Sorry, it’s not a fishing related post today. I am obviously addicted to fishing, but I do also love a good film, TV series or book, and the more extreme metal (music) has always been an obsession of mine. I hope that something on this list either sits at the top of your list as well, but if not perhaps you will find something that floats your boat as much as it did for me this year. You all have a good weekend, hope you haven’t floated away yet with all this wet weather we’ve been getting!

Film of the Year 2025: Train Dreams

If you have got Netflix then have a watch of this stunning film. Train Dreams is very much not a crash, bang, wallop film, indeed it’s beautifully meditative and emotionally engaging. Shot mainly with natural light I believe, it’s a gorgeous film, and the lead actor Joel Edgerton is outstanding. I love a loud action film as much as the next person, but sometimes I like my films to worm their way into my head and luxuriate there. Train Dreams is one of those films for me. Stunning.

TV Series of the Year 2025: Task

There is so much good television out there and we haven’t got a hope of seeing it all, not if you want to live some kind of life which doesn’t revolve around sitting on your arse all the time! “Task” did it for me on so many different levels. Adolescence and The Agency are right up there for me as well from this year.

Book of the Year 2025: Battle Mountain by C.J Box

I haven’t read a book this year which has massively stood out to me like a few specific books have done in the past, but I do love C.J Box’s long-running series based around a game warden in Wyoming. Battle Mountain is number 25 in this series and I can’t recall a single C.J Box book which I haven’t loved reading.

Album of the Year 2025: Dissonance Theory by Coroner

Always one of my favourite thrash metal bands anyway, but quite how the Swiss group Coroner releases a new album a whole 30+ years after their last one AND it’s this bloody awesome is beyond me. Incredible. If you are into your metal then two other albums came very close to the top spot for me in 2025 - “Nevertheless” by Thormesis, and “Lonely People With Power” by Deafheaven. I love these two albums as much as the new Coroner one, but I gave the top spot to Coroner because listening to their new album provokes such feelings of nostalgia in this old head of mine.

Podcast of the Year 2025: Test Match Special

I listen to a few different podcasts when I get the time, and however badly the England Test team continues to do in Australia, at least the Test Match Special podcast is consistently brilliant.

Best Buy of the Year 2025: Hoka Clifton 10 road running shoes

I am racking up a lot of miles in these running shoes and I really like them. Very light, plenty of cushioning for an older body like mine, I think these Hoka Clifton 10 shoes are the best Hoka running shoes I have come across so far.

Another Best Buy of the Year 2025: Temso Clip On Polarized Flip up Glasses

Yep, they do look a bit ridiculous, but I had to find a polarising solution for my fishing and the fact that I wear varifocal glasses most of the time these days. I took a punt on these Temso things and they do actually work pretty well. Obviously not as good as a proper pair of polarised sunnies, but I can easily get by for much of what I do these days. Much better than I expected.

Another Best Buy of the Year 2025: Apple AirPods Pro 3

It would be so much easier if Apple gear wasn’t so good, but through my work and phone I am kinda bound to the Apple ecosystem. I think these newish AirPods Pro 3 are a good bit better than the previous generation. I far prefer USB-C charging for starters, plus they sound a bit better, but the big thing for me is that I think these new ones are a much better fit for my ears.

Another Best Buy of the Year 2025: Danish Endurance Merino Wool Hiking Liner Socks

When it finally came to buying some new socks to wear with BCWs, I went (again) with the Bridgedale Coolmax Liner socks which had lasted me for so long. Like so many things in life it now seems though, the new ones I bought just aren’t as good, so I took a punt on these Danish Endurance Merino Wool Hiking Liner Socks and I haven’t looked back. Really good and they just don’t get at all smelly, even after days on end of being trussed up inside neoprene socks inside a pair of wading boots.

Proper Pile of Crap 2025: Ulanzi CG-02 Grip Holder for Smartphone

I thought this might be a clever way of making it easier to use an iPhone a bit better as a camera, but when the removable shutter button “removed” itself from the grip and fell in an estuary on its first trip out, I knew I had bought a pile of poo. Credit to Amazon for giving me a full refund.

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Non-fishing Stuff of the Year 2025