English Chess Forum

Malcolm Hunt, the first ever captain of the Warwickshire Select 4NCL team, has shared some very early memories of Chris which he asked me to post here:- I probably knew Chris longer than anyone on the chess circuit having met him at KES Birmingham in 1963. At the time we had an incredibly strong coh...

This is very sad news, though not completely unexpected as Chris had been unwell for some time and was unable to play in the 4NCL last season. He was a long term member/supporter of the Warwickshire Select team, playing with us through our ups and down through three divisions. Hailing originally fro...

Absolutely stunned by this news. Totally unexpected and so unfair. Not even 60. I knew Gavin from around the late 1980s when he joined Mitcham to play in the Surrey League, and while we subsequently went probably the best part of two decades in different orbits, he was immediately friendly and engag...

Shocking and very sad news. I first played Phil only as recently as 2005, but he is still the person I had most competitive games against ever, as we played at least once nearly every year since in Olton-Kenilworth matches in the Leamington League. His record against me of +7 -3 and 6 draws was an a...

Very sorry to hear this shocking news. I played Richard several times in Kenilworth v Olton matches over the last decade or more, and he was always a really nice guy before, during and after the games. Its a great sadness to hear of his passing at what must have been a relatively early age. Condolen...

That is very sad news. I played alongside Dave for a couple years when he was - relatively briefly - a member of Mitcham. John Saunders will doubtless remember the years rather better than me, but probably mid/late 1980s? I recall he was recruited to our club completely by chance when we descended o...

I am very sad to pass on the news that Derek Coope died recently at the age of 81. I had known Derek since the mid-80s, when he was playing for Kingston in the Surrey and Thames Valley Leagues. Originally from Luton, he started playing chess in Yorkshire (for Brighouse) and then in the Oxford area b...

This is terrible news and I am totally shocked. Steve was a great friend of mine in the 80s and early 90s when we both played for Mitcham in the Surrey League, winning the title and the Cup on many occasions. He was always our board 1, except when we could cajole Peter Large to the board. As we live...

Having just seen the entry list on Chessbase for the Beijing Mind Games rapid/blitz (Dec 9-18), I can't imagine there are enough super GMs left for there to be a London Classic this year. Or at least not at the level we have been accustomed to. Carlsen, Aronian, Caruana, Grischuk, Nakamura, Anand, K...

I didn't know Andrew at all, but I did once play him in the London League, half a lifetime ago in 1989. The game was adjourned in a very complex position, and he sealed. Before the resumption, though, my flat in Clapham Junction was burgled, and the intruder decided to open the sealed move envelope,...

In the Germany v Ghana match in the 2010 World Cup, brothers George Boateng and Kevin-Prince Boateng were on opposite teams. Are there any similar examples from chess? I may be wandering a bit too far off topic here, but it was Jerome Boateng and Kevin-Prince Boateng who were on opposite sides. Geo...

Dundalk is a 1 hour bus ride from Dublin airport with a fare of just €10 return. And thanks to Ryanair, you can get to this tournament for less than the cost of a decent curry! Sean, Your mention of Ryanair instantly made me think of Fascinating Aida's absolutely brilliant and hilarious song abou...

But the Birmingham league rules do cater for default times 13.2 A game shall be lost by default:- a) if a player shall fail to arrive at the venue for any session of a game before his time allowance has expired. So this is deliberate, although I don't think I'd like to have to wait 75 minutes befor...

The big news of the gala dinner at the Tradewise Gibraltar was that Judit Polgar would play at the 2012 tournament. Her first open event in a very long time... Given Judit's shunning of all women-only chess events since - well, forever - I wonder if she will declare herself to be "male" for prize p...

Three or four years ago, when Whoberley (now Coventry) Chess Club played at the Standard Triumph Club, every match night at about 8.30 or so, a truly awful rock band used to start rehearsing in (I think) a basement room underneath us, at very loud volume. It was extremely difficult to concentrate, a...