Kirkgate's long-standing fish and chip shop on the market

Pictured above are Mark and Jean Whitmarsh, who have put their Kirkgate Fisheries business on the market after 22 years at the Kirkgate fish and chip shop. A combination of health problems and VAT challenges has prompted their decision. Mark was a geologist in the oil and construction industry and met Jean while working in Hong Kong. They married 32 years ago. Mark had lived in Silsden and returned here to take on the Kirkgate chippy, which had been run for 16 years by former local milkman David Rawsthorne. Mark and Jean were new to the business of fish and chips and were grateful to David for instructing them. “We are still frying fish and chips the way David taught us,” says Mark, who will be looking for a desk job once the shop is sold.