BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//British Chess News - ECPv6.18.0//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-ORIGINAL-URL:http://britishchessnews.com X-WR-CALDESC:Events for British Chess News REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:UTC BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+0000 TZOFFSETTO:+0000 TZNAME:UTC DTSTART:20190101T000000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200905 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200906 DTSTAMP:20200905T132216Z CREATED:20200408T185401Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200905T132216Z UID:4209-1599264000-1599350399@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Lorin D'Costa (05-ix-1984) DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM Lorin D’Costa (05-ix-1984) \nLorin Alexander P D’Costa was born on Wednesday\, September 5th 1984. “What’s Love Got To Do With It” by Tina Turner was number one in the UK singles chart. His mother’s maiden name was Antheunis. \nAccording to Wikipedia : “Lorin is a masculine given name. The meaning of Lorin derives from a bay or laurel plant; of Laurentum (wreathed/crowned with laurel). Laurentum\, in turn is from laurus (laurel)\, from the place of laurel trees\, laurel branch\, laurel wreath. Laurentum was also a city in ancient Italy.” \nLorin was born in Lambeth\, London and became a FIDE Master in 2004 and an International Master in 2008. \nHis first ever BCF/ECF grading was 36D in July 1994 aged 10 but his grading very quickly improved : \nBCF/ECF Grading Profile\nHis peak FIDE rating was 2485 in April 2009. \nLorin’s FIDE Rating Profile\nLorin has the unique distinction of gaining the title of “Strat” four times for winning the UK Chess Challenge Terafinal in 2000\, 2001\, 2002 and 2003. Only four other players have won the title more than once : Peter Poobalasingam\, Félix José Ynojosa Aponte\, Marcus Harvey and Koby Kalavannan. \nLorin plays for Hendon in the London League and 4NCL Barbican in the Four Nations Chess League. \nIM Lorin D’Costa at the 2017 Michael Uriely Memorial Tournament\nLorin was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 2008-09 season. \nLorin became a Director of Lorinchess Ltd in March 2020 and currently resides in Wembley\, Middlesex. \nWith the white pieces Lorin prefers the Queen’s Gambit but does also play 1.e4\, 1.c4 and 1.Nf3 so a fairly wide repertoire. \nAs the second player Lorin prefers the Sicilian Kan and the Nimzo-Indian Defence. \nHere is a convincing win against Ian Nepomniachtchi from Budva\, 2009 : \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 Lorin D’Costa at the 2013 King’s Place Rapidplay\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nIn 2012 Lorin and Nick Murphy created Chess on Toast and published a series of introductory DVDs including : \nChess On Toast\nLorin has published several chess books including : \nWho Dares Wins!\, Everyman\, 2010\nThe Sicilian Scheveningen\, Move by Move\, Everyman\, 2012\nThe Panov-Botvinnik Attack\, Move by Move\, Everyman\, 2013\nThe Queen’s Indian\, Move by Move\, Everyman\, 2016\nand several Chessbase DVDs including : \nThe Giuoco Piano\, Chessbase\, 2013\nFritz Trainer : A Repertoire Against the Sicilian\, 2015\nIM Lorin D’Costa at GM Matthew Sadler at the 2017 Michael Uriely Memorial Tournament\, courtesy of John Upham Photography URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-lorin-ar-dcosta-05-ix-1984/ CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/jb6_7706_lv.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200908 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200909 DTSTAMP:20200905T153355Z CREATED:20190823T082205Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200905T153355Z UID:1040-1599523200-1599609599@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Yang-Fan Zhou (08-ix-1994) DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to IM Yang-Fan Zhou on his birthday. \nYang-Fan George Zhou was born on Thursday\, September 8th\, 1994 in Wandsworth\, London. His mother’s maiden name was Yang. “Parklife” by Blur was number one in the UK Singles chart. \nHe attended Whitgift School\, Croydon (founded by John Whitgift in 1596) and then Churchill College\, The University of Cambridge. \nHere is an article from the Guardian which included\n“The Whitgift 13-year-old recently won the Coulsdon Premier with 8.5/9\, gaining nearly 100 world rating points which will make him England’s highest ranked under-18 after Howell in the July FIDE list.” \nHe became a FIDE Master in 2009 and an International Master in 2011. \nYang-Fan claimed the title of UK Chess Challenge “Strat” in 2011 for winning the Terafinal outright. \nIM Yang-Fan Zhou at a Wellington College Training Event in 2014\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nHe scored 9/9 in the 2011 e2e4 Brighton Masters Closed tournament\, including beating the two grandmasters (Keith Arkell and Alexander Cherniaev) in the tournament. \nIn 2012 he won the Hong Kong International Open \nHis peak FIDE rating was 2486 in October 2013 at the age of 19. \nFIDE Rating Profile of IM Yang-Fan Zhou\nIn 2014 Yang-Fan Zhou represented Cambridge in the annual Varsity match (the 132nd) and played on top board drawing with David Zakarian. \nYang-Fan Zhou plays board one in the 2014 Varsity Match\, 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\nand this article from Leonard Barden \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 Yang-Fan Zhou at the Big Slick Tournament\, June 2013. Courtesy of John Upham Photography URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-yang-fan-zhou/ CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/JUA7076.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200908 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200909 DTSTAMP:20200908T113745Z CREATED:20190823T191415Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200908T113745Z UID:1130-1599523200-1599609599@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Elijah Williams (08-ix-1854) DESCRIPTION:Death Anniversary of Elijah Williams (08-ix-1854) \nWe note today (September 8th) in 1854 marks the passing of Elijah Williams. \nWe are not aware of verified image / likeness of Elijah Williams. Possibly the archives of Bristol based newspapers would help? \nHere is an excellent article by Neil Blackburn (aka SimaginFan) \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Elijah Williams (7 October 1809 – 8 September 1854) was an eminent British chess player of the mid-19th century. He was the first president of the Clifton Chess Club\, and publisher of a book of games from the Divan Club. His most notable result was at the 1851 London tournament\, in which he defeated the celebrated British player Howard Staunton in the play-off for third place. \nHe was accused by Staunton of taking an average of 2½ hours per move during some matches\, a strategy thought to cause opponents to lose their focus on the match. According to Staunton\, following a particularly dilatory performance by Williams in the London 1851 tournament\, a 20-minute per turn time limit was adopted for standard play the next year. However other sources contradict this viewpoint and indeed it was not uncommon for Staunton to attribute his losses to the intolerable dilatory play of his opponents. Staunton is quoted as remarking while playing against Williams\, ‘… Elijah\, you’re not just supposed to sit there – you’re supposed to sit there and think!'” \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“In The Complete Chess Addict by Mike Fox and Richard James he was dubbed “the Bristol Sloth” due to his alleged extreme slowness. This sobriquet inspired a musical tune “The Bristol Sloth” by guitarist Leo Kottke (who also applied the term ‘sitzkrieg’ in describing Williams’ playing style). \nWilliams died in London\, a victim of the 1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak.” URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-elijah-williams/ CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200909 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200910 DTSTAMP:20200908T133525Z CREATED:20190822T223745Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200908T133525Z UID:1023-1599609600-1599695999@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Death Anniversary for IM Imre König (09-ii-1901 09-ix-1992) DESCRIPTION:Death Anniversary for IM Imre König (09-ii-1901 09-ix-1992) \nFrom The Anglo-Soviet Radio Chess Match by E.Klein and W.Winter : \n“Born in 1901 in Hungary when it still belonged to the old pre-World War I Austria\, spent most of his life in Vienna\, where he became a promising player at an early age. After World War I and the various geographical adjustments in the map of Europe\, he became Yugoslav by nationality and represented that country three times in international team tournaments. \nHe has competed in a great number of international tournaments\, some of them in this country\, where he has lived since 1938. He won the Premier Reserves at Hastings\, 1938\, in a strong international field\, finished fourth and fifth with the late Landau at Bournemouth\, 1939\, and shared first and second prizes with Milner-Barry in the National Chess Centre tournament\, 1939. His last performance was in the London International Tournament\, 1946\, where he shared fourth\, fifth and sixth places with Sir George Thomas and Gerald Abrahams. He is now a professional player. \nKönig’s special strength lies in the openings\, of which he has a deep knowledge.” \nImre König\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976) by Anne Sunnucks : \n“International Master (1951). Born in Kula\, Hungary (now Serbia). König became a Yugoslav citizen when the territory in which he lived was ceded to Yugoslavia after the First World War. In 1938 he emigrated to England and became a naturalised British subject in 1949. He found that the English climate affected his health and in 1953 went to live in the USA. \nKönig learnt to play chess when he was 10. In 1920\, while studying at Vienna University\, he met Spielmann\, Tartakover and Réti\, and became became interested in the hypermodern school of chess\, which they represented. \nHe played for Yugoslavia in the chess Olympiads of 1931 and 1935 and came 2nd in the Yugoslav national tournament of 1922. His results in international tournaments include =4th at Bournemouth 1939; =4th at London 1946 and 2nd at Hastings 1948-49. These results do not do justice to his strength as a player. He was handicapped by a poor temperament for tournament chess\, which prevented him from achieving greater success in the international field. \nA chess professional\, König was a first-class teacher of the game (Anne was a student of his)\, as well as being a leading theoretician. He is author of The Queen’s Indian Defence (Pitman\, 1947) and Chess from Morphy to Botvinnik (Bell\, 1951).” \nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977) by Harry Golombek : \n“An international master since 1951\, born at Gyula in Austro-Hungary. After the first world war König became a Yugoslav citizen and represented that country in the Olympiads of 1931 and 1935. He emigrated to England in 1938 and was naturalised in 1949. Since 1953 he has resided in the USA. Tournament results include 2nd prize at Hastings 1948/9. His publications include a monograph on the Queen’s Indian Defence\, London 1947\, and a longer work\, Chess from Morphy to Botvinnik\, London\, 1951 ” \nHooper & Whyld are silent on König for some strange reason. \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Imre König (Koenig) aka Mirko Kenig (Sept 2\, 1901\, Gyula\, Hungary – 1992\, Santa Monica\, California) was a Hungarian chess master. \nHe was born in Gyula\, Hungary\, and also lived in Austria\, England and the USA during the troubled times between the two world wars. \nIn 1921\, he took 2nd in Celje. In 1920s König played in several tournaments in Vienna; he was 3rd in 1921\, 14th in 1922 (Akiba Rubinstein won)\, 3rd-4th in 1925\, 4-5th in 1926 (Rudolf Spielmann won)\, and 3rd-5th in 1926. He took 12th in Rogaška Slatina (Rohitsch-Sauerbrunn) in 1929. The event was won by Rubinstein. In 1929/30\, he took 7th in Vienna (Hans Kmoch and Spielmann won). In 1931\, he took 4th in Vienna (Albert Becker won). In 1936\, he tied for 6-7th in Novi Sad (Vasja Pirc won). In 1937\, he tied for 2nd-4th in Belgrade (Vasilije Tomović won). \nMirko Kenig represented Yugoslavia in the 4th Chess Olympiad at Prague 1931 (+5 –1 =2)\, the 6th Chess Olympiad at Warsaw 1935 (+5 –2 =8)\,[2] and in 3rd unofficial Chess Olympiad at Munich 1936 (+7 –4 =7).” \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“In 1938\, Imre König emigrated to England. In 1939\, he tied for 4-5th in Bournemouth (Max Euwe won)\, and shared 1st with Philip Stuart Milner-Barry in Hampstead. In 1946\, he took 4th in London. In 1948/49\, he took 2nd\, behind Nicolas Rossolimo\, in the Hastings International Chess Congress. \nIn 1949\, he became a naturalized British citizen. However\, in 1953 he moved to the United States. \nKönig was awarded the International Master title in 1951.” \nQueen’s Indian Defence\, König\, Pitman\, 1947\nChess from Morphy to Botwinnik by Imre König\nThe Right Way to Play Chess\nImre König by John Donaldson URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-for-imre-konig/ CATEGORIES:Death Anniversary,History,Player ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/IMG-2.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200909 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200910 DTSTAMP:20260816T134314Z CREATED:20200411T184638Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260816T134314Z UID:4494-1599609600-1599695999@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Graham A Waddingham (09-ix-1965) DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Graham A Waddingham (09-ix-1965) URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-graham-a-waddingham-09-ix-1965/ CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200909 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200910 DTSTAMP:20260816T134323Z CREATED:20200427T172617Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260816T134323Z UID:5027-1599609600-1599695999@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Dr. Paul List (09-ix-1887 09-ix-1954) DESCRIPTION:Remembering Paul List (09-ix-1887 09-ix-1954) \nFrom The Anglo-Soviet Radio Chess Match by Klein and Winter : \n“Paul M List was born in Memel\, Lithuania in 1887. After living in Berlin for many years\, where he was manager of the bridge and chess rooms in a well-known café-restaurant\, he came to this country in 1936. \nPaul M List\nHe has competed in many tournaments\, local and international. He\, too\, failed to get into the prize list in the recent London International Tournament\, but he is a resourceful player\, particularly in defensive positions. \nHis best performance was Berlin\, 1925 where he came first\, ahead of Richter. Since he came to this country he has become an art dealer\, but chess is still one of his foremost activities.” \nScene at London. From left to right – Seated : Fairhurst\, List and Winter in play. Standing König and Sir George Thomas\nHere is an article by Matthew Sadler on the 1954 British Lightning Championship won by List \nDr. Paul List (09-ix-1887 09-ix-1954). Source : The Anglo-Soviet Radio Chess Match.\nHere is his (surprisingly brief) obituary from British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXIV (1954)\, Number 10 (October)\, page 324 : \n“Dr. Paul List\, the British Lightning Championship winner a year ago (though he could not hold the title because he was not a naturalised Briton)\, died in London at the age of 66. A player of master strength\, Dr. List left his native Russia for Germany in the 1920’s\, and began on his second exile in 1938 when sought refuge in this country from Germany.” \nItem from Kington Times – Saturday 02 June 1951 regarding the visit of Dr. List\nFrom The Illustrated London News in 1953 (by BH Wood) : \n“Sixty-five-year-old Dr. (not of medicine) Paul List\, the oldest competitor\, who settled in Britain about 1937 and has been thinking of becoming naturalised ever since\, finished with a marvellous fifteen-and-a-half points out of a possible eighteen” \nDr. Paul M. List. Source : https://www.kingpinchess.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/They-provided-their-own-heat1.jpg\nHere is his Wikipedia entry URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/remembering-paul-m-list-1887-09-ix-1954/ CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,History,Player,Remembering ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/IMG-1.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200911 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200912 DTSTAMP:20200909T173222Z CREATED:20200408T104440Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200909T173222Z UID:4165-1599782400-1599868799@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of FM William Claridge-Hansen (11-ix-1999) DESCRIPTION:We wish FM William Claridge-Hansen all the best on his birthday. \nWilliam Joseph Claridge-Hansen was born on Saturday\, September 11th in 1999 in Chesham in the registration district of Chiltern\, Buckinghamshire. \n“Mambo No 5 (A Little Bit of …)” by Lou Bega was top of the UK singles chart. \nWilliam learnt chess at the age of 5 and his father Hans-Peter\, is a strong county player having been over 200ECF for a number of years. \nWilliam is a keen table-tennis player as is his chess playing brother\, Douglas. \nWhilst living in Chartridge William attended Great Missenden Church of England School and whilst there was selected for England : \nWilliam Claridge-Hansen. Source : Bucks Free Press\nWilliam attends The University of Exeter and resides in London. \nWilliam plays for Exeter University\, Buckinghamshire CCA and 4NCL Oxfordshire and has a current ECF grading for 230B and a FIDE rating of 2290 for standard play. \nHis first BCF / ECF grading was 63D in July 2008 aged 8. \nWilliam Claridge-Hansen\, Southern Gigafinal\, 2012\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nHis first title was to win the West of England Junior (U12 Challengers) in 2008 with 5.5/6 and followed by sharing the British U8 title with Mark Kenyon & Rohan Shiatis. In the following year William shared the British U10 title with future IM Matthew Wadsworth \nHe was rapidly recruited to the AMCA (Andrew Martin Chess Academy) 4NCL squad and quickly climbed the board order within the squad. The AMCA squad morphed into the BCM (British Chess Magazine) squad. \nFIDE rating profile for FM William Claridge-Hansen\nIn 2013 William won (with 6/7) the British U-13 Championship in Torquay. \nIn 2015 William became a FIDE Master. \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 2016 William was British U-18 Champion and now had an ECF grading of 220. He scored 7/11 in the British Championship. \nBy now William was playing for Oxford in the Four Nations Chess League. \nWith the white pieces William plays the English Opening with an early king side fianchetto. \nAs the second player William plays the Hyper Accelerated Dragon and the Queen’s Indian Defence so clearly a student of the Hypermodern School of the 1920s! \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 William Claridge-Hansen\, British Championships 2019\, courtesy of John Upham Photography URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-william-claridge-hansen-11-ix-1999/ CATEGORIES:Birthday,Player ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/bct_4301_lv.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200912 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200913 DTSTAMP:20200911T104643Z CREATED:20190911T095612Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200911T104643Z UID:1321-1599868800-1599955199@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of WGM Anya Sun Corke (12-ix-1990) DESCRIPTION:We wish happy birthday to WGM Anya Sun Corke on her birthday. \nAnya Sun Corke was born in California\, USA on Wednesday\, September 12th 1990. \nIn 2013\, Anya graduated from Wellesley College summa cum laude with a B.A. in Russian and Philosophy \nShe became a woman’s Grandmaster in 2004. \nHe peak FIDE rating (according to Felice) was 2301 in October 2008. \nFIDE rating profile of WGM Anya Sun Corke\nWith the white pieces Anya played the Queen’s Gambit and Trompowski Attack \nAs the second player Anya played the Sicilian Kan\, French Rozentalis (3…Nc6) and the Grünfeld Defence. \nAnya won outright the 2007 Budapest First Saturday FM tournament : \nBudapest First Saturday FM Tournament\, 2007\nShe gave up competitive chess in 2014. \nAn almost miniature from the 2006 British Championship : \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“Anya Sun Corke (born 12 September 1990 in California\, USA) is an English chess player holding the title of Woman Grandmaster (WGM). She played for Hong Kong\, where she was the top ranked chess player\, until 2009.[1] \nCorke earned the WGM title with her performance in the 36th Chess Olympiad\, playing for the Hong Kong men’s team.[2][3] \nShe was the 2004\, 2005\, 2006 and 2008 Hong Kong National Champion (for men and women)\, one of the youngest national champions ever at the age of 13 years and 9 months. \nShe was the British Junior Under-11 Champion in 2002[4] and the Under-12 Champion in 2003\,[5] the first girl to win either of these age groups. In 2004\, she became joint British U-14 Champion.[6] \nIn December 2004\, she won the Asian Youth Girls U-14 Championship in Singapore.[7] \nIn August 2005\, she jointly won with Alisa Melekhina and Abby Marshall the second annual Susan Polgar National Invitational for Girls under-19.[8] \nCorke represented the England Women’s team at the 2012 Chess Olympiad in Istanbul\, Turkey\,[9][10] and the 2013 European Team Championship in Warsaw\, Poland.[11] \nIn 2013\, she graduated from Wellesley College summa cum laude with a B.A. in Russian and Philosophy.[12][13] \nIn 2014\, she started a Ph.D. program in Slavic Languages and Literatures at Yale University.” \nWGM Anya Sun Corke URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-anya-sun-corke/ CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/5fa475765c.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20210922 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20210923 DTSTAMP:20260817T135339Z CREATED:20210924T195734Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T135339Z UID:18921-1632268800-1632355199@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Colin Russ (19-iii-1930 22-ix-2021) DESCRIPTION:Death Anniversary of Colin Russ (19-iii-1930 22-ix-2021) URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-colin-russ-19-iii-1930-22-ix-2021/ CATEGORIES:Composer,Death Anniversary,Problemist,Writer END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20220401 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20220402 DTSTAMP:20220404T160618Z CREATED:20200401T115720Z LAST-MODIFIED:20220404T160618Z UID:3917-1648771200-1648857599@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of CM David Anderton OBE (02-viii-1941 01-iv-2022) DESCRIPTION:BCN remembers CM David Anderton OBE who passed away on Friday\, April 1st\, 2022 aged 80. \nIn the 1977 New Years Honours List\, Civil Division\, David was awarded the OBE. The citation read simply : “For services to Chess” \nDavid William Anderton was born in the district of Walsall\, Staffordshire\, West Midlands. His mother’s maiden name was Coltart and David resided in Walsall. \nDavid was married to Doreen in 2005. \nDavid Anderton (rhs) congratulates Sir Philip Stuart Milner-Barry for winning the “Board of Honour ” game versus Edward Lasker at the 1976 Lloyds Bank Match by Telex\, London – New York. From BCM\, volume XCVI (96) Number 11 (August)\, Page 494. The venue was the Bloomsbury Hotel\, London. Photo courtesy of Lloyds Bank\nDavid was an Honorary Life Vice-President of the English (formerly British) Chess Federation. \nJohn Nunn\, David Anderton and Jonathan Speelman\n“David won the ECF President’s Award in 2009 following his stepping down as ECF legal expert. This is the citation from the 2010 ECF Yearbook : \n“As this is Gerry Walsh’s last year as President it was considered appropriate that he be allowed to choose someone receive the award. Gerry has worked with David for all his time with BCF and ECF and has selected him due to his tireless and selfless devotion to both the BCF and ECF over many years. \nDavid Anderton OBE\, ? and Teresa Needham\nMost of you will know David and will agree that this is a well deserved award. It is fair to state that David’s assistance over the years has been invaluable and that without it many areas of the Federation would have found it difficult\, if not impossible to operate. \nJim Plaskett with David Anderton OBE at the 1983 Benedictine International (Manchester)\nSince my election David has been a constant friend and confidante. He has invariable given sound advice throughout my term of office. It was John Wickham who rang me and suggested that due to my length of tenure\, a special award might be in order. \nJim accepts the 1981 Grand Prix shield from David Anderton OBE\nAfter years of selfless and generous devotion serving as ECF President\, International Director\, Captain of the England Team and legal adviser\, this seems to be a fitting tribute. \nFrom the Praxis Bath Zonal Tournament of 1987. David Anderton OBE is second from right\nDavid’s advice both legal and general\, has been invaluable in such matters as the John Robinson legacy and the change of name from BCF to ECF Limited\, and I certainly hope that this advice will continue. \nGerry Walsh” \nBob Wade OBE\, Murray Chandler MNZM and David Anderton OBE\nDavid is a FIDE Candidate Master (CM). \nFrom the BCF 1979-80 Year Book of Chess : Robert Bellin\, the new British Champion\, explains the secret to the Mayor of Chester (?) and to David Anderton\, BCF President\nWith the White pieces David exclusively plays 1.d4 aiming for a Queen’s Gambit and main lines. \nWith Black David plays the Winawer and the Classical French plus the Lenningrad Dutch. \nMrs. Joan Agar; Chairman of Leigh Interests\, presents the Leigh trophy (for 1981) to Mark Hebden. Left\, David Anderton\, BCF President; on the right Malcolm Wood\, Leigh’s Chief Executive. BCM\, 1981\, page 104\nHere are his games. \n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. \n \n \n \n\n\n \n\nDW Anderton OBE plays BH Wood MBE in 1981 in a Blitz tournament outside of the National Film Theatre. Photograph courtesy of John Saunders\nDuring 1989-93 David was an Executive Board Member of FIDE. \nThe England Team from the 1990 Novi Sad Olympiad : John Nunn\, Jon Speelman\, Julian Hodgson\, David Anderton OBE (Captain)\, Nigel Short\, Michael Adams and Murray Chandler\nIn 2002 David was awarded the title of International Master by the ICCF (correspondence chess) \nIn 2015 David stood down from all of his roles within the ECF. \nDavid Anderton OBE\, Paul Bazalgette (Senior Partner at Philips & Drew) and Tony Banks (GLC Arts & Recreation Department) at the 1982 Philips and Drew Kings Tournament Opening Ceremony. Photograph by Clive Field\nDavid has won the British Seniors Championship in 2003 (shared)\, 2005\, 2007 (shared)\, 2009 (shared) and 2011. \nHere is a potted biography from The Express and Star Newspaper \nDavid Anderton OBE at the 2019 British Championships in Torquay\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nDavid is Head of Regulatory Law at Anson’s Solicitors. He is also Secretary of the Erasmus Darwin Foundation (03270753) and Director of Unionist Buildings Ltd.\, Wallsall Conservative Investments Ltd. and Wallsall Unionist Holdings Ltd. \nCM David William Anderton OBE URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-cm-david-william-anderton-obe-02-viii-1941/ CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Honours,Official,Player,Remembering ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/jb4_7593_lv.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200518 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200519 DTSTAMP:20200517T135203Z CREATED:20190823T160941Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200517T135203Z UID:1082-1589760000-1589846399@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Brian Harley (27-x-1883 18-v-1955) DESCRIPTION:Brian Harley (27-10-1883 18-v-1955)\, from chesscomposers.com and Chess Notes\nDeath Anniversary of Brian Harley (27-x-1883 18-v-1955) \nFrom chesscomposers.com : \n“Brian Harley composed mostly two- or threemovers and wrote many books to make chess problems more popular: for instance his “Mate in Two Moves” inspired Geoff Foster’s first steps into problemdom.\nHarley’s “The Modern Two-move Chess Problem” written in collaboration with Comins Mansfield is probably the best known of his efforts. \nBrian Harley was the inventor of the term “mutate” for the block problems with changed mates. He was the president of the British Chess Problem Society from 1947 until 1949. In his honour\, each year the British magazine “The Problemist” awards the best twomover problem with the “Brian Harley” award.” \nand Edward Winter writes about Brian Harley (scroll down a little). \nHere is BHs obituary from British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXV\, Number 9\, pages 284 – 287 written by S. Sedgwick : \n“With the death of Brian Harley on May 18th\,1955\, the chess problem is the poorer by an authoritative exponent\, and a writer of unusual clarity and popular appeal. His sudden passing at his home at Bognor Regis will be mourned. by a very wide circle of friends; to his wife and son\, with whom he enjoyed an enduring happiness\, we extend our deep-felt sympathy. \nBorn at Saffron-Walden\, Essex\, on October 27th\,1883\, Harley was educated at Wellingborough and Haileybury. Qualifying as an actuary he entered the National Provident Institution\, in whose employment\, apart from War Service\, he passed his professional life\, until his retirement in 1947. \nAs a player he had initially a considerable reputation\, above that enjoyed as a problemist. Two books\, Chess and its Stars and Chess for the Fun of it\, reflect this aspect of his chess work. When playing was eventually renounced for problems he still retained his love of annotation\, bringing to this a wide knowledge\, larded by the apt witticism and an approach that was neither superficial yet avoided the pitfalls of pedantry. \nChess and its Stars\nHis first problem appeared at the age of fifteen\, in 1898. Whilst Harley’s early period has some noteworthy items\, it lacks the verve and distinction of his later output\, following his awakening of interest in the mutate in 1916_and the fertile years following his appointment as Chess Editor of The Observer\, London\, in 1919. In England under the lead o[ Phillip Williams in the Chess Amateur\, the mutate had sprung into\,popularity during and after the Great War\, with Harley among its ardent exponents. He continued the cult in his Observer column\, where he did much to popularize it. It is possibly symbolic that when Williams died in 1922 his travelling board and men should pass to Harley; it would be difficult to find a comparable instrument that has witnessed the genesis of so much concentrated chess devilry\, implicit in all mutates\, as this board used first by Williams and then by Harley. \nIn July\, 1919\, Harley published his system in the Good Companion folder. This paper\, the outcome of much thought\, attempted to evaluate the constituent parts of a chess problem on a semi-mathematical basis. Point values were set down for the elements in White keys\, Black defences thereto\, and the resultant White mates\, the summation giving values for comparison with other works similarly treated. In an accompanying paper on the block-change it was here that Harley introduced the term “mutate\,” the word passing\, without cavil\, into the current idiom. Under the evocative power of Harley’s work and pen his Observer feature from 1919 onwards has come to rank with the great columns of the past. No composer of substance was absent from its pages and the result is a collection of works and descriptive criticism that has enriched the chess literature of the world. Early on\, Harley came to know the late Godfrey Heathcote\, and the welcome presence of the great composers name in the column gave it a sublimity possessed by no other comparable English journal. Harley’s comments on his contributors work was one of the many attractive features of his column. He kept the popular approach very much in mind without unduly over-weighting it; this\, blended with a brand of humour all his own (often literary in character)\, and a grasp of essentials drove home the salient points of a problem to the uninitiated solver with a peculiar vividness. He could ‘be incisive when wanted\, technical when he pleased\, his gentle rebuke for the inferior production or undetected flaw could not be other than well taken\, authoritative without ostentation\, his succinct criticisms are now legendary to be treasured and repeated when the occasion demands. An incorrigible faddist in his regard for the short threat in the three-mover\, Harley seldom admitted this type to his pages\, pleading aversion by solvers. He conducted over one hundred solving contests during his column’s life; these weekly battles of wits affording enormous pleasure to all concerned. \nChess for the Fun of It\nTo his column came the established composer and the hesitant\, possibly young\, beginner. To this last group Harley gave every encouragement and unreservedly of his advice and help. There must be few British composers who have not felt his benefit directly\, through the medium of his wonderful letters\, lit all the way through by the warm glow of an endearing personality. \nHarley’s constructive powers brought him to the front rank of the world’s composers. His output of 450 includes long range work in four and five moves and in later years\, sui-mates. In the chess-men he found a pliable medium for the realization of an unusual vision and creative gift. In the two-mover he gave to the mutate much substantial and classic work. He appears to have given to this type more specialized attention than any other in the two-move field. Elsewhere in this length his work covers a wide variety of themes with a strong liking for task renderings. A composer with few serious constructive foibles\, his mode of expression\, in consequence suffered little. His was not the temperament to linger with one theme and squeeze it dry. One or two renderings of the theme on hand and he would pass to the next. Hence the diversity of his work which imbues it with especial charm. To underline this point one could indicate\, almost at random\, Harley’s entries in the multimate tourney of the Cleveland Chess Bulletin. Certainty the theme had few attractions for him but his entries showed how superbly such problem ideas could be clothed. \nIn the three-mover Harley has graced both sides of the aesthetic fence\, and that with distinction\, giving equally to the strategic and model-mate.genre. His friendship with Heathcote however influenced him considerably here and one is inclined to the view\, that in this length\, Harley held firmly to the eternal values in chess art. In both types Harley attained especially in task renderings\, rare heights of complexity and construction. His lighter mood showed to the full-to the incipient solver much of the low cunning of which the three-mover is capable. \nHe came to the sui in the late forties. When Heathcote was convalescing in London\, following an operation\, Harley took some specimens with him when he visited his friend The ensuing discussion stimulated Harley to further experiments and the authentic touch of the great master of technique is evident in his work here also. Harley gave many of his works to his own “Observer” column but did not neglect the other sources of publication. To quote his own words his ideal problem was “a mixture of art\, science\, humour\, and puzzlement.” His best work shows brilliantly his love for the integration of the beautiful and the true inner essence and spirit of chess. \nHis contribution to the literary and technical side of chess problems outside his journalistic work is seen in his two books Mate in Two (1931) and Mate in Three (1943).\nMate in Two is stamped with all Harley’s inimitable style and remains a mine of information for all levels. Standing\, as it does\, mid-way between the old and the new\, the book\, apart from an absorbing chapter on changed play\, reflects and even labours under the influence of the “Good Companion” period. Harley in later editions to a certain extent remedied this deficiency and the book\, now long out of print\, lies on our shelf\, its fundamentals unimpaired\, as one of the classic expositions in the art. Mate in Three\, written from a’ narrower viewpoint\, proved another successful publication. Here Harley entered more controversial ground\, crossing swords. with hitherto established theory. The book\, although not evoking absolute technical authority\, gives a broad and eloquent outline\, written from the artistic standpoint\, of three-move work fundamentally\, with few significant omissions. Made memorable by the inclusion of many works both by Harley and Heathcote\, the book is that of a true artist\, and is of great importance theoretically as the one modern work devoted to this length by an English author. \nA further important contribution to chess problem theory was his thesis on “Black Correction” read before the British Chess Problem Society on November 29th\, 1935. In the mid thirties\, this thesis\, more than anything else\, was instrumental in precipitating a flood of work on correction and associated ideas. Readers of this magazine will recall this period\, and I trust that this short recapitulation will still the tiresome arguments regarding the choice between “correction” and “continued defences.” Harley’s choice is at once apt and descriptive and it should not be forgotten that here\, he touched upon White Correction\, an esoteric aristocrat\, greeted by ten years or so of utter silence before systematic investigation by the moderns. \nElected President of the British Chess Problem Society in 1947-1949 it so happened that I was its Secretary at the time. We exchanged hundreds of letters on problematic subjects\, the scope of his knowledge always affording surprise. The Society benefited enormously from his advice and counsel\, and during the somewhat delicate situation arising from the arbitration in the two-move section of the 1948 Olympic Tourney it was with alacrity that one turned to a mind of the calibre of Harley. Coming to the man he was widely read\, a Latin scholar\, and his knowledge of Dickens was above average; a keen bridge player\, an instrumentalist (piano)\, all the varied facets of his character would come out at some time in his chess writings. His physical presence at any gathering gave it stature. Of medium height\, lovable\, somewhat dapper\, the shrewd contemplative face of this chess Barrie with its ever present cigarette holder and fund of anecdote has enriched and enlivened many a dull Committee Meeting. \nMate in Two Moves\nOn the death of Anthony Guest in 1925\, Harley succeeded as Problem Editor of the Morning Post until 1932. In addition he was Problem Editor of Empire Review\, 1923-1926\, and Time and Tide\, from 1951 until his death. Lesser appointments included several technical journals where he acted under pseudonyms. Amusing were the anagrammatical pseudonyms used occasionally for composing in Hilary Bream and Harry Blaine. \nBrian’s integrity and character endeared him to innumerable correspondents and solvers. Most of us nourish a characteristic Brian Harley story; one must suffice here. It concerns the time when Brian was introduced to the late Sir John Simon who made the delightful response “l need no introduction for I meet him every Sunday and for years hive wrestled with his problems\, eventually solving them in the House of Commons.” For this weekly enrichment of our lives we have much to thank him for. \nIn middle life Brian married Ella Margaret Beddall; there is one son\, Nigel. With his wife\, Brian shared many problematic triumphs and it was to her that his various\nbooks were dedicated. \nMate in Three Moves\nBefore closing this brief review of Brian’s achievements a word should be said regarding the summary end of his work in the Observer and a tribute paid by one of his many solvers in this column. On the former it will be regarded with universal regret by all problemists that no arrangements have been made to continue Brian’s incomparable’work in the journal he served with such distinction. Regarding the latter am very grateful to Halford W. L. Reddish\, Esq.\, for an appreciation that admirably epitomizes the feelings of us all on this melancholy occasion. \nMr. Halford Reddish writes- \n“l am one of thousands of solvers\, from the expert to the merest tyro\, who will miss our weekly battle with Brian Harley in the Observer. In the world of chess and chess problems his name and fame are secure. His characteristically titled Chess for the Fun of It is a delightful exposition of the game: his Mate in Two Moves and Mate in Three Moves are classics in their particular field. \nTo those of us who knew Brian personally his passing leaves an unfillable gap. I had known him and admired him and loved his witty\, cheery\, kindly personality for many years. He was one of those rare beings who became a close friend even before our first meeting-for we had corresponded for a long time before we first came face to face. And although chess and chess problems were our primary link he had many other interests which kept him young and keen in mind after his retirement from business and which enlarged and enriched his correspondence. It is typical of him that no letter came from him without some mention of his dear wife\, who shared to the full his varied interests. To her and to his only son to the deep sympathy of his many friends.” URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-brian-harley/ CATEGORIES:Composer,Death Anniversary,History,Problemist END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230108 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230109 DTSTAMP:20230109T124705Z CREATED:20230109T124704Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230109T124705Z UID:22151-1673136000-1673222399@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Keith Arkell (08-i-1961) DESCRIPTION:We send birthday wishes to GM Keith Arkell\, born this day (January 8th) in 1961. \nKeith Arkell\nHere is Keith’s Wikipedia entry \nGM Keith Arkell (ENG)\nThis was written about Keith aged 18 prior to the 1979 Spassky vs the BCF Junior Squad simultaneous display : \n“Rednal\, Birmingham. Rating 188. 2nd Lloyds Bank junior international\, 1979.” \nKeith was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 2014-15 season sharing with Jonathan Hawkins \nHere is an interview with ChessBase from 2016. \nGM Keith Arkell\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 \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. \n \n \n \n\n\n \n\nArkell’s Odyssey\nArkell’s Endings\, Keith Arkell\, GingerGM\, 2020\, ISBN-10 : 1527265595\nBCN has reviewed Arkell’s Endings in depth URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-keith-charles-arkell-08-i-1961-2/ CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/jua6332_lv.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200110 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200111 DTSTAMP:20260817T141234Z CREATED:20200504T085859Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T141234Z UID:5221-1578614400-1578700799@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Roland Scott (25-iii-1888 10-i-1953) DESCRIPTION:BCN remembers Roland Scott who passed away in Monte Carlo on Saturday\, January 10th\, 1953. \nRoland Henry Vaughan Scott was born in either Barnes or Holloway depending which Census record is correct. His parents were Walter Frederick Scott\, a GP who was born in April 1960 and died in 1891 when Roland was three years of age. \nHis mother was Lucie Vaughan was born in 1855 and died in October 1933. \nRoland had two sisters\, Nina Vaughan Scott and Lucie / Lucia Audrey Scott (who died before her first birthday) and a brother Guy Francis D Scott who lived until 1977. \nIn 1891 Roland lived in Tottenham\, in 1901 in Hampstead and in 1911 in St. Pancras where he was listed as a law clerk. \nIn 1917 The London Gazette lists him as a lieutenant in the Norfolk Regiment. \nThe 1920 electoral rolls for the Gospel Oak polling district lists Scott as voter #2006 living at 2\, Estelle Road\, North St. Pancras which is now in Belsize Park\, NW3 2JX. At the same address was his sister Lucie and in 1921 they were joined by brother Guy. \nIn July 1922 in the district of Brighton Roland married Irma Clareboudt. No children from the marriage are recorded. \nThe 1939 register lists Scott as “War Disabled ? Officer Retired In War 1914” (invalided from army) and Irma as a saleswoman (born 25th July 1895) living at 42\, Sherwell Lane\, Paignton\, Torquay\, TQ2 6BD. \n42\, Sherwell Lane\, Paignton\, Devon\, TQ2 6BD.\nThe April 1953 British Chess Magazine (Volume LXXIII\, Number 4\, page 101 onwards) contained this obituary from DJ Morgan: \nIt is with much regret that we record the death\, on January 10th\, at Monte Carlo\, of R. H. V. Scott. He had long been out of active chess\, but older readers will need no reminding of the 1920 British Champion\, with his quiet manner but attacking chess; one who was composure itself at the table but aggressiveness personified on the board. \nThe son of a doctor\, Scott was born in 1889. He was nineteen before taking to the game\, but a ready aptitude combined with great enthusiasm led to rapid progress. He joined the Hampstead Club in 1908\, and in his first tournament\, the Third Class\, came out first. ln the years that follow he pursued the game with much energy. \nAt the B.C.F. Congress\, Glasgow\, l9ll\, he won the only section of the First Class. In 1913 and in 1914 he was Hampstead Club Champion. In 1913 he was tenth in the British Championship\, at Cheltenham\, and equal fifth to sixth at Chester in the following year\, defeating Yates and drawing with Blackburne. \nIn 1915 he came second in the City of London Club Championship\, but won that of the Metropolitan Club. During the same year he lost a short match with Sir G. A. Thomas 1-3. The war years\, with a commission in the Norfolk Regiment\, intervened\, but chess filled his available moments. \nIn 1916 he defeated L. I. Estrin\, a young Russian who was Hampstead Champion\, 5-2 in a match. ln 1919 he lost a match with Winter at Hastings (2-4)\, and shared seventh to eighth positions with Dr. Olland (Holland) at the B.C.F. Hastings Victory Congress\, with victories over Olland\, \n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. \n \n \n \n\n\n \n\nR. P. Michell\, Marchand\, and Conde. Then came the B.C.F. Edinburgh Congress of 1920\, Scott became British Champion\, losing only\nto Sir G. A. Thomas. \nIn this year he also drew a match\, 3-3\, with Marchand\, of Holland\, also at Hastings. There followed three more appearances in the championship\, Malvern\, 1921 (equal fifth to sixth); Southsea\,1923 (equal third to fourth); and Southport\, 1924 (fourth). And with this Scott passed out of British chess. Ill health and failing eyesight\, direct results of sufferings and injuries endured on active service during the war\, began to take their toll. On medical advice he sought a warmer climate\, and the Riviera henceforth became his home. \nWe find him sharing seventh to eighth positions at the Hyères Congress\, in 1926\, and coming equal fifth to sixth\, with B. Reilly (our Editor’s first international tourney we believe)\, at Hyères\, 1927. \nThe days of active play were over\, but his great interest in the game remained. Scott was a natural attacking player\, more likely\, perhaps\, to win the Brilliancy Prize than the First Prize. \nEdo rating profile for RHV Scott\nWe have given the bare outline of a career that was all too short\, one cut down\, in a sense before reaching full maturity. Contemporary records sometimes expressed the need for more stability in Scott’s chess\, but they chronicle games of his that speak forcibly of the imaginative\, refreshing\, and invigorating qualities of his play. We offer an early game\, the Brilliancy Prize winner\, City of London C.C. Championship\, 1913-14. White’s 20th move sets the game alight. \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 British Chess Magazine\, Volume XLI (1920)\, Number 10 (October)\, page 305 we have the following report of his exploits winning the 1920 British Championship in Edinburgh: \n“We are glad to be able to present to our readers a photograph of the new champion\, Mr. R.H.V Scott. He informs us that it is his most recent one\, taken in 1917 when subaltern in the Norfolk Regiment. He saw service with the latter in France\, and\, as is probably know to most of our subscribers\, was badly gassed\, from the effects of which is now happily quite recovered. \nHis victory in the recent Congress in Edinburgh is welcome from at least two points of view; one\, that he is one of our youngest first class players (ed: he was 32 at the time\, a veteran by the standards of 2022!)\, having been born in 1889 (ed: this should have been 1888)\, and therefore may justifiably be expected to improve still further with experience and some curbing of his impatience in defence; and\, two\, that he claim to represent the more brilliant school of chess\, that of Pillsbury\, Marshall\, Charousek\, and Morphy\, rather than the more solid school\, of say\, Steinitz and Rubinstein\, who theory was the pilling up of small advantages. \nScott has an excellent “nose” for attack\, and has some exceedingly “chessy” ideas. During the congress he put a much greater restraint on himself than is his wont\, and we believe this to be the reason he so improved on his previous records. \nHe had what might be described as the worst of the draw\, since he had Black against Sir George  Thomas\, EG Sergeant and RP Michell. Some writers have described him as lucky to win\, but a study of his games and a comparison with those of others in the tourney go to prove that he played more far-sightedly than any of the others. \nWe are quite aware that the form of any player is variable\, and we have seen Sir George Thomas play much better chess and much less strainedly than he did at Edinburgh. EG Sergeant was generally playing quite at his best\, but once or twice his play deteriorated\, perhaps as the result of a sleepless night\, he then seemed bereft of ideas\, and allowed the clock to beat him. This also was the case with Michell\, who had many a rush to save his flag falling before the necessary moves were made. Now Scott almost invariably had time to spare. \nPerhaps the worst reversal of form was that of JH Blake; but he had been working very hard and late for some time right up to the day the Congress commenced\, and was not really in a fit state of health to take part. \nScott has twice before competed for the Championship; in 1913 where he finished eighth\, and in 1914 when he was fifth\, beating FD Yates\, the then Champion and drawing with JH Blackburne. \nHe has won several brilliancy prizes in congress and club tourneys\, and was the champion of the Hampstead Chess Club (where he may have been said to have learnt the game) in 1913 and 1914. He was first acquainted with the moves in 1908. \nHe is keen on all sports\, and puts his whole energy into each line he may be taking. With yet more self-restraint we think his chess will still further improve\, and we venture to prophesy this will not be the last British Chess Championship he will win.” \nIn his memoirs William Winter wrote this: \n“I also had the opportunity of playing a number of semi-serious games with RHV Scott and D. Miller\, two of the leading London amateurs. Scott was probably the most brilliant combinative played England has ever seen and had already won almost every honour except the British Championship\, which fell to him in 1920. \nSince those days I have played over hundreds of games\, including the beautiful brilliancies of the modern Russian school\, and Scott’s best combinations stand up quite well beside them. There were however weaknesses in his play which I shall discuss later. Miller was just the opposite type\, a dour solid player exceptionally hard to beat. He is\, I am glad to say\, still with us\, but Scott died a few years ago – he had been out of chess for a long time.” \nand this: \n“It is entirely legitimate\, and can prove very useful until one comes up against an opponent like Capablanca who had no weaknesses of any kind. ln Scott’s case\, one of his foibles was an aversion to exchanging queens\, and I took full advantage of this in the first two games of the match both of which I won with comparative ease; but Scott was not finished yet.’ In the third game he tied me up in a variation of the Sicilian which I had not previously seen\, and in the fourth I made the fatal mistake in going for an early win of material and allowing him a king’s side attack. Things now looked bad for me. I had the black pieces in the fifth game and I dared not play my favourite Sicilian defence because I could not discover a satisfactory answer to his new line.” \nStrangely\, none of the Encyclopaedia’s by Golombek\, Sunnucks or Hooper & Whyld felt that RHVS merited an entry. However Gaige does not forget. \nHere is an interesting article from “introuble2” entitled 100 years ago… chess in London during World War I in which Scott is mentioned. \nHere is an excellent article from John Saunders \n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-roland-henry-vaughan-scott-25-iii-1888-10-i-1953/ CATEGORIES:2023,British Championships,History,Player,Remembering ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/95500810_3277144515638845_8586271723630886912_o.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230111 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230112 DTSTAMP:20260817T141002Z CREATED:20191230T140104Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T141002Z UID:2645-1673395200-1673481599@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Shaun Taulbut (11-i-1958) DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to IM Shaun Mark Taulbut born on this day (January 11th) in 1958. \nIM Shaun Mark Taulbut\nHere is his Wikipedia article from the Polish (!) version : \nIn 1974. I shared m. In the championship of Great Britain juniors to 16 years [1] \, whereas in 1977. Won the Brighton title of vice-champion of Great Britain (won the George Botterill ). He achieved the greatest success in his career at the turn of 1977 and 1978 in Groningen \, where he won the title of European champion up to 20 years [2] . In 1978 in Mexico he won the title of team world champion in the category up to 26 years [3] . He achieved another success in 1981 in Copenhagen \, sharing the first town (together with Petyr Welikow and Tom Wedberg ) inopen tournament Politiken Cup . In the same year\, he divided II-IV in New York \, while in 1982 he repeated this achievement in London (after William Watson \, together with Jonathan Tisdall and Mark Hebden ). In 1983 he ended his chess career. \nIM Shaun Mark Taulbut\nHe reached the highest ranking in his career on July 1\, 1982\, sharing 9-10 points with 2465 points. place among English chess players [4] . \nHe is the author of many books on chess\, primarily devoted to the theory of debuts . \nIM Shaun Mark Taulbut (right) playing Adrian Mikhalchishin\nand here is the game from the above photograph : \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(from l-r) Jonathan Kinlay\, Shaun Taulbut\, Jonathan Speelman\, David Goodman and Jonathan Mestel accepting 1st prize at the 1978 World U26 Student Olympiad in Mexico City\nShaun Taulbut (upper right) and David Goodman (lower right) from the 1978 U26 Olympiad\nShaun coached strong juniors especially Michael Adams. In MAs case it was by means of correspondence and this was funded by the Friends of Chess. \nShaun largely gave up competitive chess in 1983 to pursue a financial services career. He reached a senior position in ANZ (Australia and New Zealand Banking Group) reporting to Ian Snape. In ANZ Shaun met Stephen Lowe and on September 19th 2005 they became Directors and owners of British Chess Magazine Ltd. Shaun lives in Wokingham with his wife\, Christine and several pets including a wormery. \n(second from right standing ) Shaun Taulbut\nShaun occasionally plays for Crowthorne in the Berkshire League and the Surrey Border League and has played for the BCM Dragons 4NCL team managed by John Upham. \nPositional Chess by Shaun Taulbut URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-shaun-mark-taulbut-11-i-1958/ CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230118 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230119 DTSTAMP:20230118T103106Z CREATED:20230118T103105Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230118T103106Z UID:22215-1674000000-1674086399@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Paul Littlewood (18-i-1956) DESCRIPTION:BCN wishes Happy Birthday to Paul Littlewood \nPaul Edwin Littlewood was born on Wednesday\, January 18th\, 1956 in Skegness\, East Lindsey\, Lincolnshire. His parents were John and Jean Littlewood (née) Hadwick. Paul’s chess playing uncle was Norman Littlewood. \nJohn and Paul on Skegness beach circa 1958. Kindly supplied by Paul Littlewood. George and Ringo are out of shot !\nJohn\, Jenny and Paul Littlewood\, circa 1962. Kindly supplied by Paul Littlewood.\nPaul attended Glenburn Comprehensive School in Skelmersdale from 1967 and then read Natural Sciences at Christ’s College\, Cambridge from 1974. \nPaul played badminton for Lancashire and Cambridge and\, in 1971\, won the English Schools Mixed Championship when he was 15 years old. \nPaul and family receive a chess lesson from John following John’s win in the 1972 Southport Open\nOn leaving University Paul taught science at Southbrook Comprehensive\, Daventry. Four years later Paul became a dealer at Phillips & Drew and followed this as an Executive Director at Goldman Sachs. Stays at Lehman Brothers and JP Morgan were followed by a change of direction and since then Paul has been director of various food supply companies retiring in 2014. \nPaul is married (3rd November 2006) to (his second wife) Fiona and lives in St. Albans\, Hertfordshire. \nPEL won the ECF President’s Award in 2007 and from the 2008 ECF Yearbook we have the following citation : \n“International Master and accomplished bridge player. From British Chess champion (1981) Paul has presided over the 4NCL as chairman during its most successful period. When he became chairman over ten years ago the league consisted of two divisions and 32 teams. The league has now expanded to four divisions and a total of 72 teams. Most of England’s juniors play 4NCL. During this time 4NCL became one of the strongest leagues in Europe\, at one time boasting a Division 1 rivalling the Bundesliga in strength in the top matches. \nPaul has demonstrated the sound judgement of Solomon when dealing with league disputes and has drawn on his business acumen\, honed during a successful career in the City with Goldman Sachs to make 4NCL the financially stable and expanding league it is today.” \nRoll of Honour \n\nBritish U18 Champion 1972\nBritish U21 Champion 1975\nBritish Champion 1981\nAs a junior represented England in Glorney Cup\nInternational Master 1980\n\nFrom British Chess (Pergamon Press\, 1983) by Botterill\, Levy. Rice and Richardson we have this article from Richard W. O’Brien : \n“Paul Littlewood was destined to become a strong player from birth. His father John was for some time one of the strongest players in the country and represented England on many occasions. His uncle Norman was for a few years not far behind. Paul\, however\, has surpassed them both and has become the first in the family to reach IM status. (Ed: JEL was very much worthy of the IM title but insufficient events of the right type held him back). \nA. Howard Williams\, Martyn J. Corden\, Paul E. Littlewood and A. Jonathan Mestel\nAll three are essentially attacking players. There have been times in recent years when play at the Hastings Premier has become dull. However\, Paul one of the English representatives at the last three tournaments\, was certainly not to blame. (His game against Brito of Brazil which follows is a striking example of this).” \nCoached by his father\, Paul became British U18 champion in 1972 and three years later became British U21 champion. \nClearly more interested in an academic career he went up to Cambridge and then followed his father into the teaching profession. Opportunities to play in strong tournaments were thus very limited. These opportunities\, however\, were grasped in both hands. Three times in thirteen months between August 1978 and August 1979 he obtained an IM norm and thus the title. \nPartial crosstable for the Lloyds Bank Open\, 1978\nThe first caused a sensation as it was totally unexpected. He shared first place at Lloyds Bank ahead of several grandmasters including Shamkovich\, who was the first grandmaster he ever defeated. \nLeonid Shamkovich plays Paul Littlewood during the 1978 Lloyds Bank Masters. Paul won the game.\nEight months later Aaronson Masters was won and then came the final norm\, also at Lloyds Bank. \nTournaments abroad were limited although he represented England students. He did play at Kringsja (2nd equal) in 1978 and Borovo where he scored 6.5.13 finishing ahead of 3 GMs. \nIn 1981 came his finest achievement – winning the British Championship with a massive 9/11. \nPartial crosstable from the 1981 British Championship in Morecambe\nHis father who was also competing in the championship was as proud as could be and deservedly so (he also coached Sheila Jackson who retained her British Ladies Championship that year). His excellent all round play took him to the title and only once during the tournament did he stand worse. His endgame play was so good that CHESS even published an article solely on these endings. \nPaul Littlewood and friends during the 1978 Lloyds Bank Masters\nDuties at school in Daventry meant he was\, in February 1982\, unable to take part in the zonal at Marbella. This followed an excellent Hastings when as British Champion he made a plus score – a rare event indeed. \nIM Paul Littlewood during filming for the “Trick of the Mind” series from Derren Brown\nIn the summer he gave up teaching and joined Phillips & Drew (stockbrokers). He now (ed : this was in 1983) lives with his (first) wife Sue and family in the wilds of Essex (Billericay). \nIM Paul Littlewood\, event and photographer unknown\n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. \n \n \n \n\n\n \n\nPaul gives a simultaneous display in Letchworth. \n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. \n \n \n \n\n\n \n\nChess Tactics\, Paul Littlewood\, Crowood Chess Library\, 1991\n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-paul-edwin-littlewood-18-i-1956-2/ CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/IMG.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230120 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230121 DTSTAMP:20230120T111043Z CREATED:20200118T154340Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230120T111043Z UID:2910-1674172800-1674259199@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Ali Mortazavi (20-i-1971) DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to IM Ali Mortazavi on his birthday\, this day (January 20th) in 1971 \nIM Ali Mortazavi\nAli is a British IM who was a successful trader in the financial markets. \nIn the FIDE directory he is listed as a Councillor in the Global Strategy Commission (GSC). \nHe was a professional player and became the CEO of Silence Therapeutics (SLN) : \n\nAli reached his hightest FIDE rating of 2410 in July 1994 aged 23. \nHe has played for Beeson Gregory in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). He played at the Isle of Man Open in 2018 but sadly\, little since. \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\nIM Ali Mortazavi URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-ali-mortazavi-20-i-1971/ CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/mum_5865_lv-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230121 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230122 DTSTAMP:20230123T102607Z CREATED:20230120T150446Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230123T102607Z UID:22227-1674259200-1674345599@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Neil McDonald (21-i-1967) DESCRIPTION:We send birthday wishes to GM Neil McDonald born on this day (January 21st) in 1967. \nNeil McDonald\nNeil McDonald\nFrom Wikipedia : \nNeil McDonald (born 21 January 1967) is an English chess grandmaster and a player on the international chess circuit. He is an English Chess Federation coach\,[1] who has trained many of the country’s strongest junior players. McDonald is a regular coach of the English junior team and was Head Coach of the English Chess Federation team at the Greece World Schools Championship in 2013.[2] He regularly escorts blind and partially sighted chess players to international World Championship events and is also a chess writer. \nMcDonald authored the French Defence monthly updates on chesspublishing.com from October 1999 until March 2009\,[3] 1 e4 … updates from November 2009 until January 2010\,[4] 1 e4 … from June 2014 until February 2015[5] and returned to 1 e4 … in March 2017 until January 2018.[6] \nNeil shared first place in the 1986 GLC Masters with Jonathan Levitt\, was outright first at the Elekes Memorial\, 1995\, first at The Leinster IM Tournament in Dublin\, 1997\, and other tournaments since. Neil plays for Wood Green in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). \nHe became an International Master in 1986 and was awarded the Grandmaster title in 1996. \nMcDonald obtained his FIDE Trainer qualification in 2016.[7] \n\nNeil is a prolific and successful author\, most recently with “Coach Yourself” \nCoach Yourself : A Complete Guide to Self Improvement at Chess\nbut also thirty eight titles for Chess Press\, BT Batsford Ltd. and Everyman Chess Books. \n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. \n \n \n \n\n\n \n\nModern Defence. Everyman\, 2000\nGM Neil McDonald URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-neil-mcdonald-21-i-1967-2/ CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/jb4_2543_lv.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230122 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230123 DTSTAMP:20230120T152357Z CREATED:20230120T152356Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230120T152357Z UID:22229-1674345600-1674431999@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Nick Pert (22-i-1981) DESCRIPTION:We send birthday wishes to GM Nick Pert born this day (January 22nd) in 1981. \nJeremy Morse\, Adam Hunt\, Nick Pert and Nigel Short at the Lloyds Bank Masters\nNick won the Southern Counties (SCCU) championship for the 2016-17 season sharing with Richard Bates. \nNick and Richard Pert\nHere is Nick’s Wikipedia entry \nNick and Richard Pert\n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. \n \n \n \n\n\n \n\nGM Nick Pert\nGM Nick Pert URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-nick-pert-22-i-1981-2/ CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Writer ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/bct_4326_lv.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230122 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230123 DTSTAMP:20230121T130520Z CREATED:20230121T130519Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230121T130520Z UID:22231-1674345600-1674431999@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Richard Pert (22-i-1981) DESCRIPTION:Happy Birthday IM Richard Pert (22-i-1981) \nIM Richard Pert\n\n\n \n\n\n \n \n You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. \n \n \n \n\n\n \n\nNick and Richard Pert\nNick and Richard Pert URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-richard-pert-22-i-1981-2/ CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/JB4_9063-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230129 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230130 DTSTAMP:20230119T000147Z CREATED:20200331T140002Z LAST-MODIFIED:20230119T000147Z UID:3867-1674950400-1675036799@britishchessnews.com SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Steve Giddins (29-01-1961) DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Stephen William Giddins (29-01-1961) \nHere are his games from chessgames.com \nWe reviewed his most recent book\, co-authored with IM Gerard Welling : Side-Stepping Mainline Theory \n\nSide-Stepping Mainline Theory URL:http://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-stephen-w-giddins-29-01-1961/ CATEGORIES:2023,Birthday,Honours,Journalist,Player,Writer ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:http://britishchessnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IMG_2104-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR