A fisherman has landed what is believed to be the biggest trout caught in this part of the Thames in recent times.

New Zealander David Shannon was fishing on Putney Embankment last Tuesday when he hooked the 10.2lb (4.6kg) monster.

He said: “It’s amazing to get such a big fish in from that part of the river.

“I was amazed when it started jumping as I then knew it was a trout and how rare it was to hook up to a fish that big anywhere in London.

“I was very happy to pull it in – it took about six to seven minutes – as I only had a weak leader and he could have broken it several times.”

But while the fish’s size supports evidence that the polluted river, declared dead in the 1950s, is now a thriving fish habitat its skin was severely discoloured, probably by pollution.

Theo Pike, from the Wandle Trust, said he believed the fish could be either a migratory sea trout or a slob trout.

He said: “There is a long tradition of large trout being caught in the weir pools of the Thames but for one to be caught by Putney Bridge is unusual.”

Environmental improvements on the river were recognised in October when it was awarded the International Theiss Riverprize, which celebrates outstanding achievement in river management and restoration.

London’s iconic river has undergone a dramatic recovery – from being biologically dead in the 1950s to today’s thriving waterway.

Have you caught a big fish on the Thames? Send your stories and pictures to jhenderson@london.newsquest.co.uk.