebook group.