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Miranda Krestovnikoff examines the role of east coast fishermen in World War One.

She looks back the story of the Grimsby trawler captain who left a Zeppelin crew to die and was accused by the Germans of being a war criminal.

The German aircrew had crash landed in the ocean as they returned from a bombing raid in Britain.

Skipper William Martin came across them while fishing on his trawler the King Stephen, but did not rescue them - saying he feared they would overpower his crew. All 16 Germans died.

To some; Skipper Martin had committed a war crime, but for others; he acted justly at a time of war.

Presenter and natural historian Miranda Krestovnikoff meets Skipper Martin鈥檚 great grandson, Pat Thompson, to find out how the event impacted the family.

Miranda also looks at how fishermen working in the North Sea were vulnerable to German attacks.

Archive is copyright and courtesy of British Pathe and Imperial War Museums.