Jun 22, 2026 · 33 min · 10 segments
In the opening episode of Collecting Fish, host James Hepworth shares his personal journey into fishkeeping — from childhood memories of exploring rock pools on family holidays to building his first…
James HepworthHost
So what I would love to get into in terms of what does it actually take to start? What do you need to do to get into fish keeping? So it's really quite straightforward.
Everybody will have a different budget and in regards to your living situation.
The great thing about fish compared to a dog, a cat or another pet is, yes, it requires work, but it doesn't require the work that is really going to stop you from living your own life, going on holiday or leaving the house when you need to.
marine aquarium that's going to really take your energy and your money, it won't be to that level.
I will still be able to teach you how to get into the marine hobby at a fraction of the cost.
But in terms of what does it take to get started? You've probably gone to an aquarium shop and you've seen loads of different fish, loads of different aquariums, and you're thinking, how do I start? How do I get into this hobby? So if you've got the interest, say you've got the space in your house, you know you want to put a fish tank there.
you've spoken to your partner, you've spoken to whoever lives with you, or you live by yourself, I want to have this aquarium, the first thing to do, and I would recommend this, rather than just going and buying an aquarium online, because you can do that, my recommendation is go into a shop, At the end of the day, we need the next wave of dedicated fish keepers to go in and to start to mingle with each other and to build this hobby.
And the way that you're able to do so is speaking with the professionals there.
When you walk into any fish shop, the people that you are going to be met with, the people that work there, live and breathe the hobby.
Fish keeping, unfortunately, it's nowhere near as popular as it used to be for many reasons.
People essentially not having the space, the surplus cash, or there are now other hobbies and activities that have opened up to us over the last 15 or 20 years.
There are so many fantastic shops around the UK and around the world that you can have a chat with.
They're going to ask you in terms of how big would you like your tank to be? And what you will say is, I've got this budget.
I would like to have a certain size aquarium, whether this is an aquarium that's with a cabinet or whether this is a very small futuristic aquarium that you can put in a quiet place of your house.
They are going to recommend in terms of how to get the aquarium set up, and we'll discuss in terms of exactly what this is in terms of the nitrogen cycle, filtration, et cetera, the nuts and bolts there.
If you spend enough time, you will probably do your research beforehand, is how do you want the tank to look like? So, for example, we are discussing a freshwater aquarium for this one.
So what I would love to get into in terms of what does it actually take to start? What do you need to do to get into fish keeping? So it's really quite straightforward.
Everybody will have a different budget and in regards to your living situation.
The great thing about fish compared to a dog, a cat or another pet is, yes, it requires work, but it doesn't require the work that is really going to stop you from living your own life, going on holiday or leaving the house when you need to.
marine aquarium that's going to really take your energy and your money, it won't be to that level.
I will still be able to teach you how to get into the marine hobby at a fraction of the cost.
But in terms of what does it take to get started? You've probably gone to an aquarium shop and you've seen loads of different fish, loads of different aquariums, and you're thinking, how do I start? How do I get into this hobby? So if you've got the interest, say you've got the space in your house, you know you want to put a fish tank there.
you've spoken to your partner, you've spoken to whoever lives with you, or you live by yourself, I want to have this aquarium, the first thing to do, and I would recommend this, rather than just going and buying an aquarium online, because you can do that, my recommendation is go into a shop, At the end of the day, we need the next wave of dedicated fish keepers to go in and to start to mingle with each other and to build this hobby.
And the way that you're able to do so is speaking with the professionals there.
When you walk into any fish shop, the people that you are going to be met with, the people that work there, live and breathe the hobby.
Fish keeping, unfortunately, it's nowhere near as popular as it used to be for many reasons.
People essentially not having the space, the surplus cash, or there are now other hobbies and activities that have opened up to us over the last 15 or 20 years.
There are so many fantastic shops around the UK and around the world that you can have a chat with.
They're going to ask you in terms of how big would you like your tank to be? And what you will say is, I've got this budget.
I would like to have a certain size aquarium, whether this is an aquarium that's with a cabinet or whether this is a very small futuristic aquarium that you can put in a quiet place of your house.
They are going to recommend in terms of how to get the aquarium set up, and we'll discuss in terms of exactly what this is in terms of the nitrogen cycle, filtration, et cetera, the nuts and bolts there.
If you spend enough time, you will probably do your research beforehand, is how do you want the tank to look like? So, for example, we are discussing a freshwater aquarium for this one.
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