Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

On a spur of the moment, we decided to go to the movies last night with our friends, Paul and Helen. The ladies were playing tennis in the morning and the topic of conversation veered to this delightful feel-good movie. I ask you, why should anybody think of going fishing for Scottish salmon in the arid desert of Yemen.

Well, author Paul Torday thought of it. Torday (60) who had written very little since his youth, when he wrote articles for British newspapers, penned this delightful story about a wealthy Yemeni sheikh (Waked), with more money than sense, who decided he wanted to fish for salmon the Yemen.

He engaged consultant Harriet Chetwode-Talbot (Blunt) who floated the idea with the British government, who, desperate for a good-news story from the middle-east forced the project onto fisheries expert Fred Jones (McGregor), Fred, an asperger-syndrome sufferer who thinks it’s a crazy idea but ends up working with Harriet to fulfill the sheikh’s dream.

There is, of course the inevitable side plot. Fred’s marriage is falling apart and Harriet’s soldier boyfriend, is missing in action in Afghanistan, so it is inevitably that Fred and Harriet are brought together, but only after a few riotous disasters.


The film is directed by Lasse Hallström, known for his block-busters Chocolat and A Guy and a Gal. 
A stellar cast includes Amr Waked, Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt and Catherine Steadman.

Another one of those wonderful British movies I’m glad we went to see. I highly recommend it.