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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201109
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201110
DTSTAMP:20211109T093940Z
CREATED:20191028T140720Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211109T093940Z
UID:1717-1604880000-1604966399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM James Adair (09-xi-1992)
DESCRIPTION:IM James Adair playing GM Hikaru Nakamura at the London Chess Classic 2014\nBCN wishes Happy birthday to IM James Adair. \nJames Robert Adair was born on Monday\, November 9th in 1992 in Reading\, Berkshire. \nJames attended Little Heath School\, Tilehurst\, Reading and joined Reading Chess Club and was an active player in the Berkshire League and in the Surrey Border League. His father Andrew took up chess to support James as a junior. \nHe then read Mathematics at The University of York and now is employed by Aviva plc (formerly Norwich Union Assurance) in the field of insurance. \nJames became a FIDE Master in 2012 and gained his International Master title in August 2014.  \nAccording to Felice his best FIDE rating was 2489 in December 2016. According to MegaBase 2020 it was 2492 in August 2018 at the age of 26. \nJames started his 4NCL career in the 2006/7 season with Conquistadors and then transferred to Guildford not long after. By 2010/11 James was playing for the bar loving Sambuca Sharks team. In 2011 James transferred to 4NCL White Rose as he had just started University in Yorkshire. He was also playing for York RI. \nIn 2009 he shared equal 1st (4.5/5) with Alexei Slavin in the Uxbridge Open\, a sadly missed e2-e4 event. Since then James has had various tournament successes. \nFIDE rating profile for IM James Adair\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nJames has plus scores against : Peter Roberson\, Jack Rudd\, Richard Bates and Matthew Turner amongst others. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIM James Adair\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-james-r-adair-09-xi-1992/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201109
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201110
DTSTAMP:20201030T123251Z
CREATED:20200408T105233Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201030T123251Z
UID:4169-1604880000-1604966399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Stuart W Clarke (09-xi-1970)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Stuart W Clarke (09-xi-1970) \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-stuart-w-clarke-09-xi-1970/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201109
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201110
DTSTAMP:20201030T124334Z
CREATED:20200411T123533Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201030T124334Z
UID:4416-1604880000-1604966399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Mark JL Orr (09-xi-1955)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM Mark JL Orr (09-xi-1955) \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-mark-jl-orr-09-xi-1955/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201111
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201112
DTSTAMP:20201111T140324Z
CREATED:20190101T000111Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201111T140324Z
UID:1140-1605052800-1605139199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Fred Dewhirst Yates (16-i-1884 11-xi-1932)
DESCRIPTION:We remember Fred Yates who passed (or\, at least was recorded as passing) on Friday\, November 11th\, 1932. \nFred (not Frederick) Dewhirst (not Dewhurst) was born in Birstall\, Leeds on Wednesday\, January 16th 1884\, the same year as Harry S Truman and Eleanor Roosevelt. \nAn obituary appeared in Volume LII (52\, 1932)\, Number 12 (December)\, pp.525-528 of the British Chess Magazine by PW Sergeant : \n“The chess world has had many heavy bereavements during the year which is coming to an end; but to the British section of it there has been no bereavement like the last\, which robbed it of F.D.Yates\, when still in the prime of his chess career. The circumstances of his end were tragic. On the night of Tuesday\, November 8th\, he gave a very successful exhibition at Wood Green\, only dropping one half-point in 16 games. On the following night he was in the company of a chess friend until fairly late\, and then went back to his room in Coram Street\, Bloomsbury. He was never seen alive again. It was not until Friday morning that anxiety was felt at Coram Street as to what he might be doing; for he was in the habit of secluding himself for many hours at a stretch when busy with work. \n  \nFred Dewhirst Yates\nOn Friday\, however\, when no answer could be got to knocks on the door of his room\, which was locked\, and a smell of gas was noticed\, the door was at last broken open\, and he was found dead in bed. \nIt came out at the inquest before the St. Pancras coroner on November 15 that \, though the gas-taps in the room were securely turned off\, there had been an escape from what a gas companies official described as an obsolete type of fitting attached to the meter in the room. The meter\, it appears\, was on the floor\, and the fitting must have been accidentally dislodged. A verdict was recorded of Accidental Death; and the coroner directed that the gas-pipes from the room should remain in the custody of the court. The body was conveyed to Leeds for burial on the morning of November 16. \nSo prematurely passed away one who may with justice be called one of the finest exponents of British chess\, and an international master whose strength was recognised all over the world. \n  \nFred Yates as drawn by WH Cozens for BCM\nFrederick Dewhurst (sic) was born at Birstall\, near Leeds\, on January 16\, 1884. He did not develop his chess power very young\, at the B.C.F. congress at the Crystal Palace in 1907 only playing in the Second Class\, though he then won first prize in one of the two sections. At Tunbridge Wells next year he tied for fourth place in a section of the First Class. He was admitted to the British Championship at Scarborough in 1909 (in which year he was Yorkshire Champion)\, and there tied with Blackburne for fourth and fifth prizes\, after HE Atkins\, JH Blake\, and W. Ward. \nIn the same event at Oxford in 1910 he again tied with Blackburne\, but this time for second and third prizes\, Atkins being first\, though losing in his individual encounter with Yates. In 1911\, at Glasgow\, Yates still further improved his position\, this time tieing with Atkins for first place; but in the tie-match Atkins won somewhat easily. \nAtkins stood down for the first time at Richmond in 1912; but the success of RC Griffith left Yates second\, in company with the late HG Cole. At last in 1913\, Yates gained his ambition\, and at Cheltenham won the British Championship with the fine score of 9 out of a possible 11\, 1.5 points above J. Mahood and 2 above Blackburne. In the ruined Congress at Chester in 1914 he tied for first place with Blackburne; and\, as Blackburne was unable to play a deciding match\, Yates won his second championship. \nFred Dewhirst Yates\, Jacoby Archive\nSince the War he gained the title again in 1921\, 1926\, 1928 and 1931\, thus making a record of six championships\, second only to Atkin’s record of nine (ed : in 1969 at the Rhyl Congress Jonathan Penrose OBE was to surpass Atkin’s record by one.) \nYate’s six victories were gained in sixteen attempts In addition must be mentioned his success in the Hastings tournament\, in the New Year of 1921\, for holders of the British Championship only. \nFred Yates\nHis other successes in this country\, including his two wins in the in the Anglo-American cable match\, in 1910-11\, need not detain us; for limitations of space demand that we shall come to Yates as an international master. His first essay was at Hamburg in 1910\, on the invitation of the German Chess Federation. Though he did badly\, only getting one win in 16 games\, the win was a remarkable effort\, at the expense of no less a celebrity than Dr. Tarrasch. \n\nAt Pistyan two years later he did a little better. He had to wait until after the War for a third attempt; but it will be best to give what we believe to be a full record of his performances in international event:- (to be added). \nThese lists\, however\, furnish no just view of the strength of Yates’s play\, which always was most fully exhibited against the leading competitors in tournaments. Among his triumphs must be noted his particularly his wins against Alekhine at Hastings\, 1922\, and Carlsbad 1923 (a brilliancy prize game); against Euwe\, Scarborough\, 1928; against Nimzowitsch \, Carlsbad\, 1929; against Bogoljuboff\, London\, 1922\, and Baden-Baden\, 1925; against Tartakover\, Hastings and Kecskemet\, 1927; against Kmoch and Rubinstein\, Budapest\, 1926; against Spielmann and Vidmar\, San Remo\, 1930; and his draws with Alekhine and Capablanca at New York\, 1924. The harder the opposition\, the better his play. Conversely\, against what should have proved easier opponents he was apt. at times\, to show less of his skill. In this\, of course\, he was not peculiar\, even among the experts. \nGenerally speaking\, however\, he was a remarkably tenacious player\, who would not abandon a game while there was the slightest chance of a win or a draw. This was not due to mere obstinacy\, as may sometimes have appeared\, but to the depth of his vision\, which gained for him among the German commentators the title of ein tiefe Denker(ed : a deep thinker) – no small testimony from those from whom it came. With a robuster physique there is no knowing to what a position he might have attained in the chess world. The late Amon Burn always had the highest opinion of is powers\, and always pointed out\, too\, the handicap under which a player labours who has to report the events in which he takes part – equivalent\, he would say\, to giving the other competitors Pawn and move! \nYates was unfortunate in embracing professionalism in an era when the rewards were becoming less and less\, and finally reached a stage when they scarcely provided the means of a bare existence. He was a fine simultaneous player\, whose exhibitions always delighted by their combination of speed\, precision and flashes of brilliance. \nAs commentator he was very good indeed\, and his contributions\, especially to The Manchester Guardian\, where noted alike for their accuracy and for a sense of style. \nHe had a journalistic training\, outside chess. He was not\, in fact\, ‘a mere chessplayer’\, in spite of his intense devotion to the game. It was his extreme reticence which gave such an impression to all but those whom he admitted to intimacy. They at least knew his widespread interest in other things; and W. Winter’s recent tribute to him in the Guardian in no way exaggerates his charm as a companion among those who knew him best. To them his loss is one which cannot be replaced.” \nAn Appeal \nNo doubt all chessplayers in England will have read with sorrow of the death of F.D.Yates at the early age of 46\, and more especially will the circumstances of it be a shock to many. \nAn inquest was held\, as has already been reported\, and was attended by his two sisters\, who have practically no means\, as was the case of Yates himself. Certain chessplayers who attended the funeral agreed to make themselves responsible for the funeral expenses\, but as the body was removed to Birstall in Yorkshire for burial in the family grave\, the expenses were considerably heavier than was anticipates and\, with the money owing to the landlady\, comes to a total of £51 2s and 0d. \nThe Gravestone of FD Yates\, courtesy of Matthew Sadler\nWe feel quite sure that when our readers know\, they will like to show their last recognition of the value which F.D.Yates was to English chess by giving a donation towards the sum. \nThe London Chess League\, whose finances are not in a very satisfactory state\, as in the case of most chess concerns\, has agreed to donate £3 towards this. Their president has given £1 1s 0d.\, and one or two other members have promised donations. We shall be happy to receive any contributions towards this fund\, and will give acknowledgment in future issues.” \nHere is an in-depth article by Edward Winter in Chess Notes on the circumstances of FDYs death. \nHere is a more modern article by Matthew Sadler \nFrom The Oxford Companion to Chess (OUP\, 1984) by Hooper and Whyld : \n“English player. British Champion 1913\,1914\,1921\,1926\,1928\, and 1931\, Around 1909 he gave up his profession in accountancy to become a chess professional. Of the many international tournaments in which he competed from Hamburg 1910 to Hastings 1931—2 he made his best results in the B Final\, Kecskemet 1927\, first (+4=2-1) equal with Tartakower\, and at San Remo 1930\, the strongest tournament of the year\, when he came fifth after Alekhine\,\, Nimzowitsch\, Rubinstein\, and Bogoljubow ahead of Spielmann\,\nVidmar\, and Tartakower. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nA tenacious player\, he could be a dangerous opponent. In tournament play he defeated most of the greatest masters of his time on one occasion or another\, and among these victories were two defeats of Alekhine (Hastings 1922\, Carlsbad 1923)\, and three defeats of Bogoljubow (London 1922\, Baden-Baden 1925\, Scarborough 1927) and Rubinstein (London 1925\, Moscow 1925\, Budapest 1926)\, A careful and conscientious writer\, he conducted a chess column in the Yorkshire Post\, was chess correspondent of the Manchester Guardian \, and wrote three books (see foot of article) in collaboration with William Winter (1898-1955). \nGames Played In the World’s Championship Match between Jose Paul Capablanca and Alexander Alekhine\, FD Yates and W\, Winter\, 1928\, Printing Craft Limited\nGames Played in the World’s Championship Match between Alexander Alekhine (Holder of the Title) and E D Bogoljubow (Challenger)\, Printing Craft Limited\, 1930\, FD Yates and W. Winter\nA leak from a faulty gas pipe connection killed Yates while he was asleep. His book One-hundred- and-one of My Best Games of Chess was published in 1934.” \nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976)by Anne Sunnucks : \n“International Master and British Champion in 1913\, 1914\, 1921\, 1926\, 1928 and 1931. \nBorn in Birstall\, near Leeds in Yorkshire\, on 16th January 1884\, Yates was 25 before he played in the British Championship for the first time. In 1909\, having won the Yorkshire Championship\, his entry was accepted for the British Championship at Scarborough\, and he tied with Blackburne for 4th prize. The following year he again tied with Blackburne\, this time for 2nd prize\, and in 1911 he tied with Atkins for 1st prize but lost the play-off for the title. In 1913\, he succeed in winning the British Championship for the first time.. During his career he competed in the British Championship 16 times and won the title on six occasions. \nIn International tournaments his record did not do him justice as far as his final placings were concerned. However\, in studying his performance in detail\, his wins were often against the strongest players and his losses against those at the bottom of the tables. This was particularly apparent in the results of the 1926 Budapest tournament. \nCross Table for Budapest 1926\nDuring the course of his career\, Yates beat practically every contemporary Grandmaster\, with the exception of Lasker and Capablanca. His victory over Alekhine at Carlsbad 1923 came at the end of a combination 18 moves deep and won the brilliancy prize\, while his victory over Vidmar at San Remo in 1930 was described by Alekhine as the finest game played since the war. \nOther outstanding wins were against Bogoljubow at London 1922\, against Rubinstein at Budapest 1926\, against Tartakover at Hastings 1927\, against Euwe at Scarborough 1928 and against Nimzowitsch at Scarborough 1929. The stronger the opposition the better Yates played. \nHis losses against weaker players may well have been due to ill-health and lack of necessary stamina to play consistently throughout a long tournament. He was continually troubled by a hacking cough and could not afford to carry out the medical advice that he should go to the Riviera for a cure. \nHe was a professional chess player at a time when it was difficult to make a livelihood out of chess and he was often handicapped by having to report an event in which he was playing. A number of his contemporaries believed that\, had he lived in different circumstances his talent would have placed him among the contenders for the World Championship. \nFor some years Yates ran the chess column for The Manchester Guardian. He was co-author with Winter of Modern Master Play and of books on the Capablanca vs Alekhine and Alekhine v. Bogoljubov World Championship matches. \nModern Master Play\, FD Yates and W. Winter\, 1930\nYates had a great number of interests apart from chess and had a very versatile mind which enabled him to talk on a wide range of subjects. He was extremely modest and rarely kept the scores of his games and never submitted them to the press. \nHe died in tragic circumstances\, On 11th November 1932\, he was found dead in his bedroom from gas poisoning. At the inquest it was established that there was a faulty connection in the gas meter in his room and a verdict of accidental death was returned.” \nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977) by Harry Golombek : \n“A British master. Yates trained as an accountant but in 1909 abandoned this career in favour of chess and journalism. In 1911 he tied for first prize with Atkins in the British Championship losing the play-off match. Two years later he won the event – the first of six such victories (1913\, 1914\, 1921\, 1926\, 1928 and 1931). \nIn international tournaments Yate’s results were generally mediocre\, but he was capable on occasion of defeating the strongest opposition and his victims included Alekhine\, Reti\, Bogoljubow\, Tartakower\, Rubinstein\, Euwe\, Nimzowitsch and Vidmar. He was a regular competitor at the Hastings Christmas Congresses\, winning in 1920/1 and finishing in 3rd place on four occasions: 1923/4\, 1924/5\, 1926/7 and 1929/30. \nYates was for many years the chess correspondent of The Manchester Guardian and\, in addition\, wrote Modern Master Play\, London\, Philadelphia 1929 (with W. Winter as co-author) and books of the 1927 Capablanca-Alekhine\, London 1928\, and the 1929 Alekhine-Bogoljubow World Championship matches\, London\, 1930. \nHe died from being accidentally asphyxiated in his rooms by a faulty gas connection.” \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom Wikipedia : (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Yates_(chess_player)) \n“Yates almost won the British Championship in 1911\, when he tied for first place with Henry Atkins\, but lost the play-off. He went on to secure the title in 1913\, 1914\, 1921\, 1926\, 1928 and 1931 \nDespite considerable domestic success\, his record in international tournaments did not do him justice. Often the winner against his strongest opponents\, he would then lose to those at the bottom of the table. This was particularly apparent at the Budapest tourney of 1926. \nHis lack of consistency was attributed to poor health and loss of stamina. A constant hacking cough went unchecked\, as his funds did not stretch to a holiday in warmer climes; the advice given by his doctor. He was also subjected to journalistic pressures\, frequently reporting on the tournaments in which he was playing. Yet\, dedicating himself to the playing side of chess would have earned him insufficient sums to make a living. A number of his contemporaries believed that his talent could have placed him among the world championship contenders\, had his circumstances been different. Nevertheless\, in his time\, he defeated most of his illustrious adversaries\, the most notable exceptions being Emanuel Lasker and José Raúl Capablanca. His victory against Alexander Alekhine at Karlsbad in 1923 won the brilliancy prize\, while his win against Milan Vidmar at San Remo in 1930 was described by Alekhine as the finest game played since the war.” \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nAs a journalist he was the chess columnist of The Manchester Guardian and with William Winter\, the co-author of Modern Master Play (1929). He wrote accounts of two world championship encounters; those between Capablanca and Alekhine\, and Alekhine and Bogoljubow. \nIn team competition\, he played at the first\, third and fourth Olympiads\, representing the ‘British Empire’ team. On each occasion\, he made a plus score and at London 1927\, earned a team bronze medal/ \nHis life ended prematurely\, when a leaking gas pipe caused him to asphyxiate during his sleep. \nAccording to the inscription on Yates’ gravestone\,[7] his birth name was actually Fred Dewhirst Yates. However\, throughout his chess career he was known by the name at the head of this article or simply as F.D. Yates\, both of which featured in his posthumously published\, part-biographical\, ‘My Best Games’ Collection. \nHere is an interesting discussion of Posthumous publications\, part 1. by Michael Clapham \nLetter to BCM from WH Watts of Printing Craft Limited announcing the publication of One-Hundred-and-one of my Best Games of Chess\, by F. D. Yates\, London 1934.\nOne-Hundred-and-one of my Best Games of Chess\, by F. D. Yates\, London 1934.\nOne Hundred and One of My Best Games of Chess\, FD Yates\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-frederick-dewhurst-yates/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201112
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201113
DTSTAMP:20201224T001323Z
CREATED:20190823T084948Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201224T001323Z
UID:1048-1605139200-1605225599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of GM Anthony Miles (23-iv-1955 12-xi-2001)
DESCRIPTION:We remember one of the most innovative and best loved English players of all time\, Tony Miles. \nFrom British Chess (Pergamon Press\, 1983) by Bernard Cafferty : \n“If one had to forecast at the start of the 1970s the British chess would have a player in the next decade who would win the World Junior Championship\, make plus score against Soviet players in his first years of play against them\, and beat such household names as Geller\, Bronstein\, Larsen\, Gligoric\, Smyslov\, Spassky and Karpov…one would have been called a romantic dreamer. \nEnglish chess grandmaster Tony Miles (1955 – 2001)\, UK\, 6th May 1973. (Photo by Hoare/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)\nIf one had gone further and said that the same grandmaster X would become only the second British player this century to beat a reigning world champion\, and that as Black in an irregular opening (1 e4 a6 2 d4 b5) then incredulity would indeed have been a fitting reaction. \n\nYet all this has come to pass; all the above is fact not fiction\, reality not a day dream. Who is grandmaster X? Where did he develop? \nAnthony John Miles was born on the 23rd April\, 1955\, in Birmingham (his birthplace is incorrectly marked (Ed: as London) on the map in Elo’s book on ratings.) He learned the moves at the age of five\, became seriously interested in the game at the age of nine or ten\, and almost straight away won the Birmingham Primary Schools Championship. \nEnglish chess grandmaster Tony Miles (1955 – 2001)\, UK\, 15th May 1973. (Photo by Adam/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)\nIn 1965 he joined the Birmingham Chess club and the following year became a pupil at King Edward School (KES) (the alma mater of other strong British players\, such as Hugh Alexander and Malcolm Barker\, runner-up to Ivkov in the inaugural World Junior Championship held at Birmingham in 1951.) \nTony Miles\nAt the Birmingham Club he met strong opposition (another grandmaster-to-be\, the postal player Keith Richardson was a member there for a time) since the club’s four teams were all in the higher divisions of the local league. Yet Tony’s school work meant that he could not be called a frequent attender at the club – he turned up for league matches and the club championship\, but rarely for skittles except in the summer. \nTony Miles and possibly (?) Peter Clarke at Birmingham 1973\nSoon he was playing in the Second Division\, by 1968 he was in the First Division\, and in the 1969-70 season he was on top board for one of the Club’s three teams in the top Division. \n\nTony made his debut in the BCF Congress at Oxford\, 1967\, where he was equal 11th in the under-14 Boys Championship won by another rising star\, John Nunn. Strangely enough when Tony won this title the following year at Bristol Nunn was 3rd equal! \n\nThe Edgbaston player was also a regular competitor in the annual Easter Congress held in the same suburb of Birmingham where he lived. \nTony Miles\nThe breakthrough to national status came when he was a sixth-former at KES. At the BCF Congress\, Blackpool\,\n1971\, he won the under-2l Championship (with Nunn and Jon Speelman equal 2nd and the same year made his international debut in a junior tournament at Nice which he won ahead of various prominent players including the Swiss Hug who was to win the World Junior championship some 4 months later! \nTony Miles and unknown opponent\nIn the 1971-72 Birmingham and District League season he set up a scoring record\, mainly on top board\, that may never be equalled (9.5 out of 10). \nTony Miles\nDuring these school years Tony was a rather taciturn teenager (perhaps to be expected in an only child) but he never fitted in with the conventional image of chessplayer as weedy bookworm. \nTony being presented with the trophy in the photograph below\nHe always had a fine physique\, played rugger at school and later became keen on squash and skiing as a means of keeping fit\, though he is the first to admit that he can be rather lethargic (especially in the mornings!) \nTony Miles\nAt the time I knew one of his teachers professionally\, and heard the occasional report that he was not always up to the best academic standards of KES. My reaction must have seemed heresy at the time\, but subsequent events in the post-Fischer era have confirmed that the ability to play chess to international standard may lead to a more worthwhile career than being a run-of-the-mill university graduate. \nTony Miles at Hastings\nA sign of Tony’s growing understanding of the finer points of the game came when he strolled into the Birmingham Club the day after the first game of the Spassky-Fischer match and pointed out (correctly as was shown later) the reason why Fischer had made his famous Bxh2 sacrifice/oversight. \nTony Miles & Bill Hartston admire a Rolls-Royce\nInternational recognition came in 1973 when he finished 2nd to Romanishin in the European Junior Championship at Groningen\, and Second to Belyavsky in the World Junior at Teeside\, as well as sharing 4-6th place in the British Championship at Eastbourne at only the second attempt. His first game to be published round the world was his victory over Bisguier in the Birmingham Easter tournament which he won ahead of Adorjan and Bisguier in the same year. \nEngland plays Italy at Haifa 1976. Miles played Tatai\, Keene played Toth\, Hartston played Grinza and Mestel played Micheli\nThe main event of 1974\, a break-through for British chess\, was the World Junior Championship played in August in sub-tropical Manila. Here he played one of his finest games\, against Kochiev\, to take the title with a round to spare\, thereby becoming lnternational Master. Tony’s physical strength showed up to good effect here\, not just lasting out the 4 weeks in the baking humidity but coping with the huge load of luggage (on the outward journey huge cases full of Chess Player\, Informator and the like; on the return journey this load reinforced with prizes and souvenirs!). \nTony Miles at Wijk aan Zee 1976. Korchnoi was first. Photo taken by Brian or Freddy Reilly\nGaining the title brought regular invitations to tournaments which could not be fitted in well with the demands of his maths course at Sheffield University. In the summer of 1975 he gave up the course after two years\, while the University authorities showed their recognition of his distinction at chess by the award of an honorary MA degree. \nTony Miles in relaxed mood\nOnce free to concentrate wholeheartedly on his true calling he took the grandmaster title in a rush. The first norm came with first prize\, August\, 1975\, at the London Chess Fortnight ahead of Adorjan\, Sax and Timman. \nTony Miles\nHastings 1975-76 was not too good a result\, but only a few weeks later he was on his way to a great triumph despite\nforced late acceptance of the invitation to the USSR due to lack of finance. He got his visa just in time and went to snowy Dubna\, a scientific centre near Moscow\, to achieve that most difficult feat – a GM norm in a Soviet tournament ahead of eight GM’s and others\njust as strong. \nTony Miles plays Tony Miles : see full caption below\nCaption for above photograph\nThus Tony Miles became the first official British grandmaster (the title dates officially only from 1949\, so excluding the likes of Staunton\, Blackburne and Burn) and took the £5000 Slater prize for the first British GM to add to the £1000 prize for victory in the 1975 Cutty Sark series of weekend and other tournaments. The availability of sponsorship\, it goes without saying\, has done much to encourage Tony on his chosen path as a chess professional\, a far from easy vocation that demands will-power and strong nerves to be successful. \nTony Miles : See full caption below\nFull caption for above photograph\nAccompanying letter for above photograph\n1977 confirmed that here was a genuine grandmaster with first prizes at the Amsterdam IBM and Biel tournaments\, and second prize behind Karpov\nat the first of the new series of Super grandmaster tournaments (Tilburg\, Holland.) \nTony Miles in pensive mood\nAfter his Promotion to the ranks of grandmaster Tony\, with his usual directness\, said that the only thing left to achieve was to have a crack at Karpov. (His fans might react by saying that there were other mountains to climb such as first place at Hastings and in the British Championship\, but then Karpov has not achieved the first either\, and only became Soviet Champion after he had taken the world title!) \nTony Miles and Michael Stean at the FIDE Zonal in Amsterdam\, 1978. (Source: http://gahetna.nl)\nThe first chance for this ‘crack’ came with their meeting in the super tournaments at Tilburg and Bugojno\, as well as in the 1977 BBC2 TV Master Game’ The\nresults went much in favour of the (slightly) older man. Tony had to wait till January\, 1980 before he could celebrate a victory over Fischer’s successor. \nPeter Sowray watching Tony Miles at the Lloyds Bank Masters. Sir Jeremy Morse watches.\nBy this time Tony had failed in his first bid to get to a title match with the Russian when he fell away after a good start in the 1979 Riga Interzonal (the\nsecond stage of the three-part qualifying cycle). It is a pity that our leading professional in Britain still has to accept so many invitations merely to make a\ndecent living. As Botvinnik has commented\, some properly directed study and training at home may be preferable to too frequent public appearances at the board. \nTony Miles and Sergey Kudrin at a Benedictine International in Manchester\nWhat sort of person and player is Tony Miles? He has become a more outgoing person in recent years\, and has even overcome his legitimate aversion to\nmedia representatives who attempt to interview him without any background in the game. \nTony Miles\nHis style has also gone through various changes. At first he was purely a 1 e4 player with a penchant for tricky Nc6 variations of the Four Knights. This repertoire brought him a string of wins\, but once he began meeting masters regularly he had to change his repertoire to include the flank openings and 1 d4 as well as the Sicilian Defence. Some notable contributions to opening theory include Bf4 against the Oueen’s Indian\, the defence 1…b6\, perhaps now 1…a6. \nTony Miles\, now playing under the US flag\nYet his real strength is not in the openings\, and he rarely scores quick knockouts. His strength lies in the ability to play a wide variety of positions\, to have the patience to play on when there is nothing special in the position and then to recognize the crisis (sometimes more psychological than positional). At this point his fitness and energy tell. It is significant that one of his best wins in the Dubna tournament came in a queen and pawn ending that demanded great patience and technical ability. \n10th April 1980: Tony Miles (left) plays 14-year-old Nigel Short in the opening match of the Phillips and Drew Chess Tournament at County Hall\, London. (Photo by Wesley/Keystone/Getty Images)\nAs readers of his weekly column will know he loves to analyse ever more deeply\, and seems happier here than in taking intuitive decisions. In the play of the first British grandmaster we see a confirmation of the fact that modern competitive chess is more of a sport (Denksport as the Germans have it) than\nan art\, more a bitter struggle of strong personalities than an orthodox game.\nBernard Cafferty\n” \n\nIn British Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXII (122\, 2002)\, Number 1 (January) pp. 6-13 appeared this wonderful obituary from John Saunders with contributions from Bernard Cafferty\, Colin Crouch\, Jon Levitt and Malcolm Hunt : \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXII (122\, 2002)\, Number 1 (January) pp. 6-13\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXII (122\, 2002)\, Number 1 (January) pp. 6-13\nTony Miles at Tilburg 1985\nTony Miles at Tilburg 1985\nTony Miles at Tilburg 1985\nBy Bogaerts\, Rob / Anefo – Interpolisschaaktoernooi Tilburg; Miles (met rugklachten) ligt op massagetafel te wachten op zijn tegenstanderDutch National Archives\, The Hague\, Fotocollectie Algemeen Nederlands Persbureau (ANeFo)\, 1945-1989\,Auteursrechthebbende Nationaal Archief\, Nummer toegang 2.24.01.05 Bestanddeelnummer 933-4181\, CC0\, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=23134281\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXII (122\, 2002)\, Number 1 (January) pp. 6-13\nTony receives the Leigh Grand Prix award from ?\nTony receives the Leigh Grand Prix award from ? and David Anderton OBE\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXII (122\, 2002)\, Number 1 (January) pp. 6-13\nTony playing under the Union flag\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXII (122\, 2002)\, Number 1 (January) pp. 6-13\nTony Miles reflecting on an adjourned position. Courtesy of Stephanie Bureau.\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXII (122\, 2002)\, Number 1 (January) pp. 6-13\nTony : always popular with the ladies at a Lloyds Bank event\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXII (122\, 2002)\, Number 1 (January) pp. 6-13\nTony at a Lloyds Bank event with Ray Keene\, Yasser Seirawan and Vassily Smyslov\nFrom The Oxford Companion to Chess\, (OUP\, 1984 & 1994)\, Hooper & Whyld : \n“English-born player\, International Grandmaster (1976). While an undergraduate he entered and won by a margin of one and a half points the World Junior Championship\, Manila 1974. The following year his university\, Sheffield\, awarded him an honorary MA degree for his chess achievements\, and he left without completing his studies\, to become a chess professional. The successes came quickly; London 1975\, first (+6=3-1); Amsterdam 1976\, first equal with Korchnoi; Amsterdam 1977\, first (+7=7-1); Biel 1977\, first (+ 8=6-l); Tilburg 1977\, second (+5:4-2)\, after Karpov\, ahead of Hort and Hübner; Tilburg 1978\, third (+4=4-3) equal with Dzindzichashvili and Hübner\, after Portisch and Timman; London 1980\, first (+6=5-2) equal with Andersson and Korchnoi; Las Palmas 1980\, first (+6=5) equal with Geller and Petrosian; Baden-Baden 1981\, first (+6=7) equal with Ribli\, ahead of Korchnoi; Porz Koln l98l-2\, second (+8=l-2)\, behind Tal\, ahead of Hort; Biel 1983\, first (+5=6)\, shared with Nunn; Tilburg 1984\, first (+5=6)\, ahead of Belyavsky\, Ribli\, and Hübner; Portoroz-Ljubljana 1985\, first (+4=6-l) equal with Portisch and Ribli; and Tilburg 1985\, first (+6=5-3) equal with Hübner and Korchnoi. \nTony making a getaway !\nAround this time Miles began to feel the strain of ten years at the top. He was the first British player of modern times who could be seen as a possible challenger for the world title\, and in the late 1970s he was well clear of his British rivals. However\, largely inspired by Miles’s success\, a new generation\,led by Short\, was in pursuit\, and by the mid 1980s Miles was no longer top board in the Olympiad side. Successes became fewer\, his marriage ended\, and his confidence was weakened. \nTony enjoyed flamboyant shirts\nDetermined to make a new start\, he transferred his allegiance to the USA in 1987\, and immediately shared first place with Gulko\, who won the play-off\, in the US Open Championship. \nTony Miles\nThe move was not a lasting success. Miles had indifferent results and was not selected for the US Olympiad team in 1988. He had maintained a home in Germany and commuted to play in the Bundesliga and by 1990 he was spending an increasing proportion of his time in Europe. His confidence began to return\, and with it more victories. He was first in two Swiss system events\, Rome 1990\, ahead of Barayev\, Chernin\, Smyslov etc\, and Bad Worishofen 1990 (shared)\, and at Biel 1990 was equal\nthird (+3=9-2) alter Karpov and Andersson.” \nTony Miles\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom Wikipedia :\n“Personal life \nMiles was an only child\, born 23 April 1955 in Edgbaston\, a suburb of Birmingham\, and attended King Edward’s School\, Birmingham.[1][2] He was married and divorced twice\, and had no children.[1] Miles’ first wife was Jana Hartston\, who had previously been married to William Hartston.[2] \nEarly achievements in chess\nHe learned the game of chess early in life and made good progress nationally\, taking the titles of British under-14 Champion and under-21 Champion in 1968[1] and 1971\,[3][4] respectively. \nIn 1973\, Miles won the silver medal at the World Junior Chess Championship at Teesside\, his first important event against international competition. Both he and compatriot Michael Stean defeated the tournament winner Alexander Beliavsky\, but were unable to match the Soviet player’s ruthlessness in dispatching lesser opponents. Miles went on to win this prestigious title the following year in Manila\, while a mathematics undergraduate of the University of Sheffield.[1][2] \nTaking the decision to pursue the game professionally\, Miles did not complete his studies\, but\, in 1975\, was awarded an MA by the University in respect of his chess achievements.[2] \nFurther career highlights\nIn 1976\, Miles became the first UK-born\, over-the-board chess grandmaster\, narrowly beating Raymond Keene to the accolade.[2] The naturalised\, German-born Jacques Mieses was awarded the GM title in 1950\, while Keith Bevan Richardson had been awarded the GM title for correspondence chess earlier in 1975. For his achievement\, Miles won a £5\,000 prize\, put up by wealthy businessman and chess backer Jim Slater.[1][2] \nMiles had a string of good results in the late 1970s and 1980s. He matured into a world class player and won games against high calibre opponents\, such as former World Chess Champions Vasily Smyslov\, Mikhail Tal and Boris Spassky. \nIn 1980 at the European Team Championship in Skara\, he beat reigning World Champion Anatoly Karpov with Black\, using the extremely unorthodox opening 1. e4 a6!?\, the St. George Defence. It is often said that Miles learned the line from offbeat openings enthusiast Michael Basman\, but in his book Play the St. George\, Basman asserts there is no truth to this. Miles beat Karpov again three years later in Bath in a game that was part of the BBC’s Master Game series\, but it was shown only by the (co-producing) German television network\, due to a BBC technicians’ strike at the time of broadcast. \nMiles won the British Championship just once\, in 1982 when the event was held in Torquay. His prime time as a chess player was the mid-1980s. On 20 May 1984 in Roetgen (Germany)\, Miles set a European record in blind simultaneous chess with 22 games (+10−2=10);[5] this record was not broken until 2009. On the January 1984 Elo rating list\, he ranked No. 18 in the world with a rating of 2599. One of his best results occurred at the Tilburg tournament in 1984\, where\, from a strong field\, he emerged sole winner by a clear margin of one and one-half points. The following year\, he tied for first at the same event with Robert Hübner and Viktor Korchnoi\, playing several of his games while lying face down on a table\, having injured his back.[6] \nThe result was controversial\, as many of Miles’ opponents felt they were distracted by the unusual circumstances. A string of good performances culminated in a good showing on the January 1986 Elo rating list\, where he climbed to a best-ever position of World No. 9 with a rating of 2610. During this period\, there was considerable rivalry with Nunn over who was the United Kingdom’s best player\, the two protagonists regularly leapfrogging each other in the world rankings. Nigel Short and Speelman soon added to the competition\, as the English national squad entered its strongest period. \nNever able to qualify out of the Interzonal stages into the Candidates’ series\, Miles eventually lost the race to become the first British Candidate when Short did so in 1985. However\, he retained top board for England at the Thessaloniki and Dubai Olympiads of 1984 and 1986\, helping the team to silver medals at each. \nAgainst Garry Kasparov\, Miles had little success\, not winning a game against him\, and losing a 1986 match in Basel by the score of 5½–½. Following this encounter\, Miles commented “I thought I was playing the world champion\, not a monster with a thousand eyes who sees everything” (some sources alternatively quote Miles as having the opinion that Kasparov had 22 or 27 eyes). \nMiles on a stretcher with back pain\, playing in Tilburg (1985)\nAfter he was hospitalised because of a mental breakdown in late 1987\, Miles moved to the United States. He finished last in the 1988 U.S. Championship\, but continued to play there and had some good results. In 1991\, he played in the Championship of Australia\, but eventually moved back to England and began to represent his native country again. He was equal first at the very strong Cappelle-la-Grande Open in 1994\, 1995\, and 1997\, and caused a shock at the PCA Intel Rapid Chess Grand Prix in London in 1995\, when he knocked out Vladimir Kramnik in the first round and Loek van Wely in the second. His bid to win the event was finally halted in the semifinal by English teammate Michael Adams. \nThere were four notable victories at the Capablanca Memorial in Cuba (1994\, 1995\, 1996\, and 1999). Miles also tied for first in the 1999 Continental Open in Los Angeles with Alexander Beliavsky\, Ľubomír Ftáčnik and Suat Atalık. His last tournament victory was the 2001 Canadian Open Chess Championship in Sackville\, New Brunswick. \nMiles entered and played at the 2001 British Championship in Scarborough\, but withdrew before the final round\, apparently because of ill health. His final two games before his death were short draws in the Four Nations Chess League. Miles played in an extraordinary number of chess events during his career\, including many arduous weekend tournaments. \nThe Miles Variation (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.Bf4) in the Queen’s Indian Defence is named after him.” \nOf course there are numerous articles about Tony for example : \nVlastimil Hort Remembers Tony Miles \nHort stories: Wrong place wrong time \nChess Corner – Original Maverick: Remembering Tony Miles \nBritain’s first chess grandmaster\, he paved the way for today’s international competitors \nTony Miles 1955-2001 \nKingpin \nTony Miles (1955-2001) by Edward Winter \nHow Anthony Miles beat a World Champion (Karpov-Miles\, Skara 1980) \n\nLawrence Trent plays Tony Miles in 2001 at the British Championships in Scarborough\nIt’s Only Me\, edited by Geoff Lawton\nTony Miles : England’s Chess Gladiator\, Ray Keene\, 2006\nTony Miles : England’s Chess Gladiator\, Ray Keene\, 2006\nA Tony Miles memorial\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-tony-miles/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201114
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201115
DTSTAMP:20201112T205953Z
CREATED:20200410T091929Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201112T205953Z
UID:4311-1605312000-1605398399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM David Howell (14-xi-1990)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of GM David Wei Lang Howell (14-xi-1990) \nDavid was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 2010-11 season sharing with Danny Gormally. \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-david-wei-lang-howell-14-xi-1990/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201115
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201116
DTSTAMP:20201030T125410Z
CREATED:20191110T180217Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201030T125410Z
UID:1897-1605398400-1605484799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Charles Cobb (15-xi-1978)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM Charles A Cobb (15-xi-1978) \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-charles-a-cobb-15-xi-1978/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201115
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DTSTAMP:20201030T125543Z
CREATED:20200409T085816Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201030T125543Z
UID:4251-1605398400-1605484799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Ben Hague (15-xi-1973)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Ben Hague (15-xi-1973) \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-ben-hague-15-xi-1973/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201116
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201117
DTSTAMP:20201116T143818Z
CREATED:20190823T184126Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201116T143818Z
UID:1108-1605484800-1605571199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Edward Sergeant OBE (3-xii-1881 16-xi-1961)
DESCRIPTION:We remember Edward Sergeant OBE (3-xii-1881 16-xi-1961) \nEdward Guthlac Sergeant was born on Saturday\, December 3rd 1881 : in the same year British Chess Magazine was founded by John Watkinson. \nHe was born in Crowland\, South Holland\, Lincolnshire. The registration district was Peterborough and the inferred county was Northamptonshire. His father was William R Sergeant (aged 27) and his mother was Frances E Sergeant (aged 25). He had a sister\, Hilda who was one year older. William was a registered general medical practitioner. \nHe was named Guthlac after a monk who “came to what was then an island in the Fens to live the life of a hermit.” \nSignature of EG Sergeant from a Brian Reilly “after dinner” postcard from Margate 1936.\nAccording to the 1891 census EGS was aged 9 and living with his father\, mother\, sister and their domestic servant Margaret A George who was their general domestic servant who hailed from Scotland. They lived at 2\, Gladstone Terrace\, Gateshead\, NE8 4DY. This was in the Ecclesiastical parish of Christchurch. \n2\, Gladstone Terrace\, Gateshead\, NE8 4DY\nIn the 1911 census aged 29 as nephew to the head of the household (5 St Peters Terrace\, Cambridge) EGS is listed as a solicitor who is single. The size of the household in 1911 was relatively modest at 12. He was living with George Edward Wherry (59\, surgeon university professor) and his wife Albinia Lucy Wherry (53). Albinia Lucy Wherry was a nurse and also writer. During WWI she was stationed in Paris at the Gare du Nord where she supported British forces from 1915-18. the sub-registration district was St Andrew the Great. \nAccording to Edward Winter in Where did they live? in April 1916 EGS was living at 39 Chichele Road\, Cricklewood\, London NW2 3AN\, England. EGWs source for this is : Chess Amateur\, April 1916\, page 202. \n39 Chichele Road\, Cricklewood\, London NW2 3AN\n1918 was an important year for Edward when he married Dorothy Frances Carter (born 1887) in Gravesend. In the same year Dorothy and Edward had a son Richard who passed away in 2014 \nTwo years later Dorothy and Edward had a son Lewis Carter Sergeant born on January 30th 1920. The birth was registered in Paddington. Lewis lived at 3 Woodhill Court\, 175 Woodhill\, London\, SE18 5HSL and passed away in 2004 the death being registered in Greenwich. \nOn the 1920 Electoral Roll\, EGS was now living with Dorothy Frances Sergeant at St. Stephen’s Mansions\, 5\, Monmouth Road\, Edmonton. \nIn 1923 they upped sticks and moved to 27. King Edward’s Grove\, Teddington.  \nSadly Dorothy passed away in 1926 at the modest age of 39. \nCoventry Evening Telegraph 10 October 1933\nAccording to the 1939 census EGS was listed as a widowed\, civil servant living at 24\, Gloucester Road\, Kingston Upon Thames\, KT2 7DX. This would be the address that Edward saw out the rest of his life. \n24\, Gloucester Road\, Kingston Upon Thames\, KT2 7DX\nHe shared this address with Edith Carter (born 4th May 1878) who is described as being of “Private Means” and Ada M Wenman (6th August 1881) who is described as being a “domestic”. \nIn 1949 he was awarded the OBE in the Birthday Honours in recognition of his 39 years’ service in the office of the Solicitor to the Board of Inland Revenue. \nAccording to John Saunders : EGS died in the New Victoria Hospital\, New Malden\, Surrey\, on 16 November 1961. His residence at death had been 24 Gloucester Road\, Kingston Hill. Probate (26 Jan 1962) granted to Lewis Carter Sergeant\, a Lieutenant-Colonel in HM Army. Effects £6\,586. \nE.G. Sergeant in characteristic pose v. Miss Vera Menchik at Margate\, 1939\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \nA British master who had a long and solidly distinguished career in British chess but never quite succeeded in breaking through the barrier to international success. A civil servant by profession\, he was awarded the OBE for his services in the Inland Revenue and Sergeant on Stamp Duties was regarded as an authoritative work. \nSergeant’s earliest performance in the British Championship\, at the Crystal Palace in London 190\, was one of his best. He came =2nd with JH Blackburne. RP Mitchell and GE Wainwright with 6.5 points\, a point below the winner of the title\, HE Atkins. \nHe was 3rd at Edinburgh in 1920 and his best result in the competition came in Brighton 193\, where he came equal second with H. Golombek\, a 1/2 point below the winner\, CHO’D Alexander. \nA stalwart supporter of the City of London Chess Club\, he won its championship in two successive years\, 1916 and 1917. He played for Britain against the USA in the 1908 and 1909 cable matches and also played on a high board for London against various American cities in the Insull Trophy matches in the years 1926-31. \nAs a player he was strongly influenced by the scientific principles of Siegbert Tarrasch and did well during the period when the Tarrasch school enjoyed its heyday. But he was at a loss when confronted with more modern methods.” \nBoth Sunnucks and Hooper & Whyld are silent on EGS : surprising! \nEGS was a cousin of PW Sergeant. \nWe asked  Leonard Barden of his memories of EGS and he was kind enough to reply :  \n“People have different ways of expressing satisfaction with their position. Botvinnik adjusted his tie\, Kasparov put his watch back on\,  Sergeant rubbed his hands together….He liked to counter the Queen’s Gambit Declined in the classical way with a kind of Lasker Defence.” \nFrom British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXXII\, March\, 1962\, Number 3\, pages 76 -80 we reproduce an obituary from Bruce Hayden entitled “E.G. Sergeant – An Appreciation” as follows : \n(note the incorrect birth location presumably based on the 1891 census information) \nEdward Guthlac Sergeant\, part one\nEdward Guthlac Sergeant\, part two\nEdward Guthlac Sergeant\, part three\nEdward Guthlac Sergeant\, part four\nEdward Guthlac Sergeant\, part five\nSergeant on Stamp Duties\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHere is his Wikipedia entry \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-edward-guthlac-sergeant/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,History,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201117
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201118
DTSTAMP:20211117T160434Z
CREATED:20190822T164355Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211117T160434Z
UID:1004-1605571200-1605657599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Gordon Crown (20-vi-1929 17-xi-1947)
DESCRIPTION:We remember Gordon Crown who died this day (November 17th) in 1947. \nGordon Thomas Crown was born on Thursday\, June 20th\, 1929 to James Crown (born 18th November 1899) and Hilda M Crown (born 3rd October 1900\, née Sharrott). \nJames was a refrigerating engineer and Hilda carried out unpaid domestic duties. The birth was registered in the district of West Derby\, Lancashire. \nGordon attended Holt Secondary School which is now known as Childwall Sports and Science Academy. \nAccording to the electoral register of 1939 they lived at 8 Ingledene Road\, Liverpool\, Liverpool C.B.\, Lancashire\, England. (This is L18 3HJ in this day and age.) \nAccording to Zoopla : “This 4 bed freehold semi-detached house is located at 8 Ingledene Road\, Liverpool L18 3HJ and has an estimated current value of £581\,000. Ingledene Road has 19 properties on it with an average current value of £492\,220\, compared to an average property value of £325\,035 for L18. There have been 5 property sales on Ingledene Road\, L18 over the last 5 years with an average house price paid of £474\,900. There are currently 108 properties for sale in L18 with an average asking price of £372\,163 and 59 properties to rent in L18 with an average asking rent of £408 pw.” \n8 Ingledene Road\, Calderstones\, Liverpool\, L18 3HJ\nLiverpool Echo 15 April 1946\nBoth Sunnucks and Hooper & Whyld are silent on GTC : surprising! \nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“Gordon Crown is one the sad might-have-beens of the world of chess. In his short life he had already shown himself to be of master strength and a potentially very great player when suddenly\, at the age of eighteen\, he died during an operation. \nHe learnt chess when aged nine and soon became one of the best players\, first in Liverpool\,\, his home town\, and then in Lancashire\, of which county he won the Junior Championship three years in succession. \nCrown first came into national prominence when he came second in the British Boys Championship in 1946. (Ed : the winner was John Fuller) In the Hastings Congress of 1946/7 he won first place in a strong Premier Reserves Section. \nThe last year of his life even saw him reaching out to international success\, Playing on board 9 for Britain against The Netherlands he scored 1.5 out of 2 against L.J. Tummers. Then he won third prize in the British Championship at Harrogate. As a result of this success he was promoted to board 4 for Britain against Australia in a radio match when he beat Dr. M. Gellis. \nHarry Golombek and Gordon Crown in around 1946-47.\nIn September 1947 he was hurried to hospital suffering from peritonitis and\, being a diabetic\, succumbed under the operation. \nAs a player he excelled in both the opening and endgame phases and possessed a style of play that stamped him as a future grandmaster. As a person he was modest\, clever and a very agreeable companion. This was great loss for British and\, almost certainly\, world chess.” \nWe have reproduced his obituary from British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXVII (1947)\, Number 12 (December)\, Page 387-8 and we assume that this was written by TJ Beach: \n“The tragic death of Gordon on November 17th  after an operation\, will be felt keenly-by chess players throughout the country. Although only l8 years of age he had risen to a high place in British chess circles. Learning the elements of the game in 1938\, he had won the Lancashire Junior Championship in three successive years\, was champion of the Liverpool Chess Club and Merseyside champion with 100 per cent scores last season\, headed his section of the Premier Tournament at the last Hastings Christmas Congress\, and\, filling the vacancy caused by the late withdrawal of R. F. Combe the 1946 champion\, took third prize in the British Championship played at Harrogate in August of this year. \nIn three international team matches he scored l.5 points on Board 9 against Tummers\, of Holland; was one of the two British players to score a full point against the visiting U.S.S.R. team\, sharing honours with Kotov in two finely played games on Board 4; and followed this with a win over Dr. Gellis\, of Victoria\, in the recent radio match with Australia\, despite the earlier loss of the exchange through an oversight. His full match record for the past twelve months in international\, county\, and club matches read: won 16\, drawn 2\, and lost l. (to Kotov). \nHis play was notable for his exceptional knowledge of opening and end-game strategy\, but his prowess was not by any means confined to “book” knowledge. Possessing deep positional insight\, real combinational ability\, and chess experience beyond his years\, his concentration\, tenacity\, and\ndetermination to win had already made him one of the most formidable match and tournament players in the country. Many of us felt that he would become a worthy British champion within the next few years\, and possibly reach even greater heights in the international sphere\, and it is\, perhaps\, not too much to say that many chess players were already looking forward to the day when Gordon Crown would lead British chess to a high place in international esteem: Now those dreams have been rudely shattered\, and the loss to British chess is great indeed. \nGordon Crown was not merely a youthful chess prodigy. Although suffering for many years from the physical disability which has now caused his premature death\, he had a distinguished record at the Holt High School\, Liverpool\, and had entered Liverpool University only a month ago to read for the degree of B.A. Unable to play football and cricket\, in which latter he was deeply interested\, he became a tennis and table-tennis player of well above average ability and was an excellent exponent of billiards and snooker. Among other interests were cycling\, and military history and strategy\, in which he had read and studied widely. \nNo study of Gordon Crown would be complete without reference to his personality quite apart from his ability. Possessed of a quiet assurance and confidence in matters pertaining to chess\, he was modest in victory\, generous in his rare defeats\, and ever ready to help small clubs by means of a lecture or simultaneous display. \nNever too busy to play the humblest novice\, he gave untold pleasure and a new interest in life to many men who had suffered during the war by introducing them to the\nfascination of chess\, and by this means helped materially in the vital task of rehabilitation. With charm and dignity Gordon Crown won a warm place in the hearts and affections of those who were fortunate enough to be counted among his friends\, and whilst our deepest sympathy goes out to his parents in their tragic loss\, they may well ae proud that their son achieved so much that was really worth while within so few years\, for we shall remember Gordon with affection long after his chess exploits are but a dim memory.-T. J. B.” \nThe following is one of the last games\, if not the last; played by Crown in competitive chess. Score and notes from “The Field” \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nand here is the scan of the original article: \nObituary of Gordon Thomas Crown\, part one\nand \nObituary of Gordon Thomas Crown\, Part Two\nWe are grateful to Leonard Barden on the identity of T.J.B. : \n“Thomas John Beach\, wartime RAF navigator with Distinguished Flying Cross\, leading light of Liverpool chess\, regular British championship player for many years\, chairman of BCF junior selectors\, father of a leading Midlands expert\, a good and dedicated man” TJB was the father of Richard Beach who won the British Boys Under 18 title in 1961. \nAccording to the British Chess Magazine\, 1943\, March\, page 56 GTC lived at 8 Ingledene Road\, Calderstones\, Liverpool 18\, England. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nGordon Thomas Crown\, from CHESS\, 1948\, January\, page 86\nOn 17 November 1947 he was admitted to hospital\, complaining of a stomach upset. Diagnosed too late with appendicitis\, complicated by his diabetes\, he died in the operating theatre. \nHis friend (and former British champion) Leonard Barden speculates that had he lived\, Crown would have become at least a strong Grandmaster\, further noting that he was ” … open\, friendly and modest as well as a clear and enthusiastic explainer of his chess ideas; I think he would have been like Keres or Gligoric in their countries\, a model for our young players.” \nHarry Golombek was similarly impressed with Crown’s play\, stating that “In his short life\, he had already shown himself to be of master strength and was potentially a very great player.” \nWe are grateful to be able to use comments from long time friend\, Leonard Barden posted under the nom de plume of Roberts Partner on chessgames.com : \n“As to the circumstances of Crown’s death. The finger of blame must be pointed at the family doctor for failing to make a timely correct diagnosis. On Sunday 16 November 1947 a chess friend visited the Crown home at Ingledene Road\, Liverpool\, and found Crown in bed. He explained that his doctor had diagnosed a stomach upset and had recommended rest. The friend and Crown played and analysed together for several hours\, and Crown did not appear in any physical discomfort. But that night after the friend left his condition deteriorated and he was rushed to hospital where he died in the early morning hours of 17 November. There was also a belief among some Liverpool chess players that the hospital procedures could have been better.” \nand \n“On another thread some CG posters expressed surprise at the Ritson Morry v Crown game where Morry fell into a well-known opening trap. \nThe British championship at Harrogate in August 1947 was played in a spa building where the underfloor heating was still switched on. This coincided with one of the warmest summers on record (it was the year in which Compton and Edrich made their memorable cricket achievements for Middlesex). By the second week of the BCF congress older and overweight players (the latter group including Ritson Morry) were wilting. Ritson also had some long adjourned games\, and by the time of his game with Crown in the final round was exhausted. The game finished in 15-20 minutes so by the time other players went to spectate after their opening moves there was just a reset board with no sign of the players and no indication of what had transpired. Other final round results went Crown’s way so that he finished third outright and thus got selected on a high board for the USSR match.” \nWestern Daily Press 22 September 1947\nand here is an article by ddtru (?) in chess.com : full article \nWe are grateful to renowned chess historian\, Taylor Kingston for supplying these scans of an article from Chess Life in 1947 about Gordon Crown written by Reuben Fine : \nChess Life article about Gordon Thomas Crown\, Part One\nand \nChess Life article about Gordon Thomas Crown\, Part Two\nFrom Wikipedia: \n“Gordon Thomas Crown (20 June 1929 – 17 November 1947) was a promising British chess player who died of appendicitis at the age of eighteen. He is best known for his win against the Russian Grandmaster Alexander Kotov shortly before his death. \nCrown was born in Liverpool in 1929. He finished second in the British under 18 championship in 1946 and improved rapidly\, winning the Premier Reserve section of the 1946/7 Hastings International Chess Congress. This led to his being placed on the reserve list for the 1947 British Chess Championship. Following the withdrawal of the defending champion Robert Forbes Combe\, he was allowed to play in the championship\, where he finished third (Harry Golombek won). \nConsequently\, he was selected to play for the British team in the 1947 Britain-USSR match\, where he caused a sensation by defeating the Soviet Grandmaster Alexander Kotov\, though he lost the return game. He also defeated Max Gellis in a Britain-Australia radio match.” \nInterestingly\, via the EC Forum\, Geoff Chandler pointed out a note by Edward Winter in which Bill Hartston recounts advice from David Bronstein : “Look at the games of Gordon Crown. He really understood chess”. From NOW! magazine\, (6-12 February 1981\, page 80.): thanks Geoff ! \nGordon Thomas Crown\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-gordon-thomas-crown/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player,Remembering
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201117
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201118
DTSTAMP:20201117T184423Z
CREATED:20191110T180622Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201117T184423Z
UID:1900-1605571200-1605657599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Michael Adams (17-xi-2019)
DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to GM Michael Adams on his birthday\, this day (November 17th) in 1971 \nMichael was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion in the 1996-97 season. \nHis Wikipedia entry is here \nMichael Adams\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nMichael\, Tara and friend\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-michael-adams-17-xi-2019/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201117
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201118
DTSTAMP:20260817T135635Z
CREATED:20201118T094248Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T135635Z
UID:11704-1605571200-1605657599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Yichen Han (17-xi-2007)
DESCRIPTION:Newcastle Upon Tyne resident Yichen Han became the youngest Dutch holder of the FIDE Master (FM) title at the age of twelve years and two months. \nYichen was born in Eindhoven\, Noord-Brabant\, The Netherlands. \nThe games required to complete the FM title were played at the recent 4NCL Harrogate Congress . The final game was a win versus Robert Starley of Crowthorne Chess Club having started with a win versus CM Peter Ackley. \nYichen plays for Forest Hall and is a student at RGS Newcastle. \nHe currently has a FIDE rating of 2257 for standard play and an ECF grading of 215. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nYichen Han at the 2018 Terafinal\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-yichen-han-17-xi-2007/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201120
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201121
DTSTAMP:20201120T112029Z
CREATED:20191117T181258Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201120T112029Z
UID:2093-1605830400-1605916799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Andrew Kinsman (20-xi-2019)
DESCRIPTION:Best wishes to IM Andrew Kinsman born on this day Friday November 20\, 1964. His mother’s maiden name was (Yvonne) Greening. Andrew has a sister Casandra Suzie Kinsman. \nAndrew Peter Harry Kinsman was born in North East Surrey and grew up in Kingston-Upon-Thames near Kingston Hospital (thanks Richard James!). He was a member of Richmond Junior Chess Club. \nIM Andrew Kinsman\nAndrew was a member of the University of Sussex chess team in 1983 along with IM Byron Jacobs. Andrew became an editor of chess publisher BT Batsford Ltd. following in the footsteps of Bob Wade\, Paul Lamford and others. \nAndrew was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 1986-87 and 1991-92 seasons. \nHe made his first Grandmaster norm with his victory in the 1997 Owens Corning International in Wrexham. \nAndrew’s peak rating was 2430 in January 1998. He played for Guildford in the Four Nations Chess League and for Wimbledon in other leagues. His last ECF grading was 222D in July 2002 and highest may have been 230B in July 2000. \nHe left chess and turned to poker becoming a successful player and author and was married to Pauline.  They lived in Ditchling Rise in Brighton. \nHe joined Byron Jacobs to form Chess Press which eventually morphed into First Rank Publishing. \nIM Andrew Kinsman\nWith the white pieces Andrew was consistently a d4 player with the occasional Nf3 thrown in. He played a “slow” Queen’s Gambit (Nf3 inserted before c4) and the Trompowski Attack for variety. \nAs the second player Andrew played the French Winawer and the Benko Gambit.  \nAndrew is registered for both Wimbledon and Guildford and represented Wuppertal in the Bundesliga. Andrew’s most recent appearance in 4NCL was the final weekend of the 2001/2 season beating JA Toothill. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHe has written several books on chess (and poker) as follows : \nFrench Winawer by Andrew Kinsman\nThe Benko Gambit by Andrew Kinsman & Byron Jacobs\nSpanish Exchange by Andrew Kinsman\nModern Benoni by Andrew Kinsman\nImprove Your Middlegame Play by Andrew Kinsman\nIM Andrew Kinsman\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-andrew-peter-harry-kinsman-20-xi-2019/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201121
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201122
DTSTAMP:20201118T220219Z
CREATED:20190822T224042Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201118T220219Z
UID:1025-1605916800-1606003199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of Peter Lee (21-xi-1943)
DESCRIPTION:We wish Peter Lee all the best on his birthday. \nPeter Nicholas Charles Lee was born on Sunday\, November 21st in 1943 in Lambeth\, London. His mother’s maiden name was Paganucci. \nPeter attended Exeter College\, Oxford from 1962-1966 to read mathematics followed by postgraduate statistics gaining an MA in 1969. \nSome of the participants in the Paul Keres display on November 25th\, 1962\, at St Pancras Town Hall\, London WC1. Back row : AJ. Whiteley\, D\, Floyer\, PJ Collins\, PJ Adams\, RC Vaughan\, KB Harman\, D. Parr\, DNL Levy\, Front row : MV Lambshire\, AE Hopkins (selector) Paul Keres\, Miss D. Dobson\, RE Hartley\, BC Gillman\, WR Hartston and PN Lee. Photograph by AM Reilly. Source : BCM\, 1963\, page 13\nIn 1963 Peter represented Oxford in the 81st Varsity Match played at the University of London Union in Malet Street on Korchnoi’s birthday (March 23rd). Peter had black on board 5 and drew with Frederick Michael Akeroyd in a King’s Gambit Declined. \nHere is the winning Oxford (4-3) Team : \nThe winning 1963 Oxford Varsity match team : From left to right (standing): PN Lee\, JWF May\, GC Taylor\, AIN Brodie\, PD Yerbury; (sitting) JK Footner\, RW Morgan. Thanks : John Saunders in Britbase.\nPeter moved to top board in 1964 and had white against the son of BH Wood\, FM Christopher Baruch Wood and won. The match was drawn. \n1965 saw a 5.5 – 1.5 Oxford victory with Peter beating Graham Arthur Winbow. \nDuring this period Peter found time to win the British Championship at Hastings in 1965. Peter Clarke reported in the October 1965 British Chess Magazine: \n“Seventy years on from the great international tournament of 1895\, which sowed the seeds of the Christmas congresses. the fifty-second in the British Chess Federation’s annual series-and this too began at Hastings\, 1904 – saw victory and the national title go to the youngest player ever. Peter N. Lee\, of London\, a twenty-one-year-old Oxford University graduate in mathematics\, made light of playing in the Championship for the first time and led from start to finish. Jonathan Penrose and Norman Littlewood vied with him all the way but in the last round had to be content with draws sharing second place 1/2 point behind with 8. ” \nPeter Lee\nPeter played at Hastings in 1965 and we can see him here in this silent movie at 1’40” in : \n\nPeter’s final Varsity appearance as British Champion in 1966 saw another drawn match but Peter’s best Varsity result when he beat Bill Hartston with the white pieces in a King’s Indian Attack. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIn world cup year Peter was selected by the BCF to represent England at the Havana Olympiad on board two below Peter Clarke in Group 4 and then Final B scoring a creditable +4=7-1. \nLugano 1968 saw Peter playing as first reserve and scoring an excellent +7=4-2 (Penrose on top board scored a wonderful 83.3% for the silver medal. \nIn another world cup year (1970) in his final Olympiad appearance Peter played on board four and recorded +4=9-2 \nPeter Nicholas Lee (to the left of RD Keene)\nPeter played in the British Championships again in 1967\, 1968\, 1971 and finally in 1972 withdrawing after five rounds following a loss to David Pritchard. This is Peter’s last recorded game in Megabase2020. \nWith the white pieces Peter was a committed 1.e4 fan playing 8.c3 in the Lopez and open sicilians. \nAs the second player he played the Sicilian Najdorf and the Dragon along with the King’s Indian. \nAccording to Wikipedia : “Later\, he turned to contract bridge\, at which he has also been highly successful. He has won the English Bridge Union’s National Pairs title four times\, the first time in 2003\, and has also been a member of the team that won the Gold Cup\, the premier teams event in Britain\, in 2003 and 2011. This makes him the only person who has won British championships in both chess and bridge.” \nUntil 1979 he worked as a statistician to the Tobacco Research Council\, in Harrogate and then in London. From 1979 to 1984 he was an independent consultant in statistics and advisor in epidemiology and toxicology to a number of tobacco\, pharmaceutical and chemical companies. \nHe formed P N Lee Statistics and Computing Ltdin 1984 to widen these activities. Peter is a Chartered Statistician who has published over 200 papers\, letters and articles\, and several books.\nPeter is currently a director of PNLSC based in Palmers Green\, London\, N13. \nPeter Lee\nAs a consultant in medical statistics and epidemiology\, he has also published over 200 papers\, many on the effects of tobacco on health.[2] \nPeter reached a peak Elo rating of 2390 aged 47 in July 1990 according to MegaBase 2020. However\, his peak playing strength was probably in or around 1971. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nAccording to Paul Littlewood currently Peter “plays Bridge for Surrey and chess for the Athenaeum in London”. \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-for-peter-lee/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,History,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201122
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201123
DTSTAMP:20201121T151805Z
CREATED:20190823T185607Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201121T151805Z
UID:1116-1606003200-1606089599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of WIM (Patricia) Anne Sunnucks (21-ii-1927 22-xi-2014)
DESCRIPTION:We remember WIM Patricia Anne Sunnucks who passed away this day\, November 22nd\, 2014\, aged 87 years. \nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1983)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“International Woman master and British Women’s Champion 1957\, 1958 and 1964. Her best international result was a 2nd in the 1954 Western European Zonal. This qualified her for the 1955 Women’s Candidates tournament\, but as this held in the USSR and she was at the time serving as a Major in the British Army\, the authorities would not give her leave to participate. \nMiss Sunnucks has represented England a number of times in Olympiads and team matches. She has compiled The Encyclopedia of Chess\, London\, 1970.” \nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976)\, Anne Sunnucks : \n“International Woman Master (1954) and winner of the British Ladies’ Championship in 1957\, 1958 and 1964. \nBorn on 21st February 1927 Anne learned the moves at the age of 8 but did not take up chess seriously until she was 21\, when she joined the same club as International Master\, Imre König” whose pupil she became. \nIn the 1954 Western European Zonal tournament\, she came 2nd and qualified for the 1955 Women’s Candidates tournament but was unable to compete. \nShe played for Great Britain v. the USSR in 1954 and for the British Chess Federation team in the Women’s Chess Olympiads of 1966 and 1972. She also represented the BCF in the Western European Zonal tournaments of 1963 and 1966.” \nAnne Sunnucks vs Chaudé de Silans (Amsterdam\, 1962)\nThe Encyclopedia of Chess by Anne Sunnucks\nAnne created Camberley Chess Club in 1972. She offered to open her spacious home at 28\, Brackendale Close\, Camberley for weekly club nights and matches. \nAnne Sunnucks (third from left) playing in the 1971 British Ladies Championship in Palatine School\, Blackpool. Courtesy of Lancashire Evening Post.\nAnne was a director of BMS (?\, Mothersill\, Sunnucks) Chess Supplies Ltd. which retailed chess books and equipment which the grateful membership purchased ! \nIn September 1984 in Bracknell\, Berkshire Anne married Richard C Mothersill. \nAnne passed away on November 22nd\, 2014 at a retirement village in Meadow Park\, Braintree\, Essex. \nFrom Brian Towers : It is also worth noting that she was an occasional contributor to the weekly chess ‘Magazine’ programme which was broadcast on the Third Network (the precursor to Radio 3) between Autumn 1958 and Summer 1964. \nAccording to Megabase2020\, her highest Elo rating was 2045 but we suspect it was in reality\, quite a bit higher. \nIn 1972 Anne was awarded with a FIDE Medal of Merit. \nWIM Patricia Anne Sunnucks\nFor much of her early chess life Anne was coached by IM Imre (Mirko) König. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nWIM Patricia Anne Sunnucks\nFull Caption\nFrom Wikipedia :\nPatricia Anne Sunnucks (21 February 1927 – 22 November 2014[1]) was an author and three-times British Women’s Chess Champion (1957\, 1958\, 1964). During her chess career she was always known as Anne Sunnucks. \nShe was educated at Wycombe Abbey School[2]\, Buckinghamshire. Although she learned how to play chess at the age of 8\, she did not play seriously until the age of 21\, when she joined the same chess club as Imre König\, who became her tutor. By finishing tied for second place in the 1953 British Women’s Championship she became one of three British representatives in the 1954 Western European Zonal. \nSunnucks earned the Woman International Master title by placing second in the 1954 Western European Zonal. Although this result qualified her to play in the next event in the Women’s World Championship sequence\, she was a major in the Women’s Royal Army Corps and the authorities would not allow her to travel to the USSR where the 1955 Women’s Candidates tournament was being held. Sunnucks represented England several times in Olympiads and team matches\, including Great Britain vs. USSR 1954\, the Anglo-Dutch match in 1965\, and top board for the British Chess Federation (BCF) team at the 1966 Women’s Chess Olympiad at Oberhausen. She participated in the Women’s World Championship cycle two more times\, representing the BCF in the Western European Zonal tournaments of 1963 and 1966. Sunnucks won both the Army and the Combined Services Championships in 1968\, and was the only woman to compete in either. Sunnucks compiled The Encyclopaedia of Chess (1970\, second edition: 1976). \nHer married name was Anne Mothersill.” \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-patricia-anne-sunnucks/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201122
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201123
DTSTAMP:20201121T152309Z
CREATED:20191026T200914Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201121T152309Z
UID:1653-1606003200-1606089599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Mary Rudge (06-ii-1842 22-xi-1919)
DESCRIPTION:We remember Mary Rudge who passed away one hundred and one years this day on Saturday\, 22-xi-1919. \nShe was born in Leominster\, Herefordshire on February 6th\, 1842. Her father was Henry Rudge (born 1794 in Gloucestershire) who was a surgeon and General Practitioner. Her mother was Eliza Rudge (née Barrett) who was born in Ledbury\, Herefordshire in 1802. \nMary was part of a typically large household and according to the 1851 census she had sisters Sarah (23)\, Caroline (18)\, Emily H (12)\, brothers Henry (14) and Alfred (10). Assisting Henry with medical matters was Wiliam S Boyce and acting as a “General Servant” was Thomas Rotheroe (18).  Their address is given as “21\, Middle Marsh\, Leominster\, Herefordshire\, England” (HR6 8UP). According to HM Land Registry : “Middlemarsh is in the Leominster North & Rural ward of Herefordshire\, County of\, Herefordshire\, Worcestershire and Warwickshire.” \nBy 1861 the household had relocated to 62\, Broad Street\, Leominster and the servants were James Price (18) whose occupation is given as a Groom and Sarah Gardener (21) who was the House Servant. \nMary moved\, “helpless from rheumatism”\, at some point\, to Truro and then to the British Home for Incurables\, Streatham. She died in Guys Hospital\, London\, on 22 November 1919.  \nEditor of British Chess Magazine at the time of her obituary was Isaac McIntyre Brown who afforded Mary a pathetic three lines.  \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Mary Rudge (6 February 1842 in Leominster – 22 November 1919 in London) was an English chess master. \nRudge was born in Leominster\, a small town in Herefordshire\, England. She began playing chess in a correspondence tournament in 1872. The first mention of over the board competition is in August 1874 when she played in the second class at the Meeting of the Counties’ Chess Association at Birmingham. After the death of her father\, Henry Rudge\, she moved to Bristol where she started playing chess seriously. \nRudge was the first woman member of the Bristol Chess Club\, which did not allow women to be members of the club until she joined in 1872. She played against Joseph Henry Blackburne\, who gave a blindfold simultaneous display against ten opponents. The following year she played in another blindfold simultaneous display given by Johannes Hermann Zukertort. In March 1887 she played and drew on board six for Bristol against Bath at the Imperial Hotel in Bristol. At the beginning of 1888\, Rudge played and won on board six for Bristol & Clifton against City Chess & Draughts Club. The following year\, she won the Challenge Cup of Bristol & Clifton Chess Club. In 1889\, she became the first woman in the world to give simultaneous chess exhibitions. She won the Ladies’ Challenge Cup at Cambridge 1890\, and won the second class at the Southern Counties’ tournament at Clifton 1896.[1]” \nMiss Stevenson  & Mary Rudge\n“First Women’s International Chess Congress\nShe was a winner of the first Women’s International Chess Congress under the management of the Ladies’ Chess Club of London in conjunction with the Women’s Chess Club of New York. Lady Newnes was president of the Tournament Committee\, and Sir George Newnes\, Baron Albert Salomon von Rothschild\, Mr. Harry Nelson Pillsbury and some others offered prizes. The tournament was played at the Hotel Cecil in the Masonic Hall for six days\, but the final rounds were decided at the Ideal Café\, the headquarters of the Ladies’ Chess Club\, from 22 June to 3 July 1897.[2] Miss Rudge was 55 years old and the oldest of the 20 players\,[3] and had substantial experience playing chess at the time. She was a well-known English player\, ranking in chess strength with the first class of the leading men’s clubs. She won the event with 18 wins and 1 draw\, followed by Signorina Louisa Matilda Fagan (Italy)\, Miss Eliza Mary Thorold (England)\, Mrs. Harriet Worrall (USA)\, Madame Marie Bonnefin (Belgium)\, Mrs. F.S. Barry (Ireland)\, Lady Edith Margaret Thomas (England)\, among others.” \nHere is an in-depth article about this event from Chesscafe.com \nMrs. Bowles (Hon. Sec.); Miss Rudge; and Mrs. Fagan from chesscafe.com\n“Over the next years\, she took part in various competitions\, playing in Bristol and Dublin. In 1898\, she played against world champion Emanuel Lasker in a simultaneous display at the Imperial Hotel. Lasker was unable to finish all the games in the time available\, and Rudge’s was one of those unfinished. He conceded defeat because he would be lost with best play.” \nMary Rudge\nHere is an article from the Bristol Chess Times \nand another from the same source. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nThe International Ladies Congress\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-mary-rudge-02-xi-2019/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201124
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201125
DTSTAMP:20201123T173646Z
CREATED:20190823T091032Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201123T173646Z
UID:1058-1606176000-1606262399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Rev. John Owen (08-iv-1827 24-xi-1901)
DESCRIPTION:We remember Reverend John Owen who passed away on the 24th November 1901) \nJohn Owen was born on April 8th\, 1827 to John and Sarah Owen in Marchington\, Uttoxeter\, Staffordshire. \nHe was baptised at Marchington\, St. Peter on April 9th\, 1827 by H. Bennett and their residence was recorded as “Brook House”. His father is recorded as being a gentleman. \nFrom The Oxford Companion to Chess (OUP\, 1984) by Hooper & Whyld : \n“English player\, vicar of Hooten\, Cheshire\, from 1862 to 1900. In 1858\, playing under the pseudonym ‘Alter’\, he lost (=2-5) a match against Morphy\, who conceded pawn and a move. (Hoffer attributed this poor result to Owen’s just being married.) Subsequently Owen played better. He drew a match with Kolisch in 1860 (+4-4) and at the London tournament of 1862 took third prize after Andersen (whom he defeated) and L. Paulsen ahead of Dubois\, GA MacDonnell\, Steinitz and Blackburne. \nFrom 1857 to 1898 Owen played in more than a dozen tournaments\, all of them in Great Britain. \nHe liked close openings and often played the Queen’s Fianchetto Defence\, sometimes named after him\, and the Larsen Opening.” \nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \nProbably\, the strongest of all the chess-playing reverends of the nineteenth century. Owen came 3rd at Birmingham 1858\, below Löwenthal and Falkbeer\, but ahead of Saint-Amant\, Staunton and Bird; but is should be pointed out that the method of play was still by the old knock-out system. \nHe was also =3rd with MacDonnell in the first congress of the British Chess Association at London in 1862. \nHe also had the distinction of losing matches to Morphy\, Zukertort and Burn\, though he beat Burn in a later match. He drew a match with Kolisch in 1860. \nSunnucks is silent on Owen. \nAccording to The Complete Chess Addict (Faber&Faber\, 1987)\, Mike Fox & Richard James : \n“For the record (and because it’s so impressive) here is the most devout team of all time\, If there is anything in the efficacy of prayer they’d be tough to stop : \n\nFr Ruy Ruy López (de Segura)\nFr William Lombardy\nRevd GA MacDonnell\nRevd J Owen\nHis Holiness Pope Leo XIII\nHis Holiness Pope Innoncent III\nSt Teresa of Ávila (capt.)\nThomas à Becket”\n\nA much fuller biography may be found at the excellent Yorkshire Chess History web site  \n\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n\nFrom Wikipedia : \n“John Owen (8 April 1827 – 24 November 1901) was an English vicar and strong amateur chess master. He ranked among the world’s top ten chess players for certain periods of the 1860s. He was a major figure in English chess from the mid 1850s to the 1890s. \nOwen was born in Marchington\, and obtained his early schooling at Repton School\, Derbyshire. In 1850 he graduated from Trinity College\, Cambridge\, and received his M.A. from Cambridge three years later. He was ordained by the Church of England in 1851\, and served as Vicar of Hooton\, Cheshire from 1862 to his retirement in 1900. \nIn 1858 he won a chess game against the young American master Paul Morphy\, the world’s best player\, who was then touring Europe. ” \nThis led to a match between the two. Despite being given odds of pawn and the move (meaning he started the game with an extra pawn and always moved first)\, Owen lost the match 6–1\, never winning a game. \nHis performance in the very strong 1862 London tournament\, the first international round-robin event (in which each participant plays every other) was more impressive. He finished third\, ahead of future world champion Wilhelm Steinitz\, and was the only player to win against the eventual tournament winner\, Adolf Anderssen. Louis Paulsen placed second. This result was arguably Owen’s top lifetime chess achievement. \nOwen continued to play frequently and often successfully in British tournaments into the 1890s\, and performed strongly in several matches against top British players\, who were essentially chess professionals. He never competed outside the British Isles. He died in Twickenham. \nOwen is the eponym of Owen’s Defence\, a chess opening characterised by the moves 1.e4 b6. Owen was the first strong player to play this frequently\, including in his victory over Morphy.” \nAmos Burn (left) and Rev. John Owen circa 1885.\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-rev-john-owen/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201125
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201126
DTSTAMP:20201125T163549Z
CREATED:20190822T163322Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201125T163549Z
UID:998-1606262400-1606348799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Amos Burn (31-xii-1848 25-xi-1925)
DESCRIPTION:We remember Amos Burn who passed away on November 25th\, 1925. \nAmos Burn was born in Kingston-upon-Hull on Sunday\, December 31st 1848 to Amos and Mary Burn (née Webster). His father is recorded as a merchant. Amos and Mary were residents of Bourne Street at the time of the birth. \nOn February 15th 1849 Amos was baptized in All Saints Anglican Church\, Sculcoates\, Kingston-Upon-Hull \nAmos married Martha Ann Jäger in Birkenhead on Dec 27th 1879. They had two daughters Elsie Martha\, born 24th Oct 1880 and Hilda Marian\, born  26th Oct 1881. \nFor further detail of ABs family please consult the excellent Amos Burn : A Chess Biography by Richard Forster \nIn 2006 an article by WD Rubinstein was published in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography \nFrom The Oxford Companion to Chess (OUP\, 1984)\, Hooper & Whyld : \n“One of the world’s top ten players at the end of the 19th century. Born in Hull : he learned chess when 16\, came to London at the age of 21\, and rapidly established himself as a leading English player\, A pupil of Steinitz\, he developed a similar style; both he and his master were among the world’s best six defensive players\, according to Nimzowitsch. Not wishing to become yet another impecunious professional. Burn decided to put his work (first a cotton broker then a sugar broker) before his chess\, and he remained an amateur. He made several long visits to America\, and was often out of practice when he played serious chess. \nUntil his thirty-eighth year he played infrequently and only in national events\, always taking first or second prize. From 1886 to 1889 he played more often. In 1886 he drew matches with Bird (+9-9) and Mackenzie (+4=2-4); at London 1887 he achieved his best tournament result up to this time\, first prize (+8—1) equal with Gunsberg (a play-off was drawn +1=3—1); and at Breslau 1889 he took second place after Tarrasch ahead of Gunsberg\, After an isolated appearance at Hastings 1895 he entered another spell of chess activity\, 1897-1901\, The best achievement of his career was at Cologne 1898\, first prize ( + 9=5-1) ahead of Charousek\, Chigorin\, Steinitz\, Schlechter\, and Janowski. At Munich 1900 he came fourth (+9=3—3). His Last seven international tournaments began with Ostend 1905 and ended with Breslau 1912. A comparative success\, in view of his age. was his fourth prize shared with Bernstein and Teichmann after Schlechter\, Maroczy\, and Rubinstein at Ostend 1906; 36 players competed in this five-stage event\, 30 games in all for those who completed the course. \nRetired from both business and play he made his home in London and edited the chess column of The Field from 1913 until his death. A shy and retiring man\, a loyal companion to those who came to know him\, he freely gave advice to young and aspiring players.” \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nThe front cover of the November 1975 issue of the British Chess Magazine featured Amos Burn : \nAmos Burn – See W.H.Cozen’s ‘Half a Century Back’…from the front cover of the November 1975 issue of British Chess Magazine\nFrom British Chess Magazine\, 1975\, November\, pp. 481-483 : \nHalf a Century Back\nChess in 1925\nby W.H. Cozens\n  \nAmos Burn was a very different figure and his career is poorly documented. He is overdue\, not for a reappraisal but simply an appraisal\, He was born (in Hull) in 1848 – an incredible 127 years ago. All the years that could have been his prime as a chessplayer he devoted to business. (Marine insurance was his speciality.) He was based in Liverpool but travelled considerably\, including several crossings of the Atlantic – quite an undertaking in those days. He played some casual chess\, soon overshadowing the Rev. John Owen to become Liverpool’s answer to Manchester’s Blackburne. He also played for the City of London Chess Club; but it was not until he was nearly 40\, presumably with his financial position secured\, that he entered the international chess arena. Between the ages of 38 and 64 he played in 22 international tournaments. At Breslau (1889) he was second to Tarrasch\, above Louis Paulsen\, Blackburne\, Schallop … In Amsterdam the same year he was first\, ahead of Emanuel Lasker. His finest achievement was first place at Cologne 1898\, in front of Charousek\, Chigorin\, Steinitz\, Schlechter et al.\, (16 in all) with a win against Steinitz. The lack of a book on Cologne 1898 is – since the publication of Mannheim 1914′: the biggest gap in tournament literature. \nAt Karlsbad 1911 he defeated not only the winner\, as mentioned above\, but also Alekhine\, whom he steered into a knight versus bad bishop ending. His style was unashamedly modelled on that of Steinitz\, and marked by extreme tenacity. To him is attributed the epigram ‘He who combinates is lost’. He could play a combination when in the mood but he much preferred to let the opponent break his own back by attacking too impetuously. Nimzowitsch wrote: ‘The number of really great defensive players is very small’\, adding that he knew of only six: Steinitz\, Emanuel Lasker\, Burn\, Bernstein\, Duras and Louis Paulsen. \nIn the 1911 Cable Match between G.B. and the U.S.A. Marshall came from San Sebastian straight to London and asked permission for his top board game to be played over the board. When he found that his opponent was to be the 64-year-old Amos Burn he must have smiled\, for he had twice defeated him resoundingly – at Paris 1900 (also having some fun at Burn’s expense in his annotations to the game) and again at Ostend 1905. This time he was in for a shock. Within twenty moves the old man had won his queen for two pieces. Marshall played on\, probably with a red face\, until move 37\, rather than have his loss cabled home too early. Against Burn he might have spared himself the trouble. \nBurn was a superb annotator. His work\, notably in ‘The Field‘ from 1913 on\, sets a standard to which one looks back nostalgically in these days of hieroglyphics. The day before he died\, at the age of 77\,he had been at work on analysis and annotation. Tournaments were now plentiful enough for it to be possible to pick out the band of regular professionals\, and to assess their prowess. Tartakower was placed 2\, 5\, l\, 5; Reti 5\, 5’ 5\,-11; Grunfeld 4\,8\,8\,9; Nimzowitsch was erratic with 1\,2\,9; so was Rubinstein with 1\, 2\, 3\, 12. Marshall was consistent with 3\, 4\, 5. Lasker\, Capablanca and Alekhine appeared once each – with distinction\, of course.” \nThe Burn Variation is a line in the french defence dating from the 1870s\, played regularly by Burn at the tournaments of Hastings\n1895\, Cologne 1898\, and Vienna 1898. More recently it has been favoured by Petrosyan. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976)\, Anne Sunnucks : \n“A leading British player of his day\, Amos Burn was born in Hull on 31st December 1848. He learned the game when he was 16 and an apprentice with a firm of Liverpool cotton-brokers\, but it was not until 1886 that he achieved his first major tournament success by coming 2nd in the London tournament and 1st at Nottingham. These results gained him an invitation to Frankfurt 1887\, which marked the beginning of his career as an international player. \nBurn’s greatest successes were 1st at Amsterdam 1889\, ahead of Lasker\, 2nd at Breslau 1889\, behind Tarrasch but ahead of Mieses\, Von Bardeleben\, Bauer\, Gunsberg and Paulsen; and 1st at Cologne 1898\, ahead of Charousek\, Steiniitz\, Tchigorin and Schlecter. \nAfter the St. Petersburg 1909 tournament\, Burn’s results began to deteriorate and he finally retired from tournament chess after the Breslau 1912 tournament. \nFrom 1913 until his death\, Burn was chess editor of The Field. He died on 25th November 1925.” \nAmos Burn (31-xii-1848\, 25-xii-1925) circa 1920\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“British Grandmaster and second only to Blackburne in late nineteenth-century British chess. He was born in Hull and learned to play chess at sixteen\, but devoted little time to the game at first\, preferring to establish himself in a commercial career. \nHe returned to chess in his middle thirties\, his first major national success being first prize at Nottingham 1886 and second prize at London 1886. Within three years he had gained an international reputation by winning at Amsterdam 1889\, ahead of Lasker\, and finishing 2nd to Tarrasch at Breslau 1889. Burn continued to appear in international tournaments until the age of sixty-four\, his most notable triumph being first prize at Cologne 1898 in front of Charousek\, Steinitz\, Chigorin and Schlechter. He was chess editor of The Field from 1913 until his death in 1925.” \nEdward Winter wrote a feature article on the game McDonald-Burn\, Liverpool\, 1910 \nHis Wikipedia article is here \nAccording to Edward Winter in Chess Notes Burn lived at 19 Luxemburg Gardens\, London W6\, England (Amos Burn\, The Quiet Chessmaster by R.N. Coles\, page 7). \nAmos Burn (31-xii-1848\, 25-xii-1925)\nand an excellent article from the Liverpool Museum is here \nAmos Burn (left) and Rev. John Owen circa 1885.\nAmos Burn\, the quiet chessmaster\, RN Coles\nAmos Burn : A Chess Biography by Richard Forster\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-amos-burn/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201125
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201126
DTSTAMP:20201030T154235Z
CREATED:20200408T152648Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201030T154235Z
UID:4203-1606262400-1606348799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Stewart Haslinger (25-xi-1981)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of GM Stewart Haslinger (25-xi-1981) \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-stewart-haslinger-25-xi-1981/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201128
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201129
DTSTAMP:20211127T122058Z
CREATED:20200409T080835Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211127T122058Z
UID:4236-1606521600-1606607999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Nicholas Frost (28-xi-1983)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Nicholas Frost (28-xi-1983) \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-nicholas-a-frost-28-xi-1983/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201129
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201130
DTSTAMP:20210514T084840Z
CREATED:20190823T190915Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210514T084840Z
UID:1126-1606608000-1606694399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of IM Robert Wade OBE (10-iv-1921 29-xi-2008)
DESCRIPTION:We remember IM Bob Wade OBE who was born 100 years ago today on Sunday\, April 10th 1921 \nIn 1979 Queen’s Birthday Honours List\, Civil Division Bob Wade was awarded the OBE. The citation read simply : “For services to Chess” \nHe won the BCF Presidents’ Award in 1986. \nIn the Foreword to the 2009 ECF Yearbook\, President Gerry Walsh wrote : \n“As I started this report I had just heard the sad news that IM Bob Wade had died aged 87. I first met Bob at one of the Whitby Congresses and in 1972 he played in the Teeside GM Tournament where I recall he beat the three Hungarian players Portisch\, Bilek and Sax (ed : aged 51).” \nGeurt Gijssen wrote in Chesscafe.com : \n“I received the sad news that Bob Wade passed away at the age of eighty seven. He played his last tournament in London in August. When I was young I read about his exploits as a chess player\, and he was the arbiter in many important chess events. I met him in 1993 when I was the organizer of the first part of the match Karpov – Timman\, played in The Netherlands in three different cities: Zwolle\, Arnhem\, and Amsterdam. He was the only member of the Appeals Committee and Bob was always present watching the games in the playing hall. He gave me invaluable advice about all elements of the match venues. It was very clear that he was an experienced chess player and arbiter\, and I learned many things from him. May he rest in peace.” \nFrom the 1952 Ilford Congress (30 May – 2 June) and originally published in BCM\, July 1952\, page 187. (l-r) : Harold Israel\, Alan Phillips\, Bob Wade\, Otto Friedman\, Abe Yanofsky\, Alfred William Bowen and Harold Meek. Thanks to John Saunders and Leonard Barden\nWade was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 1956-57\, 1957-58 and 1964-65 seasons. \nFrom the Preface of The World Chess Championship : 1951 by Lionel Sharples Penrose we have : \n“Mr. Wade is also passionately devoted to the game. Before coming to Europe\, he was three times champion of New Zealand. He had played in tournaments in England but his chief successes have been on the Continent. At Venice in 1950\, he obtained a high place in a very severe contest in which some of the strongest Russia\, Czech\, Dutch\, French\, Italian\, North and South American players took part. Much of his time is occupied in chess organising and teaching. He is an acting vice-president of the F.I.D.É and in this official capacity he attended the match in Moscow\, which is the subject of this book.” \nIM Bob Wade\nPaul McKeown researched (and Simon Spivack asked permission to reproduce his words) the earliest part of Bob’s life as follows: \n“On May 20th\, 1919\, Thomas Graham Wade\, aged 27\, Sergeant in the NZ Expeditionary Force\, repatriated with honour from war-time service in Egypt\, Gallipoli and France\, married Amy Lilian Neave\, aged 21\, in South Dunedin. A New Zealander of Scots and English descent\, his family was Graham from Montrose. The family name\, Wade\, came from Marshall George Wade\, the soldier and engineer who led the Hanoverian forces against the Scots at the time of the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion and was immortalised in the original third verse of the British national anthem: \nLord\, grant that Marshal Wade\,\nMay by thy mighty aid\,\nVictory bring. \nMay he sedition hush and like a torrent rush\,\nRebellious Scots to crush\,\nGod save the King. \nIM Bob Wade\nRobert Graham Wade\, known in the Scots manner to his family as Robin\, and later to his many friends as Bob\, was their first child\, born April 10th\, 1921\, at Dunedin. Over the next few years he was joined by sisters\, Lilian\, Agnes\, Betty\, June\, his brother Ted and finally by his youngest sister Amy. The family lived for a number of years at Portobello. \n\nAt that time\, Portobello was a scattered community of about 150 people with three shops and a pub on the Otago Peninsula. Bob attended Portobello Primary School\, a small country school\, finished “dux” or top of class\, and then attended the King Edward Technical High School at Stuart Street in Dunedin.” \nIM Bob Wade\nIn The Oxford Companion to Chess (OUP\, 1984 & 1996)\, Hooper & Whyld: \n“Wade Variation\, 147\, also known as the Modern Variation\, in the Queen’s Gambit Declined\, Meran Variation\, from Bogoljubow-Wade\, Oldenburg\, 1949; \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n1239 in the French Defence\, introduced by Wade in a match against Schmid in 1950. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHooper & Whyld go on to write : \n“New Zealand-born Robert Graham Wade (1921- ) won the championship of his homeland three times before moving to England as a young man\, He won the British Championship twice and trained many English players.” \nAside from the two variations mentioned by Hooper & Whyld there are other Wade Variations : \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nwhich Jim Plaskett dubbed the “Sidestep Variation” \nand \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nwhich is the Pytel-Wade Variation of the Scandinavian Defence. \nAnne Sunnucks wrote in The Encyclopaedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976) : \n“International Master (1950 Ed: actually 1954)\, International Judge (1958)\, New Zealand Champion three times and British Champion in 1952 and 1970. \nBob Wade was born in New Zealand on 10th April 1921 and is a professional chess player. He has lived in England for many years and has played regularly for the British Chess Federation team in Chess Olympiads. He has played a prominent part in coaching schemes for juniors and is largely responsible for recent successes of English juniors in international events. \nBob Wade v. Aldecoa of the Philippines from the 1958 Munich Olympiad played on October 9th 1958. The game was won by Bob in 60 moves. From the collection of David Jarrett with many thanks.\nHe is chess correspondent of Associated Newspapers and Independent Television News and editor of a series of books on Contemporary Chess Openings published by Batsford. \nAuthor of a number of books on the game\, his publications include books on the World Championship of 1951\, 1957 (ed : this book was\, in fact\, by Golombek) and 1963\, the first in collaboration with W. Winter; The Closed Ruy Lopez (Batsford\, 1970) in collaboration with LS Blackstock and PJ Booth: World Chess Championship (Batsford\, 1972) in collaboration with Svetozar Gligoric; Games of RJ Fischer (Batsford\, 1972) in collaboration with KJ O’Connell and Soviet Chess (Neville Spearman\, 1968). \nWade was a member of the FIDE Laws Commission from 1950 to 1952.” \n\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“International Master who was born at Dunedin\, New Zealand\, but came to live In England in 1946 and has represented both countries on different occasions. He has nearly always done well in British Championships and won the title in Chester in 1952 and again at Coventry in 1970. He had played for the British Chess Federation at the Olympiads of 1954\, 1956\, 1958\, 1960 and 1962\, winning the shortest game of the Varna Olympiad in that year in nine moves against Anton Kinzel of Austria \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHe played for the New Zealand team at the 1970 Olympiad at Siegen but returned to the BCF team at Skopje in 1972. \nHis best individual international results were a fifth place at Venice 1950 and again fifth at the Masters section of the Capablanca Memorial at Cienfuegos in Cuba in 1975. Possessor of a sharp clear-cut style of play\, he once drew a match with the West German grandmaster Lothar Schmid with neither side drawing a game\, though this was before Schmid received the grandmaster title. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHe has done much valuable work in England teaching the young\, and was responsible for the text of a highly successful television series in 1975. \nHis main books are : Soviet Chess\, London\, 1967; Botvinnik-Bronstein Match 1951 (in co-operation with W. Winter)\, London\, Toronto 1951; Match Petrosian-Botvinnik\, London\, 1963; Sousse 1967\, The Chess Player\, Nottingham\, 1968.” \nFrom British Chess (Pergamon Press\, 1983) we have this article from George Botterill : \n“In the Birthday Honours list of 1979 Bob Wade was awarded the OBE for his services to chess. Few rewards can have been more thoroughly earned. For some reason\, Bob has always been held in greater esteem abroad than in the country for which he has done so much. But the many players who have turned to him for advice or who have simply enjoyed his hospitality\, which is always ungrudgingly available to fellow chess players\, know the measure of his dedication to the game. \nTheodore Tylor vs Bob Wade at Paignton 1953. Bob held TT to a draw to secure first place\nWade was born in Dunedin\, a third generation New Zealander of Scots and English ancestry. He started a a career as a civil servant in the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. Having won the New Zealand Championship in 1944 and 1945 he was sent over to participate in the British Championship of 1946. The result was not exactly a success – a mere 3.5 points out of 11. But Bob was not to be disheartened so easily. Feeling he was capable of better things\, he took leave of absence in 1947 and did the circuit\, such as it then was\, of chess tournament in Europe and North America. \nBob giving a simul in Leeds in the 1950s\nWhen he returned to New Zealand he found that he had been transferred to another department in a civil service reorganisation. The new job was not so congenial. He stuck it out for 6 months – during which time he won the New Zealand Championship for a third time – and then handed in his resignation to take up the precarious life of a chess professional. \nIM Bob Wade\nSettling in Britain he soon gained the IM title (ed : 1954). But even in those days when still a young man Wade did not concentrate exclusively on his own playing career. In 1949 he went to the FIDE congress and was one of the five people – the others were BH Wood\, Ragozin\, Zubarev and Rogarde – who collaborated on the writing of the official rules for the game. \nBob Wade OBE\, Murray Chandler MNZM and David Anderton OBE at the 1986 Dubai Olympiad. Photograph by Frits Agterdenbos\nHe also served as a member of the commission that determined who the original holders of international titles would be. When you consider that Wade was also on the 1950 commission that decided the composition of the World Championship Interzonals\, it becomes apparent that this man played a significant part in the shaping the structure of modern international chess. \nBob at a CentYMCA event with Neil Carr\, Mike Wills\, Aaron Rose and Jon Ady\nAlthough rarely at the top in international tournaments\, Wade was always a very dangerous player\, capable on his day of beating anybody in the world. He won the British Championship twice at Chester in 1952 and at Coventry in 1970. \nBob playing Kick Langeweg at IBM 1961.\nIn recent years Wade has put his main energies into junior training and organisation and also into his work as the editor of Batsford’s highly productive and extremely successful series of chess books. \nBob with John Nunn and Boris Spassky at the GLC Masters\nIt is hard to say in what department one should place Wade’s greatest contributions to British Chess. Living through what is retrospect look to have been the Dark Ages of British chess – the 1950s and 1960s – he has demonstrated that even in a social and cultural environment that made playing chess economically ‘impossible’ profession to follow it was still possible to dedicate a life to chess\, if one had the determination. \nLeonard Barden\, Henry Mutkin\, Adrian Hollis and Bob Wade observe Nick Ivell vs Ken Regan at the 1983 Varsity match\nDuring those years he was really the only British Player who regularly active in international tournaments. Since then he has been constantly active as an author\, editor and adviser\, always working to transform Britain into a country more congenial to good chess. \nBob at the demo board at London Central YMCA chess club.\nBut we suspect that he might regard this role as trainer and coach as the most important thing of all. He is\, quite appropriately the British Chess Federation’s Chief National Coach. \nBob doing one of the things he loved best : teaching. He was discussing a position at Havana 1965. Dr JR Capablanca\, son of the former world champion\, on the right\, interpreted.\nIf one had to choose a single best game from Wade’s whole tournament career\, it would probably be this one. \nGeorge Botterill \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nDr. Fazekas (left) playing Bob Wade at an Ilford Congress\, photographer unknown\nIn the January 2009 issue of British Chess Magazine John Saunders wrote a ten page obituary as follows : \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXIX (129\, 2009)\, #1 (January)\, pp. 34-43\nLeonard Barden wrote this obituary \nHere is Bob’s Telegraph obituary. \nJohn Saunders interviewed Bob at his Blackheath home and wrote this extensive article for the 1999 British Chess Magazine. \nHis detailed results in Olympiads\, from olimpbase.org\, follow. \nAmsterdam 1954\, England board 4\, 6/12 (+4−4=4);\nMoscow 1956\, England board 3\, 6½/14 (+2−3=9);\nMunich 1958\, England 1st reserve\, 7/14 (+5−5=4);\nLeipzig 1960\, England 2nd reserve\, 6/11 (+4−3=4);\nVarna 1962\, England 2nd reserve\, 6/12 (+4−4=4);\nSiegen 1970\, New Zealand board 2\, 9/15 (+7−4=4);\nSkopje 1972\, England board 3\, 7½/14 (+4−3=7).\nWade won several middle-strength Master events in the British Isles: Ilford 1957 and 1968\, Paignton 1959\, Dublin 1962\, and Southend-on-Sea 1965. \nWade was generally no more than a middle-ranking player in strong international tournaments. His other highlights against high-standard international-level competition include: \ntied 4–5th at Haifa/Tel Aviv 1958 on 7½/13 (winner Samuel Reshevsky);\n3rd at Bognor Regis 1959 on 7/10 (winner Erno Gereben);\n5th at Reykjavík 1964 on 7½/13 (winner Mikhail Tal);\ntied 4–5th at Málaga 1966 on 7/11; (winners Alberic O’Kelly de Galway and Eleazar Jiménez);\n6th at Briseck 1971 on 7/13 (winner Gideon Barcza);\n5th at Cienfuegos ‘B’ 1975 on 10/17; (winners Julio Boudy and Amador Rodriguez);\ntied 7–12th in the World Senior Championship\, Bad Woerishofen 1992\, on 7½/11 (winner Efim Geller).\nWade was the only British player to have faced Bobby Fischer in tournament play (outside of Olympiads). They met three times\, with Wade drawing one game and losing the other two. \nHis detailed Wikipedia entry may be found here \nBob was an active author and wrote (or co-wrote) around 22 books as follows : \nThe World Chess Championship\, W.Winter & RG Wade\, Turnstille Press\, 1951\nHastings Chess Congress 1955-56\, RG Wade & W. Ritson Morry\, En Passant Chess Publications\nChess Tactics for Beginners\, RG Wade\, Bott and Morrison\, 1960\nThe World Chess Championship: 1963 Botvinnik vs Petrosian\, Wade\nSoviet Chess\, RG Wade\, Neville Spearman (UK) & David McKay Company\, Inc\, New York\, 1968\nSousse 1967 : International Chess Tournament\, RG Wade\, The Chess Player\, 1968\nThe Velimirovic Attack\, Sozin Sicilian\, TD Harding and RG Wade\, Chessman Publications Ltd.\, 1969.\nThe Closed Ruy Lopez\, Wade\, Blackstock and Booth\, Batsford\, 1970\nPalma 1970 : Interzonal Chess Tournament\, RG Wade and LS Blackstock\, The Chess Player\, 1970\nThe Games of Robert J. Fischer\, Robert Wade and O’Connell\, Batsford 1972\, 2nd ed. 1972\, reprinted 1973\, First limp edition 1981\, Reprinted 1985\, 1981\, 1989\, Second edition (The Complete Games of Bobby Fischer) 1992\nWorld Championship Interzonals\, Wade\, Blackstock and Kotov\, Batsford\, 1974\nThe World Chess Championship\, Gligoric and Wade\, Batsford\, 1974\nThe Marshall Attack\, Wade & Harding\, Batsford\, 1974\nPlaying Chess\, RG Wade\, Batsford/TVTimes\, 1974\nSicilian Lasker-Pelikan\, 1978\, Batsford\, Wade\, Speelman\, Povah and Blackstock\n44th USSR Championship Final Moscow 1977\, RG Wade\, LS Blackstock and HC Thomas\, Master Chess Publications\, 1977\n45th USSR Championship Final Leningrad 1977\, RG Wade\, LS Blackstock and HC Thomas\, Master Chess Publications\, 1977\nBugojno\, 1978\, RG Wade\, LS Blackstock and HC Thomas\, Master Chess Publications\, 1978\n46th USSR Chess Championships 1978\, RD Keene\, JDM Nunn\, RG Wade\, Master Chess Publications\, 1978\, ISBN 0 906634 00 8\nTournament of the Stars:~ Montreal 1979\, RG Wade\, LS Blackstock\, AL Hosking\, Master Chess Publications\, 1979\nInterpolis Supertournament:~ Tilburg 1979\, LS Blackstock & RG Wade\, Master Chess Publications\, Chess\, Sutton Coldfield\, 1979\nFighting Chess\, Kasparov and Wade\, Harper Collins\, 1983\nTrends in the Reti\, Volume 1\, RG Wade\, 1992\nBatsford Chess Endings\, Speelman\, Tisdall and Wade\, 1993\nChess for Children\, Ted Nottingham and Bob Wade\, Sterling Juvenile\, 1996\nTrends in the Reti\, Volume 2\, RG Wade\, 1996\nWinning Chess : Tactics and Strategies\, Sterling Juvenile\, 2001\nIn 2007 Ray Cannon published the following tribute : \nBob Wade : Tribute to a Chess Master\, Ray Cannon & Ray Keene\, Impala\, 2007\nHowever\, Paul McKeown remains Bob’s official biographer. \nIM Robert Wade OBE\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-robert-graham-wade-obe/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,History,Player,Remembering
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201130
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201201
DTSTAMP:20201030T154834Z
CREATED:20200410T215434Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201030T154834Z
UID:4393-1606694400-1606780799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of WIM Teresa Needham (30-xi-1965)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of WIM Teresa M Needham (30-xi-1965) \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-wim-teresa-m-needham-30-xi-1965/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201130
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201201
DTSTAMP:20260817T135617Z
CREATED:20200411T223418Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T135617Z
UID:4518-1606694400-1606780799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Simon Williams (30-xi-1979)
DESCRIPTION:GM Simon Williams\nBest wishes to GM Simon Williams on his fortieth birthday\, this day (November 30th) in 1979. \nSimon was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion in the 2001-02 (shared with Simon Knott) and the 2006-07 season. \nHis Wikipedia entry is here \nGM Simon Williams\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-simon-kim-williams-30-xi-1979/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201203
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201204
DTSTAMP:20260817T135611Z
CREATED:20190822T151040Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T135611Z
UID:971-1606953600-1607039999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Dr. James Aitken (27-x-1908 03-xii-1983)
DESCRIPTION:Signature of JM Aitken from a Brian Reilly “after dinner” postcard from Hastings Christmas Congress\, 1945-1946\nWe remember Dr. James Aitken who passed away on Saturday\, December 3rd\, 1983. \nJames Macrae Aitken was born on Tuesday\, October 28th 1908 in Calderbank\, Lanarkshire\, Scotland. \nHis very early history is best record here at the wonderful Chess Scotland web site. \nHe attended Balliol College\, Oxford. \nLuckily for all of us Scottish chess enthusiast Geoff Chandler is transcribing JMAs games from the players personal scorebooks. We hope to see these games appearing in Britbase and other locations in the near future. \nFrom The Anglo-Soviet Radio Chess Match by Klein and Winter : \n“JM Aitken was born in 1908 in Scotland\, and learned chess at the age of eight. He played several times in the Scottish Championship\, and won it in 1935. In the Stockholm international team tournament\, 1937\, he played for Scotland. His best performance in international chess was at Hastings\, 1945\, when he scored 6 points and did best among the British contingent. \nJames Macrae Aitken\nHe is a graduate of both Oxford and Edinburgh\, and a Ph.D. At the beginning of the war he joined the Foreign Office. ” \nThe Aitken Variation is a line recommended in the British Chess Magazine of 1937 of the Giuocco Piano as follows : \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom British Chess Magazine\, Volume CIV (104\, 1984)\, Number 1 (January)\, page 65 : \n“Dr. James Macrae Aiken (27 October 1908 – 3 December 1983) died at his home in Cheltenham on the Saturday morning when he was due to turn out in a county match that afternoon. Sh he was active to the end\, since he played in the veterans’ competition in both at the Southport BCF Congress and at the Guernsey tournament in October. \nTen times Scottish Champion\, the worthy doctor represented Scotland at Olympiads both pre- and post-war. At the 1937 Stockholm Olympiad he beat Ståhlberg\, while later on he also had the grandmaster scalps of Bogoljubow and Tartakower to his credit. \nHe retired from his work at the Foreign Office some ten years ago\, and continued playing in West Country chess\, always taking a high board for Gloucestershire. At the BCM we have a particular cause to remember him with gratitude since he was both a book reviewer and occasional annotator for two decades\, and a life-long subscriber. \nAs a person he was always friendly and objective in his judgements both of chess positions and personalities. Your editor recalls many interesting conversations with him at BCF Congresses. The loss is greatest\, of course. for Scottish Chess. \nPerhaps we may close on a lighter note\, since the following anecdote reminds one that Dr Aitken also turned out for Great Britain in matches just after the war. At an early FIDE Congress after the war the first official FIDE list of masters and grandmasters was being drawn up. The BCF made application for recognising the mastership of HE Atkins. The Soviet delegate\, Kotov\, objected since he thought he heard the name of Aitken\, whom he knew had lost both games to Bondaresvky on board eight of the 1946 GB-USSR Radio Match. It was gently pointed out that the application concerned a player who had come ahead of no less than Chigorin at Hannover 1902. End of objection! \nJames Macrae Aitken in 1965 by “Mac”\nWe take this game from the Bournemouth tournament played on the eve of the Second World War. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“Talented Scottish amateur who won the Scottish championship ten times\, Dr. Aitken’s chief international activity was representing Scotland in the Olympiads. \nAt Stockholm 1937 he scored 32.4% on top board but he had the distinction of beating the Swedish grandmaster Ståhlberg. At Munich 1958 he scored 67.6% on 2nd board; at Tel Aviv 1964\, 28.1% on 2nd board; at Skopje 1972\, 38.9% on 6th board.” \nBoth Sunnucks and Hooper & Whyld are silent on Aitken. \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“James Macrae Aitken (27 October 1908 – 3 December 1983) was a Scottish chess player.[1][2] Aitken was born in Calderbank\, Lanarkshire\, Scotland. In 1938 he received a PhD from Edinburgh University on the topic of ‘The Trial of George Buchanan Before the Lisbon Inquisition’.[3] \nAitken learned chess from his father at age 10.[4] He was Scottish champion in 1935\, 1952\, 1953\, 1955\, 1956\, 1957\, 1958\, 1960\, 1961 and 1965\, the latter jointly with PM Jamieson.[1] He was also London Champion in 1950.[1] In 1959 he had his best result in the British Championship\, finishing tied for seventh place.[4] Aitken represented Scotland in four Chess Olympiads. He played top board at Stockholm 1937\, scoring only 32.4% but he did defeat Swedish GM Gideon Ståhlberg[4][5] and draw with American GM Samuel Reshevsky.[4] He played second board at Munich 1958 and Tel Aviv 1964\, scoring 67.6% and 28.1% respectively. Aitken played sixth board at Skopje 1972\, scoring 38.9%.” \nAitken was Southern Counties (SCCU) Champion for the 1948-49 season \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n“Aitken represented Great Britain in matches against the USSR and Yugoslavia.[4] In the 1946 radio match between the United Kingdom and the USSR he lost his match with Igor Bondarevsky on board 8.[6] Aitken defeated GM Savielly Tartakower at Southsea 1949[4][7] and GM Efim Bogoljubow at Bad Pyrmont 1951.[4][8] \nDuring World War II\, Aitken worked in Hut 6 at Bletchley Park on solving German Enigma machines.[9] On 2 December 1944 Bletchley Park played a 12-board team match against the Oxford University Chess Club. Bletchley Park won the match 8–4 with C.H.O’D. Alexander\, Harry Golombek\, and Aitken on the top three boards.[10] Aitken wrote many book reviews for the British Chess Magazine.[11] Aside from chess his hobbies included golf\, philately\, bridge\, and watching cricket.[4] He died in Cheltenham in 1983\, aged 75.[2]” \nAnother biography may be found here at the wonderful Chess Scotland \nDr. James Aitken (27-x-1908 03-xii-1983)\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-james-macrae-aitken/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201205
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201206
DTSTAMP:20201204T143723Z
CREATED:20191014T230918Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20201204T143723Z
UID:1524-1607126400-1607212799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Gavin Wall (05-xii-1968)
DESCRIPTION:Best Wishes to IM Gavin Wall on this birthday\, this day (December 5th) in 1968. Gavin is an Irish International Master whose peak rating (according to Chessbase) was 2413 at the age of 35. \nIM Gavin Wall\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIM Gavin Wall\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-gavin-wall/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201206
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201207
DTSTAMP:20211106T121121Z
CREATED:20191130T140838Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211106T121121Z
UID:2213-1607212800-1607299199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM John Hawksworth (06-xii-1963)
DESCRIPTION:We wish happy birthday to IM John Hawksworth born on Friday\, December 6th\, 1963. \nJohn Crofton Hawksworth was “born in Brighton\, England\, in December 1963 to Robert Marshall Hawksworth and Norah Connor Hawksworth née Crofton. He was baptised at St Saviour’s Church of England church in Pimlico\, London\, in 1964.[1]” \nThis was written about John who was 15 just prior to the Spassky vs the BCF Junior Squad simultaneous display in 1979 : \n“Bradford Grammar and Bradford. Rating 194. Yorkshire under-18 champion.” \nHe was awarded the IM title in 1986. \nAccording to ChessBase his highest FIDE rating was 2370 in January\, 1990 aged 27 which was the last year of serious competition at the 77th British Championships in Eastbourne. \nHe then pursued a highly successful career in the financial sector and is currently the Chief Economist for PriceWaterhouseCoopers. \nIM John Crofton Hawksworth (standing\,far left)\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nIM John Crofton Hawksworth (standing\, second from right)\nAt the Lloyds Bank Masters : Front (l-r) : Joel Benjamin\, Ian Wells\, Rear : Peter Morrish\, Stewart Reuben\, Richard Beville\, Gary Senior\, Richard Webb\, John Hawksworth\, Andrew King\, Nigel Short\, Mark Ginsburg\, Daniel King\, David Cummings\, Erik Teichmann\, John Brandford and Micheal Pagden\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-john-crofton-hawksworth-06-xii-1963/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201208
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201209
DTSTAMP:20211208T155947Z
CREATED:20191208T001021Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211208T155947Z
UID:3679-1607385600-1607471999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of John Fuller (12-v-1928  08-xii-2004)
DESCRIPTION:We remember John Fuller who passed away aged 76 on Wednesday\, December 8th 2004. His death was recorded in the district of Lancaster. At the end of his life he lived in Carnforth\, in Lancashire. \nJohn Arthur Fuller was born in Hendon\, Middlesex on Saturday\, May 12th 1928. His parents were Horace Arthur Fuller (a Bank Officer) and Phyllis Fuller (née Gooch). \nJohn had three brothers: Julian Frederick who was two years older\, Nigel Anthony who was three years younger and Adrian Easterbrook who was six years younger. \nThey lived at 12\, High View\, Pinner in Middlesex. \n12\, High View\, Pinner\, Middlesex\, HA5 3PA\nOn August 26th 1939\, aged eleven\, John (described as a scholar) departed from Liverpool on board the SS Ceramic (part of the Shaw Savill & Albion Company shipping line) and duly arrived one hundred and twenty days later in Sydney\, New South Wales. \nThe family returned to Liverpool in March 1945 on board the Athlone Castle which was of the Union-Castle Mail Steamship Company Ltd. John was now sixteen years old. \nAccording to ancestry.co.uk he is survived by a son\, Robert. The family tree indicates that John had two sons and two daughters but his wife is marked as Private and so her name is not visible. We speculate that it may be Ann Fuller (née Dent) but this is awaiting confirmation. \nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1972 & 1976) by Anne Sunnucks : \n“British Master\, British Boy Champion in 1946 and British Correspondence Champion from 1953-1955. Born on 12th May 1928 Fuller learned to play chess when he was 11. In 1946 \, the year in which he won the British Boys Championship\, he also tied for the London Boys Championship. He went on to win the Middlesex Championship three times and the Warwickshire Championship twice. Fuller played for England in matches between Scotland and the Netherlands and in the Clare Benedict International Team Tournament. He also had the best British score in the Premier Tournament at Hastings in 1949 and 1955. \nHe was a design engineer.” \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsfords\, 1977) by Harry Golombek: \n“British master and design engineer by profession. British Boy Champion in 1946. Fuller was a player of great promise with a fine understanding of the game. But a serious illness disturbed the even flow of his chess career and\, though he recovered and made some more appearences in the chess world\, he eventually withdrew from chess on an international and national level. \nFuller played twice in the Hastings Premier tournament: =5th 1949/50 and 6th in 1955/6.” \nThe Oxford Companion to Chess is silent on JAF. \nThere has been considerable discussion of JAF in another place. \nBCN would like to acknowledge help received from Richard James\, Leonard Barden\, Rob Fuller and John Upham in putting this article together. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nSubsequent to this post being published our attention was kindly drawn by John Saunders to the obituary in BCM\, Volume 125 (2005)\, #5 (May)\, page 247. Here is the article: \nJohn Fuller (12 v 1928 – 8 xii 2004\, Carnforth) was a British Master and British correspondence champion in 1954 and 1955. Having spent some of the war years in Australia\, he quickly made his mark in junior chess on his return to Britain. He shared first place with Leonard Barden in the 1946 London Boys’ Championship and went on to win the British Boys’ Championship in 1946 with 5/5 in the final section\, ahead of Gordon Crown and Leonard Barden. He beat an off-form Crown in nine moves in the last round (see game above) He played a number of correspondence games with Crown\, himself a richly gifted player\, who w0as to die tragically young in 1947\, and it was reported that Fuller had the better of these encounters. \nFuller became a design engineer\, but his business and chess careers were both affected by a serious bout of tuberculosis when he was a young man. He won the Hastings Premier Reserves ‘B’ with 8/9 in 1947/48 ahead of Alan Phillips and Arthur Winser\, and in 1949 Leonard Barden remembers playing off with him for a place in the 1949/50 Hastings premier after the two of them had made similar scores at the 1949 British Championship. \n“We played the match at Sir George Thomas’s flat in autumn 1949… and John crushed me in that. Not sure of the score\, I think it was 2.5- 0.5.” \nHe played in the Hastings Premier in 1949/50 and again in 1955/56\,and made the best British scores on both occasions – 4/9 and 3.5/9 respectively. He also represented England in matches against Scotland and the Netherlands\, and in the Clare Benedict team tournament. He only appeared three times in British Championships\, scoring 6.5 in 1949\, 5.5 in 1950 and 6.5 in 1958. He ranked in the top ten of the British Chess Federation Grading List on six occasions\, with a best place of third equal in 1958. He seems to have dropped out of over the board competition chess shortly after being awarded the (now defunct) British Master title in 1963/64. \nHarry Golombek referred to Fuller in The Encyclopaedia of Chess (1977) as a player of great promise with a fine understanding of the game”. Alan Phillips told BCM that he was “one of the most promising players of his generation… he slaughtered me three times”. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nLeonard Barden had the following memories of John Fuller: “He was a member of West London Chess Club\, which was historically significant as his good friend and fellow member (both living in Harrow) was Jim Slater\, who 25 years later told me that knowing John was one of the factors which kept his interest in chess up to the point where he became our Maecenas… John was a tall redhead\, outgoing and friendly\, and a natural talent who also worked on theory. With the better opportunities available to later generations I’m sure he would have reached IM strength.” \n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-john-fuller-12-v-1928-iii-2005/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player,Remembering
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201209
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201210
DTSTAMP:20211109T181851Z
CREATED:20190822T222348Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211109T181851Z
UID:1014-1607472000-1607558399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of WGM Dr. Jana Bellin (09-xii-1947)
DESCRIPTION:Happy birthday WGM Dr. Jana Bellin on this day (December 9th) in 1947. \nJana Malypetrova\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976)\, Anne Sunnucks : \n“International Woman Master (1969)\, Czech Woman Champion in 1965 and 1967 and British Woman Champion since 1970. \nJana Malypetrova\nJana was born in Prague on the 9th December 1947 and learned to play chess at the age of eleven. She made her first appearance in the international field when she played 2nd board for Czechoslovakia in Women’s Chess Olympiad in Oberhausen in 1966. In the same year she represented Czechoslovakia in the Zonal tournament at Varna and came 11th. \nJana Malypetrova\nShe is now married to the British International Master\, William Hartston\, and played 1st board for England in the Women’s Chess Olympiad in Skopje in 1972 and represented England in the Zonal tournament in Wijk aan Zee in 1973 in which she tied for 1st place. In the same year she came =6th in the Interzonal Tournament. She is a doctor.” \nJana & Bill Hartston celebrate a family double at the British Championships in 1973 at Eastbourne\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“Born in Prague\, Czechoslovakia\, but moved to England in 1970 after her marriage to WR Hartston. Czechoslovak Woman champion in 1965 and 1967 (under her maiden name of Malypetrova) and British Ladies champion in the five years 1970 to 1974. International Woman master since 1969.” \nBill and Jana Hartston are shown with some of their many chess sets. CHESS\, August 1973\, page 323\nFrom British Chess (Pergamon Press\, 1983) Botterill\, Levy\, Rice and Richardson : \nHastings International Chess Congress 21 year old Jana Malypetrova From Czechoslovakia And Vassily Smyslov From Russia.  Mandatory Credit: Photo by Michael Fresco/ANL/Shutterstock (1876232a)\n“Jana Miles was born 9 December 1947 in Prague\, Czechoslovakia. She moved to England when she married Bill Hartston. Divorced from Hartston in 1978\, she subsequently married Tony Miles.  \nHastings International Chess Congress 21 year old Jana Malypetrova From Czechoslovakia And Vassily Smyslov From Russia.  Mandatory Credit: Photo by Michael Fresco/ANL/Shutterstock (1876232a)\nShe was Czech woman champion in 1965 and 1967 and has regularly been the British Ladies Champion since moving to this country. She is a doctor of medicine.” \nBill and Dr\, Jana Hartston (née Malypetrova)\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nSir Philip Stuart Milner-Barry OBE presents Dr. Jana Hartston with the ? prize\nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Jana Bellin (née Malypetrová; born 9 December 1947) is a British\, formerly Czechoslovak chess player. She was awarded the Woman International Master chess title in 1969 and the Woman Grandmaster title in 1982. \nMoment of concentration for reigning women’s champion of Great Britain Jana Hartston and some of the 30 Post Officer players – all men who challenged her at postal headquarters London on September 6. Jana beat seven\, drew with sixteen and lost to seven.\nBellin was born in Prague\, Czechoslovakia. She was the Czech Women’s Champion in 1965 and 1967 under her maiden name of Malypetrová. After her marriage to William Hartston she moved to England in 1970 and won the British Women’s Championship in 1970\, 1971\, 1972\, 1973\, 1974\, 1976\, 1977 (after a play-off)\, and 1979. \nMoment of concentration for reigning women’s champion of Great Britain Jana Hartston and some of the 30 Post Officer players – all men who challenged her at postal headquarters London on September 6. Jana beat seven\, drew with sixteen and lost to seven.\nShe has fifteen appearances in the Women’s Chess Olympiads\, representing Czechoslovakia in 1966 and 1969 and England thirteen times from 1972 through 2006\, seven times on first board. \nMoment of concentration for reigning women’s champion of Great Britain Jana Hartston and some of the 30 Post Officer players – all men who challenged her at postal headquarters London on September 6. Jana beat seven\, drew with sixteen and lost to seven.\nAt the Olympiad she earned individual silver medals in 1966 and 1976\, a team bronze medal in 1968 with the Czechoslovakian team\, and a team silver in 1976 with England. \nBritish Speed Chess Championship Grandmaster Nigel Short Playing Chess In The Park With L-r Susan Arkell Sheila Jackson And Dr Jana Miles. Courtesy of Shutterstock\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n“Bellin is a medical doctor specialising in anaesthetics\, and works in intensive care at Sandwell General Hospital\, West Bromwich\, England. \nJana with Sheila Jackson to her left\nShe is also Chairman of the FIDE Medical Commission\, which supervises drug testing of chess players. \nBritish Speed Chess Championship Grandmaster Nigel Short Playing Chess In The Street With Woman Grandmaster Dr Jana Miles : Credit : Shutterstock\nBellin was married first to International Master William Hartston\, then to Grandmaster Tony Miles\, and after that to International Master Robert Bellin. She and Bellin have two sons: Robert (born 1988) and Christopher (born 1991).[citation needed] \nDr. Jana Bellin\nShe is the granddaughter of thrice Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia\, Jan Malypetr. and cousin of author and human rights campaigner Jiří Stránský. \nWGM Dr. Jana Bellin\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-jana-bellin/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201210
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201211
DTSTAMP:20211210T095748Z
CREATED:20200402T173520Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211210T095748Z
UID:3986-1607558400-1607644799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Peter Batchelor (10-xii-1996)
DESCRIPTION:Best wishes to FM Peter Batchelor on his birthday. \nPeter J Batchelor was born on Tuesday\, December 10th\, 1996. “Breath” by The Prodigy was the UK Number One Single. His father is the player Guy Batchelor. \nPeter’s first recorded rapidplay event was on the 17th of July 2005 in the Barnet Knights Under-9 tournament where he scored 4/6 and his first (!) standard play event was on August 20th 2005 being the British Land UK Terafinal which was not such a happy result. \nHis first published ECF grading was 56E in July 2006 at the age of ten with a rapidplay grading of 57A. \nPeter played league chess in the Middlesex and London Leagues playing initially for Willesden & Brent and then with Wanstead & Woodford both with his father Guy. \nPeter attended the Capital City Academy which is a “specialist sports and arts Academy in Willesden\, North West London\, in the borough of Brent.” He has returned there post-graduation to teach chess and run the school chess club. \nPeter studied mathematics at the University of Warwick and now lives in London. \nAccording to Ben Purton : “I captain Peter in the 4NCL chess league\, he is one of the most professional and talented players on my squad. He is extremely smart and nice to be around. Peter would be an asset to any organisation in the future and any graduate scheme would be foolish not to take such a person on. \nI have seen him grow in to one of the best U21 chess players in the UK and hope to see him gain his IM title soon.” \nPeter became a FIDE Master in 2015 and\, according to Felice and Megabase 2020 his peak FIDE rating was 2365 in December 2016. \nFIDE rating profile for Peter Batchelor according to Megabase 2020\nPeter plays for Grantham Sharks in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). \nWith the white pieces Peter plays the Queen’s Gambit and the Trompowsky Attack. \nAs the second player Peter plays the Classical variation of the Caro-Kann and the Alartortsev Variation. \nOn chess.com Peter plays under the nom de plume of Pbatch. \nPeter Batchelor\, 4NCL Final weekend\, 2014\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFM Peter Batchelor at the 2013 British Championships\, Courtesy of John Upham Photography\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-peter-j-batchelor-10-xii-1996/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201211
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201212
DTSTAMP:20260817T135602Z
CREATED:20190822T155314Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T135602Z
UID:985-1607644800-1607731199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Joseph Blake (11-xii-1951)
DESCRIPTION:We remember English player Joseph Blake who passed away on Tuesday\, December 11th\, 1951. \nJoseph Henry Blake was born on Thursday\, February 3rd\, 1859 in Farnborough\, Hampshire. His parents were Joseph Denner and Eliza Blake (née Early). In 1871 Joseph (aged 12) had a brother Frank (aged 10)\, sisters Annie (8)\, Elizabeth S (7)\, Eliza E (1) and a servant\, Kate Longman aged 18. The family lived in Lydia Cottage\, Hewitts Road\, Millbrook\, South Stoneham\, Hampshire. \nAccording to the 1861 census Joseph was two years old and living with his parents and Frank in Rotten Row\, Yeovil\, Somerset. \nIn 1881 the family has upped sticks again and moved to 2 St. Lawrence Road\, Saint Mary\, Eastleigh\, Hampshire. This address is also given as the South West Telegraph Office. Eliza was now the head of the household and a widower. Apart from Eliza E aged 11 everyone worked for the railway. \nIn 1891 Joseph had become Head of the Household (aged 32) and they had acquired a servant (Anna M Cornell) and a blacksmith (Francis Cornell) from Braintree in Essex. \nIn 1900 Joseph married Alice New in Cheltenham\, Gloucestershire. They lived at 24\, Barton Road\, Eastleigh\, Hampshire. Tragically\, Alice passed away in 1903. \nJoseph Henry Blake\nBy 1911 Joseph was 52 and had retained his career as a Railway Clerk. He lived at 33\, Broomfield Road\, Tolworth\, Surrey : \n33\, Broomfield Road\, Tolworth\, Surrey\nHe is recorded as the head of a household of one and a widower. \nIn 1939 Joseph was living at 10 Springfield Court\, Springfield Road\, Kingston Upon Thames\, Surrey. He was now retired. \nNo doubt there would have been other addresses not captured by the census records. \nAccording to The Encyclopedia of Chess\, (Batsford\, 1977)\, Harry Golombek OBE : \n“A leading British player in the 1890s and for many years editor of the Games Section of the British Chess Magazine between the two world wars. Blake’s best tournament performance came at the age sixty-three when\, at Weston-super-Mare in 1922\, he came 1st ahead of Maróczy\, Kostić\, Sir George Thomas and Yates. \nThe remarkable feature about Blake’s chess career is that he retained his skill and his comprehension of the game for a much longer period that most chess players. This extended from 1887 when he was 1st at the Counties Chess Association tournament at Stamford ahead of Bird and Pollock\, a performance he was to repeat in 1891 at Oxford\, to 1909 when he tied with H. E. Atkins for first place in the British Championship\, to 1923 when he won the Weston-super-Mare tournament\, right into the 1930s when he was principal annotator for the British Chess Magazine.” \nChess Endings for Beginners\, JH Blake\, George Routledge First Edition (1900)\nand according to The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976)\, Anne Sunnucks : \n“One of the leading British players at the end of the last century and the beginning of the present century. Born on 3rd February 1859. Represented England in the Anglo-American cable matches in 1902 and 1909. His best results were 1st in the Counties’ Chess Association Tournament 1887\, ahead of Bird and MacDonnell; =1st with HE Atkins in the 1909 British Championship\, but lost the play-off for the title; 1st at Weston-super-Mare 1922 ahead of Maroczy\, Kostich\, Sir George Thomas and Yates\, and winner of the brilliancy prize for his game against Sir George Thomas; 2nd in the international correspondence chess tournament organised by Le Monde Illustre in 1895. \nBlake was President of the Southern Counties Chess Association in 1911 and President of the Hampshire Chess Association from 1910-1912 and from 1927-1929. He was also Hon. Secretary of the City of London Chess Club for some years.” \nAccording to Tim Harding in the excellent Correspondence Chess in Britain and Ireland\, 1824-1987 : \nRailway clerk Joseph Henry Blake\, the leading English correspondence player of the 1890s; also a strong OTB amateur player. He was a regular contributor to British Chess Magazine from the 1880s to the late 1930s. \nIn British Chess Magazine\, Volume XXXIX (39\, 1919)\, Number 3 (March) we have the following from Julius du Mont : “I presume it relates more particularly to chess professionals in this country\, at any rate\, it does not seem to me that the jews hold rank amongst first-class amateurs in proportion to their numbers. \nIn London there are very few if any of the class of RC Griffith\, GA Thomas\, JH Blake\, HG Cole\, EG Sergeant\, and many others to say nothing of the younger recruits \, W.Winter and RHV Scott.” \nFrom the 1949 British Chess Magazine (written by RN Coles) we have this : \nJH Blake is Ninety \nAfter an absence of ten years I looked in recently on the Kingston and Thames Valley Chess Club. There were many new faces and a number of familiar ones\, among the latter one of rosy countenance\, trim beard and twinkling eyes\, none other than JH Blake\, more vigorous than ever and attaining his 90th birthday on the 3rd February. \nTwenty years ago in this same club I (RN Coles) was learning the game\, now middle age approaches. Blake was an elderly man in those days\, who had retired from all competitive play because of the strain it imposed; now\, so far from showing the weight of years\, he is back in competitive chess again.  He won the club championship last year and is in a fair way to repeating his victory this year. Of all the ‘Grand Old Men’ of chess\, few have still been champions in their 90th year. \nOlder readers of the BCM will remember him as their Games Editor for many years\, but few memories will cover the whole series of his successes beginning with a 1st at Stamford in 1887. Even 1922 must seem a distant year to the generation of today. That was the year that Maroczy and Kostic were invited to Weston-super-Mare to meet such rising young English masters as FD Yates and Sir George Thomas. And the first prize amongst those talented players was won by JH Blake\, who had been born just when Morphy returned to England after his Paris Victory over Anderssen ! \nAll readers of the BCM and all players everywhere will wish Britain’s oldest master continued health and increasing vigour\, and those who knew him today will be surprised if he does not continue his attack for another decade at least. \nBesides winning the first prize at Weston Blake also won the brilliancy prize with the following game : (#10\,229) \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February)\, pp.44-46 contained an obituary with articles from MDB* : \n*(Careful investigation by Richard James suggest that MDB is Mabel Dorothy Barker\, JHB’s niece in 6th Cross Road.) \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February) pp. 44 – 46\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February) pp. 44 – 46\nand EG Sergeant : \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February) pp. 44 – 46\nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXII (72\, 1952)\, Number 2 (February) pp. 44 – 46\n\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nFor more on this game and its often mis-reported continuation see this article from Edward Winter. \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Joseph Henry Blake (3 February 1859\, Farnborough\, Hampshire – 11 December 1951\, Kingston-upon-Thames) was an English chess master. \nBlake won many tournaments played in England toward the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. He won at Stamford 1887\, Oxford 1891 (joint)\, Brighton 1892\, Cambridge 1893\, and Salisbury 1898 (joint). He also took 5th at Manchester 1882\, tied for 3-4th at Birmingham 1883 (Section B)\, took 4th at Bath 1884\, tied for 6-8th at London 1889 (Henry Bird won)\, took 2nd at Cambridge 1890\, tied for 3rd-4th at Woodhall Spa 1893\, shared 2nd at Craigside 1895\, took 3rd at Hastings (Amateur) 1895\, took 2nd\, behind Henry Ernest Atkins\, at Bristol 1896\, and won at Folkestone 1901. \nHe took 2nd in an international correspondence tournament organised by Le Monde Illustré in 1895\, shared 1st in the 1909 British Championship in Scarborough but lost to Atkins the play-off\, and shared 1st at London 1911. He was British correspondence champion in 1922. \nBlake represented England in cable matches against the United States in 1902\, 1909 and 1910. \nHis best achievement was victory\, ahead of Géza Maróczy\, George Alan Thomas\, Fred Yates and Boris Kostić\, at Weston-super-Mare 1922. He shared 2nd at London 1922 (Major Open)\, tied for 7-8th at Hastings International Chess Congress 1922/23 (Akiba Rubinstein won)\, took 2nd\, behind Thomas\, at London 1923\, took 5th at Liverpool 1923 (Jacques Mieses won)\, tied for 7-8th at Hastings 1923/24 (Max Euwe won)\, tied for 6-7th at Weston-super-Mare 1924 (Euwe won)\, took 2nd\, behind R.P. Michell\, at London 1925\, took 4th at London 1926 (Victor Buerger won)\, and tied for 7-9th at Weston-super-Mare 1926 (Euwe won).” \nHe is the author of Chess endings for beginners (London 1900). \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\n Save as PDF
URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-joseph-henry-blake/
CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player,Writer
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