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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200627
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200628
DTSTAMP:20260817T141148Z
CREATED:20200411T185005Z
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SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Matthew Wadsworth (27-vi-2000)
DESCRIPTION:BCN wishes IM Matthew Wadsworth Happy Birthday this day (June 27th) in 2021. \nPreviously we reported : \nFM Matthew Wadsworth\, one of England’s most promising young players\, has earned his first Grandmaster norm from his excellent performance in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). Matthew\, who is twenty\, has a current FIDE standard play rating of 2413 and is ranked 34th amongst the active players in England (by FIDE rating) earning his FM title in 2016. Matthew has IMs norm under his belt but could leapfrog to Grandmaster status with further norms and by increasing his live rating to 2500. Most likely\, however\, is that the IM title will be ratified at the next FIDE Congress now that his live rating has topped 2400. \nMatthew with father Jim at the 2012 Surrey Congress\nMatthew’s first ECF grade was 66A in 2007 (aged 7) and he played for Maidenhead in local leagues\, St. Pirans’s School and then Reading School. \nMatthew at the 2013 British Championships in Torquay\nMatthew is reading Economics at Queen’s College\, Cambridge and rows for the college team. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nMatthew joined 4NCL at an early age and played for AMCA (Andrew Martin Chess Academy) soon rising the ranks to the AMCA first team and he currently represents the Guildford 2 team in Division One of the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). Matthew’s 4NCL results for the 2018-19 season were : \n1. Fodor\, Tamas Jr\, draw\n2. Ashton\, Adam G\, win\n3. Gonda\, Laszlo\, draw\n4. Kulon\, Klaudia\, win\n5. Holland\, James P\, win\n6. Stewart\, Ashley\, win\n7. Ledger\, Andrew J\, win\n8. Plat\, Vojtech\, loss\n9. no game\n10. Jackson\, James P\, win\n11. no game \ngiving a performance of 7/9 \nMatthew at the 2014 British Championships in Aberystwyth\nOne of the undoubted highlights of Matthews chess year was has draw with Oxford domiciled GM Hou Yifan\, three times Women’s World Champion from China during the annual Varsity match\, Matthew representing Cambridge. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nRecently Matthew has joined forces with IM Adam C Taylor\, IM Ravi Haria and others to form makinggrandmasters.com \nFM Matthew J Wadsworth\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-matthew-j-wadsworth-27-vi-2000/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200627
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DTSTAMP:20260817T141140Z
CREATED:20200428T182939Z
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UID:5080-1593216000-1593302399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary for Vera Menchik (16-ii-1906 27-vi-1944)
DESCRIPTION:A Great Life with a Tragic Ending\nFew people know the story of Vera Menchik yet it deserves to be told. She was the first women’s world chess champion in 1927 and retained the title undefeated until her untimely death at the age of 38 in 1944 during a rocket attack on London.  She is more properly compared with the great male players of her era against whom she scored creditably. The absence of a full biography of Vera in English reflects the peculiar circumstances of her life and death. \nVera was\, in modern terminology\, a refugee and essentially a stateless person for much of her life. She was born in Moscow in 1906 during the period of the Russian Empire to an expatriate family who was forced to flee when she was 15 following the Russian Revolution having lost their livelihood.  As they passed through Europe\, her father and mother split up in his homeland Czechoslovakia which had been created out of the ruins of the Austro-Hungarian empire. She arrived in England and took up residence in the seaside town of Hastings. (The fact that Hastings had hosted the world’s longest series of annual chess tournaments since 1895 was a happy coincidence.) Vera never attained British nationality until near the end of her life even though she had been domiciled in England from 1921. She won the first-ever Women’s World Championships held in London in 1927 under a Russian flag; thereafter she nominally represented Czechoslovakia until finally she represented England in 1939 following her marriage to a senior official within the British Chess Federation. \nVera’s grandfather was Arthur Illingworth\, a wealthy trader from Lancashire who had set up business in Moscow where his Anglo-Russian daughter Olga married František Menčik. He was a successful estate manager. Vera learned chess from her father and performed well at school. Her younger sister Olga was also a good chess player and the sisters remained close throughout their lives. \nVera was a woman in a man’s world – she had to struggle harder to achieve the kind of recognition which was accorded to men. She appeared like a comet in the sky and it would be many years until other women were able to reach her level. At her first major international tournament at Karlsbad in 1929\, she was the only female participant in a tournament of 22 great players. Even as women’s world champion\, some of the male players objected to her participation.  The Viennese master Albert Becker joked that anybody who lost to her should belong to the Vera Menchik Club. By an irony of history\, he became its first member losing to her in the third round. She beat many other grandmasters during her career including the Dutchman Max Euwe in 1930 and 1931 (both at Hastings) who was to become world champion in 1935. \nAlthough she is often portrayed as being Russian or Czech or latterly British\, she was a true cosmopolitan. She knew that life could be unstable in any country. She had lived through the Russian Revolution; one parent was left behind in Czechoslovakia; she had moved westwards across Europe and embraced different cultures and languages at formative stages of her life. It is no wonder that she learned also to speak Esperanto which was designated to be the world’s lingua franca before English achieved its dominance. As a leading chess player\, she travelled back to Moscow and to Czechoslovakia several times as well as to South America for her final match to retain the women’s world champion title in 1939. She needed to be self-sufficient and was obtained roles as the games editor of a chess magazine as well as being appointed the manager of the National Chess Centre in Oxford Street which was destroyed during the Blitz in 1940. \nShe survived most of the war and now a widow moved in with her mother and sister to a house in south London.  They took the precaution of going down to the cellar during bombing raids. Tragically the house received a direct hit from a flying bomb and the entire family was wiped out. Hardly any of her possessions remained save for one dented trophy. The records at the national chess centre were destroyed as were her personal effects including her chess memorabilia. At least there remains a record of the moves played in her games which serve as testimony to her remarkable career as not only the first women’s world chess champion but also a woman who broke boundaries wherever she went and demonstrated that a woman is capable of standing on her own feet professionally and leading a full and eventful life. \nThe Bomb Attack \nBCN remembers that in the early morning of Tuesday\, June 27th\, 1944 (i.e. 77 years ago) Vera Menchik\, her sister Olga\, and their mother were killed in a V-1 flying bomb attack which destroyed their home at 47 Gauden Road in the Clapham area of South London. \nWe now know that the V1 in question landed at 00:20 hrs on the 27th and led to the death of a total of 11 people including the Menchik household. Here is a summary of recorded V1 and V2 landings in the Clapham\, SW4 area. \n47\, Gauden Road\, Clapham\, SW4 6LW in more modern times.\nAll three were cremated at the Streatham Park Crematorium on 4 July 1944. Vera was 38 years old. \nSignature of Vera Menchik from a Brian Reilly “after dinner” postcard from Margate 1936.\nVera’s Parents and Sister\nVera Frantsevna Menchik (or Věra Menčíková) was born in Moscow on Friday\, 16th February\, 1906. Her father was František Menčik\, was born in Bystrá nad Jizerou\, Bohemia. František and Olga were married on June  23rd 1905 in Moscow and notice of this marriage appeared in British newspapers on July 22nd 1905.  Vera’s sister was Olga Rubery (née Menchik) and she was born in Moscow in 1908. Olga Menchik married Clifford Glanville Rubery in 1938. Vera married Rufus Henry Streatfeild Stevenson on October 19th 1937. \nHer Maternal Roots\nOur interest in unearthing her maternal English heritage / roots has led to the following: \nHer mother was Olga (née Illingworth (1885 – 27 vi 1944). Olga’s  parents were Arthur Wellington Illingworth and Marie Illingworth (née ?). Arthur was born in October 1852 in the district of Salford\, Lancashire\, his parents were George Illingworth (1827-1887) and Alice Whewell (1828-1910).  \nIn the 1861 census Arthur is recorded as being of eight years of age and living in the Illingworth household. \nIn the 1871 census Arthur is recorded as being of eighteen years of age and living in the Illingworth household of nine persons at 5\, Lancaster Road\, Pendleton\, Lancashire. Arthur’s occupation is listed as being a merchants apprentice. In fact\, he was a stock and share broker. \nArthur died in Moscow on February 21st 1898. Probate was recorded in London on July 6th\, 1900 as follows: \nIllingworth Arthur Wellington of Moscow Russia merchant died 21st February 1898 Probate London 6th July to Walter Illingworth stock and share-broker Effects £4713 7s \n£4713 7s in 1898 equates roughly to £626\,600.00 in 2020 so it would appear that Arthur was considerably successful and almost certainly left money to Olga Illingworth. \nWhat do we conclude from all of this? Quite simply that Vera’s maternal roots were from Salford in Lancashire. \nBCM Announcement\nThe August 1944 British Chess Magazine (Volume LXIV\, Number 8\, page 173 onwards) contained this editorial  from Julius du Mont: \nJulius du Mont\, Editor of British Chess Magazine from 1940 to 1949\n“British Chess has suffered a grievous and irreparable loss in the death by enemy action of Mrs. R.H.S. Stevenson known through all the world where chess is played as Vera Menchik. \nWe give elsewhere (below : Ed.) an appreciation of this remarkable woman. Quite apart from her unique gifts as a chess-player-the world may never see her equal again among women players-she had many qualities which endeared her to all who knew her\, the greatest among them being here great-hearted generosity. \nWe sympathise with our contemporary “CHESS” : Vera Menchik was for some years their games editor. Few columns have been conducted with equal skill and efficiency and none\, we feel sure\, with a greater sense of responsibility. \nThe news of this remarkable tragedy will be received by the chess world with sorrow and with abhorrence of the wanton and useless robot methods of a robot people. \nOne shudders at the heritage of hatred which will be theirs\, but their greatest punishment will come with their own enlightenment.” \nBCM Contemporary Obituary from EGR Cordingley\nFrom page 178 of the same issue we have an obituary written by EGR Cordingley : \n“The death by enemy action of Miss Vera Menchik removes not only the greatest woman chess player of all times but a charming personality. \nThe world will remember her for her chess prowess\, for her exceptional skill as a woman player who had beaten in tournament play such gifted players as Euwe\, Sultan Khan\, Sir George Thomas\, Alexander and Yates. In such company\, and she played in several of the Hastings International tournaments and other of similar grade\, she usually obtained about 33%\, though in the Maribor tournament of 1934 she finished third\, behind Pirc and Steiner but ahead of Rejfir\, Spielmann\, Asztalos and Vidmar. \nHer game was characterised by solid position-play\, with the definite aim of bringing about a favourable end-game and of avoiding wild complications. The ordinary stratagems of the game\, small combinations and the like\, were of course part of her equipment\, but she lacked that imaginative\, inventive spirit without which few become really great players. \nIn recent times\, Reshesvky and Flohr (as a professional with a reputation to maintain and a living to earn) have shown that great success can be achieved by reducing the game to pure positional play\, the technique being firstly to build up a position devoid of weaknesses\, an ‘I can’t lose position\,’ and secondly to create and take advantage of the minutest weaknesses in the opponent’s camp\, a major weakness may show that imagination is not quite dead within. \nThis defect in her play was the inevitable reflection of her character: sound common-sense\, conscientious to an unusual degree\, and persevering\, while she had the combative\, tenacious nature so desirable and so often found in good chess players; for chess is battle of wits\, the fight is what most of use love in chess. Vera was\, seldom assertive\, a fault not uncommon in chess players. She sat placidly at the chess board\, never causing even mild irritation by any of those nervous mannerisms that may always be seen in any chess room\, the peripatetic fever being the most prominent. A slight flush would rise when the position grew difficult\, or when she was short of time on her clock – and that was recurrent according to the time-limit. \nAway from the chessboard show would readily talk of other subjects\, and her great interest was in persons\, in their actions and behaviour under the strain and stress of the unruly passions; in the moulding of their lives under the inscrutable dictates of chance; in the twists and turns of a mind warped perhaps by a casual incident long ago. Of course\, she was a pagan\, a thinking one\, who had asked and asked and found only the answer that reasoning gave. She judged kindly and never inflicted upon others her own opinions or beliefs: she asked only that these should be heard as one side of any argument\, for she enjoyed a dialectic bout. \nA delightful side to her character was her simple sense of humour\, and I remember so clearly her pleasure – glee would describe it more eloquently – when I gave her the punctuation necessary to make sense of that ludicrous collection of words\, ‘Jones where Brown had had had had had had had had had had had the master’s approval’ Anyone who knew her only at the chessboard would have been astonished at the amount of bubbling merriment she discovered of of life’s events. \nI shall remember her more for the woman as I knew her over many cups of coffee spread over many\, many weeks – complacent\, smiling\, and kindly; conscientious\, loyal\, and sincere; as I understand the word\, a Christian who would help any deserving person as best she could. E. G. R. C. \n”\nand here is the original article as printed: \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXIV (1944)\, Number 8\, August\, Page 178\nBCM 1958 Appreciation by Peter Clarke\nFrom British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXVIII (128\, 1958)\, Number 7 (July)\, page 181 onwards) we have this retrospective from Peter Clarke: \n“The night of June 27th\,1944\, Vera Menchik\, World Woman Champion\, was killed when an enemy bomb demolished her home in London; with her perished her mother and sister Olga. In these tragic circumstances the chess world lost its greatest woman player\, still undefeated and at the height of her powers. \nVera Francevna Menchik was born in Moscow on February 16th\, 1906\, of an English mother and Czech father. There she spent her childhood\, showing a love for literature\, music\, and\, of course\, chess\, which at the age of nine she was taught by her father. She had a natural bent for the game and when only fourteen shared second and third places a schoolboys (!) tournament. The following year\, 1921\, the family came to England\, where Miss Menchik lived the rest of her life. \nAs if by some fortunate coincidence\, the Menchiks settled in Hastings\, though it was not until the spring of 1923 that Vera joined the famous chess club. Her natural shyness and lack of knowledge of English caused this delay. However\, they did not handicap her too much\nas she herself afterwards wrote: ‘Chess is a quiet game and therefore the best hobby for a person who cannot speak the language.” \nShe studied the game eagerly\, and very soon her talent caught the attention of the Hungarian grandmaster\, Géza Maróczy\, who was resident at Hastings at that time. Thus there began the most important period in her development as a player; a sound and mature understanding of positional play-and a thorough knowledge of a few special openings and defences: in particular the French Defence. The influence of\nthe grandmasters ideas was clearly apparent in her style throughout the whole of her career. \nMiss Menchik’s rise to fame was meteoric: by 1925 she was undoubtedly the strongest player of her sex in the country\, having twice defeated the Champion\, E. Price\, in short matches; and only two years later she won the first Women’s World Championship in London with the terrific score 10.5-0.5. She was just twenty-one\, but already in a different class from any other woman in the world. For seventeen years until her death Vera Menchik reigned supreme in women’s chess\, defending her world title successfully no less than seven times (including a match with Sonja Graf at Semmering in 1937\, which Miss Menchik won 11.5-4.5. In the seven tournaments for the World Championship she played 83 games; winning 78\, drawing 4\, and losing 1 only! However\, what was more remarkable was that she was accepted into the sphere of men’s chess as a master in her own right\, a feat which no woman had done before or has done since. Up to then\, women’s chess had been a very poor relation of the masculine game\, but here was a woman who was a worthy opponent for the strongest masters. \nFlohr wrote of her: ‘Vera Menchik was the first woman in the world who played chess strongly…who played like a man.’ It was as the ambassador extraordinary\, so to speak\, of the women’s game that Miss Menchik really made her greatest contribution to chess. Wherever she went\, at home and abroad\, she aroused great interest among her sex; others were eager to follow her\, to identify themselves with her. Nowadays women’s chess is well organized\, and much of the credit for this must go to Vera Menchik for first bringing it into the light. Among her many personal successes in international tournaments perhaps the greatest was at Ramsgate in 1929: as one of the foreign masters (she was still of Czech nationality) she shared second and third places with Rubinstein\, * point behind Capablanca and above\, among others\, her tutor Maróczy. \nEven the greatest masters recognized Miss Menchik’s ability; Alekhine himself\, writing on the Carlsbad Tournament of 1929\, said: ‘Vera Menchik is without doubt an exceptional phenomenon among women. She possesses great aptitude for the game…The chess\nworld must help her develop her talent!’ \nThe Vera Menchik Club\nAn amusing incident occurred at this tournament. There were naturally sceptics among the masters over the lady’s participation. Flohr recalls how one of these\, the Viennese master Becker\, suggested: \n‘Whoever loses to the Woman Champion will be accepted as a member of the Vera Menchik Club which I intend to organize.’ \nBecker was the first to lose to her\, and that evening the masters chided him: “Professor Becker\, you did not find it very difficult to join the club. You can be the Chairman.’ And forthwith he was chosen as Chairman for three years. Everyone wished that the new club would soon obtain more members! Indeed\, the Vera Menchik Club has many famous names on its lists-Euwe\, Reshevsky\, Colle\, Yates\, Sultan Khan\, Sir G. A. Thomas\, Alexander\, to mention a few. \nIn 1935 Miss Menchik returned to the country of her birth to take part in the great international tournament in Moscow. To be truthful\, she had very little success\, but she was everywhere treated with respect and sympathy by masters and spectators alike. The Soviet master l. Maiselis\, writing in CHESS in 1944.(Shakhmaty za 1944 god)\, related the following entertaining anecdote from the tournament: One day a group of players and organizers were discussing the chances of Alekhine and Euwe in the forthcoming match. Flohr said: ‘It is quite clear that I will be World Champion.’ We looked at him inquiringly. \n‘It’s very simple\,” continued Flohr\, ‘Euwe wins a match against Alekhine\, Vera Menchik beats Euwe (at that time her score against Euwe was +2\, =1\, -1) and I will somehow beat Miss Menchik.’ \nWe laughed at this good-natured joke\, and we laughed all the more the next day when Flohr was unable\, despite every effort\, to defeat her in a vital game. \nln 1937 Miss Menchik married R. Stevenson\, but in chess she continued to use her maiden name\, made famous by so many victories. Her husband\, a well-known organizer\, became\, Secretary of the B.C.F: in the following year and remained so until his death in 1943. \nSince the days of Vera Menchik women’s chess has taken great strides forward; now there is a special committee of F.I.D.E. to look after its needs.- Only last year the first lnternational Women’s Team Tournament took place ln Emmen\, Holland; the new World Champions\, the U.S.S.R.\, became the first holders of the Vera Menchik Cup. So chess goes onwards\, but the name of its first Queen will ever be remembered.” \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 The Encyclopaedia of Chess (Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976) by Anne Sunnucks : \n“Woman World Champion from 1927 to 1944. Vera Menchik was born in Moscow on 16th February 1906 of an English mother and a Czech father. Her father taught her to play chess when she was 9. \nVera Menchik 1906-1944 chess playerin\, CZ / GB portrait with chess board late twenties (Photo by ullstein bild / ullstein bild via Getty Images)\nIn 192l her family came to England and settled in Hastings (at 13\, St. John’s Road\, St. Leonards-on-Sea\, TN37 6HP) : \n13\, St. John’s Road\, St. Leonards-on-Sea\, TN37 6HP\nTwo years later\, when she was 17\, Vera joined Hastings Chess Club\, \nHastings Chess Club : 2 Cornwallis Terrace\, Hastings TN34 1EB\nwhere she became a pupil of Geza Maroczy. The first Women’s World Championship was held in 1927. Vera Menchik won with a score of 10.5 out of 11. She defended her title successfully in Hamburg in 1930\, in Prague in 1931\, in Folkestone in 1933\, in Warsaw in 1935\, in Stockholm in 1937 and in Buenos Aires in 1939. She played 2 matches against Sonja Graf\, her nearest rival\, in 1934 when she won +3 -1 and in 1937\, in a match for her title when she won +9 -1 =5. \nIsaac Kashdan plays Vera Menchik during the Hastings Congress on December 28th\, 1931. Kashdan won in 45 moves in a classical French.\nThe first woman ever to play in the British Championship and the first to play in a master tournament\, Vera Menchik made her debut in master chess at Scarborough 1928 when she scored 50 per cent. The following year she played in Paris and Carlsbad\, and it was at Carlsbad that the famous Menchik Club was formed. The invitation to Vera Menchik to compete among such players as Capablanca\, Euwe\, Tartakower and Nimzowitch was received with amusement by many of the masters. The Viennese master\, Becker was particularly scornful\, and in the presence of a number of the competitors he suggested that anyone who lost to Vera Menchik should be granted membership of the Menchik Club. He himself became the first member. Other famous players who later joined the club were Euwe\, Reshevsky\, Sultan Khan\, Sir George Thomas\, C. H. O’D. Alexander\, Colle and Yates. \nHer greatest success in international tournaments was at Ramsgate in 1929\, when she was =2nd with Rubinstein\, half a point behind Capablanca and ahead of Maroczy. In 1934 she was 3rd at Maribor\, ahead of Spielmann and Vidmar. In 1942 she won a match against Mieses +4 -l -5. In 1937 Vera Menchik married R. H. S. Stevenson\, who later became Hon. Secretary of the British Chess Federation. He died in 1943. She continued to use her maiden name when playing chess. On her marriage she became a British subject. \nLeft to right Baruch H Wood\, Philip Stuart Milner-Barry\, Vera Menchik (playing in the women’s world championship held concurrently with the Olympiad which she won with 17 wins and 2 draws)\, Sir George Thomas\, Conel Hugh O’Donel Alexander and Harry Golombek. England withdrew after their preliminary group due to the outbreak of war despite qualifying for the top final. Thanks to Leonard Barden\nFrom 1941 until her death she was Games Editor of CHESS. She also gave chess lessons and managed the National Chess Centre\, which opened in 1939 at John Lewis’s in Oxford Street\, London and was destroyed by a bomb in 1940. \nIn 1944 Vera Menchik was a solid positional player\, who avoided complications and aimed at achieving a favourable endgame. Her placid temperament was ideal for tournament play. Her main weakness was possibly lack of imagination. Her results have made her the most successful woman player ever.” \nVera Menchik\nFrom The Encyclopaedia of Chess\, (BT Batsford\, 1977) by Harry Golombek : \nProbably the strongest woman player in the history of the game\, Vera Menchik was born in Moscow and\, though her father was a Czechoslovak and her mother English\, she played for most of her\nlife under English colours. \nIn l92l her family came to Hastings in England and there Vera became a pupil of the great Hungarian master\, Geza Maroczy. This was to have a dominating influence on her style of play which was solidly classical\, logical and technically most well equipped. Such a style enabled her to deal severely not only with her fellow women players but also with contemporary masters and budding masters. Vera did extremely well\, for example\, against C. H. O’D. Alexander\nand P. S. Milner-Barry\, but lost repeatedly to H. Golombek who was able to take advantage of her lack of imagination by the use of more modern methods. \nVera was soon predominent in women’s chess. In the first Women’s World Championship tournament\, at London in 1927\, she won the title with a score of 10.5 out of 11 and retained the championship with great ease at all the subsequent Olympiads (or International Team tournaments as they were then known more correctly) at Hamburg 1930\, Prague 1931\, Folkestone 1933\, Warsaw 1935\, Stockholm 1937 and Buenos Aires 1939. \nVera Menchik at Margate 1935\, photographer unknown\nWith Sonja Graf\, the player who came nearest to her in strength among her female contemporaries\, she played two matches and demonstrated her undoubted superiority by beating her in 1934 (+3-l) and again in a match for the title in l937 (+9-l=5). \nIn 1937 Vera officially became a British citizen by marrying the then Kent and later B.C.F. Secretary\, R. H. S. Stevenson (Rufus Henry Streatfeild Stevenson: ed).\n(Rufus Henry Streatfeild Stevenson was home news editor of the British Chess Magazine\, secretary of the Southern Counties Chess Union and match captain of the Kent County Chess Association). \nOddly enough\, Sonja Graf\, many years later\, also became a Mrs Stevenson by marrying an American of that name some years after the Second World War. \nVera Menchik also played and held her own in men’s tournaments. She did well in the British championship and her best performance in international chess was =2nd with Rubinstein in the Ramsgate Team Practice tournament ahead of her old teacher\, Maroczy. She also had an excellent result at Maribor in 1934 where she came 3rd\, ahead of Spielmann and Vidmar. \nHer husband died in 1943 and Vera herself\, together with her younger sister Olga and her mother\, was killed by a V1 bomb that descended on the Stevenson home in London in 1944. \nVera Menchik\, circa 1935\, Historic Collection / Alamy Stock Photo\nThis was a sad and premature loss\, not only for British but for world chess\, since there is no doubt she would have continued to dominate the female scene for many years. \nAs a person Vera was a delightful companion\, jolly and full of fun and understanding. As a player she was not only strong but also absolutely correct and without any prima donna behaviour. Generous in defeat and modest in victory\, she set a great example to all her contemporaries. \nAn example of Vera’s attacking play at its best against her nearest rival\, Sonja Graf\, is shown by the following game which was played in her 1937 match at Semmering in 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\n27th November 1936: Britain’s world chess champion Vera Menchik (right) and challenger Sonja Graf after signing a contract at the Bloomsbury Hotel\, London\, to play for the championship of the world over 16 games. (Photo by J. A. Hampton/Topical Press Agency/Getty Images)\nFrom The Oxford Companion to Chess\, (Oxford University Press\, 1984) by Hooper and Whyld : \n“Woman World Champion from 1927 until her death. Daughter of a Czech father and an English mother\, Menchik was born in Moscow\, learned chess when she was nine\, settled in England around\n1921\, and took lessons from Maroczy a year or so later. In 1927 FIDE organized both the first Olympiad and the first world championship tournament for women. These events were run concurrently\, except in 1928\, until the Second World War began\, and Menchik won the women’s tournament every time; London 1927 (+10=1); Hamburg 1930 (+6=1 — 1); Prague 1931 (+8);\nFolkestone 1933 ( + 14); Warsaw 1935 (+9); Stockholm 1937 (+14); and Buenos Aires 1939 ( + 17=2). She played in her first championship tournament as a Russian\, the next five as a Czech\,\nand the last as a Briton. She also won on two matches against her chief rival\, the German-born Sonja Graf (c. 1912-65): Rotterdam\, 1934 (+3-1)\, and Semmering\, 1937 (+9=5—2)\, \nVera Menchik in a pre-event posed picture in which she faces unstoppable checkmate in one from Hastings 193? She was about to play Sir GA Thomas.\nIn international tournaments which did not exclude men Menchik made little impression; one of her best results was at Maribor 1934 (about category 4) when she took third place alter Pirc and L. Steiner ahead of Spielmann. In 1937 she married the English chess organizer Rufus Henry Streatfeild Stevenson (1878-1943)\, A chess professional\, she gave lessons\, lectures\, and displays\, and was appointed manager of the short-lived National Chess Centre in 1939. In 1942 she defeated Mieses in match play (+4=5-1)\, She\, her younger sister Olga (also a player)\, and their mother were killed in a bombing raid. \nFrom left to right: Vera Menchik\, Alexander Alekhine\, Géza Maróczy and Sultan Khan. From London International Masters\, 1st February\, 1932\, French Defence\, drawn in 32 moves.\nHer style was positional and she had a sound understanding of the endgame. On occasion she defeated in tournament play some of the greatest masters\, notably Euwe\, Reshevsky\, and Sultan Khan. Men she defeated were said to belong to the Menchik club. When world team championships for women (women’s chess Olympiads) were commenced in 1957 the trophy for the winning team was called the Vera Menchik Cup.” \nVera Menchik commemorated on a postage stamp from the Czech Republic\nShe was inducted to the World Chess Hall of Fame in 2011. \nOther Articles\nHere is an excellent article from the Hastings and St. Leonard’s Club written by Brian Denman. \nHere is an excellent article from Neil Blackburn (aka SimaginFan) on chess.com \nHere is an excellent article by Albert Whitwood \nHere is her Wikipedia  entry. \nHere is an excellent record compiled by Bill Wall. \nBiography of Vera Menchik British chess player \nVera Menchik.\, EI Bykova\, Moscow\, 1957\, 176 pages\, 4s 7d.\nVera Menchik: A Biography of the First Women’s World Chess Champion\, with 350 Complete Games\nEdward Winter  was less than impressed with the above book. \nVera Menchik\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-for-vera-frantsevna-menchik-16-ii-1906-27-vi-1944/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,History,Player,Remembering
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200630
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200701
DTSTAMP:20211101T202448Z
CREATED:20200408T142136Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211101T202448Z
UID:4200-1593475200-1593561599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Robert Bellin (30-vi-1952)
DESCRIPTION:BCN sends IM Robert Bellin best wishes on his birthday\, this day (the 30th of June) in Great Yarmouth\, Norfolk \nRobert was awarded the IM title in 1977. He was outright British Champion in 1979 in Chester having tied first equal (with six others) in 1974 in Clacton. The play-off was won by George Botterill. \nHis best international success was in 1981 in Shanghai coming clear first overall. \nRobert Bellin with Leonard Barden and Stewart Reuben at the 1978 Aaronson Masters in London\nRobert is married to WGM Dr. Jana Bellin and they have two sons. \nIM Robert Bellin\n\nRobert Bellin\, British Champion\, CHESS\, Volume 45\, Numbers 827-28\, page 27.\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 Classical Dutch\nWinning with the Dutch\nTest Your Positional Play\nQueen’s Pawn : Veresov System\nMastering the King’s Indian Defence\nLondon System Repertoire\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-robert-bellin-30-vi-1952/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200707
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200708
DTSTAMP:20210708T081939Z
CREATED:20190911T085325Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210708T081939Z
UID:1319-1594080000-1594166399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of IM Andrew Whiteley (09-vi-1947 07-vii-2014)
DESCRIPTION:BCN remembers IM Andrew Jonathan Whiteley (09-vi-1947 07-vii-2014) \nAndrew Whiteley\nAndrew was born on Monday\, June 9th\, 1947 in Birmingham\, West Midlands to Denys Edward Hugh Whiteley (1914 – 1987) and Muriel Sutton (1919 – 1967). Andrew had two siblings\, Robert N (Birmingham\, 1944) and Angela M (Oxford 1952). \nDenys Edward Hugh Whiteley (1914 – 1987\, from Ancestry.co.uk\nAndrew completed his education at Magdalen College School\, Oxford and then in law at Pembroke College\, Oxford. \nAndrew and friends at the NatWest Bank Young Masters\n“Whiteley’s school chess record is an outstanding 63/65: Andrew Whiteley is captain and top board of a very strong U18 team of: A Whiteley\, H Morphy\, MN Crombie\, MM Daube\, A Hawkins and AH Smith.” \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\nAndrew was joint (with WR Hartston) Southern Counties (SCCU) champion in the 1967-68 season. \nHis highest Elo rating was 2395 in January 1977 at the age of 29 and played for King’s Head in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). \nAndrew was former President of the Middlesex County Chess Association (1985-87) and Deputy (1984-85 & 1987-88). \nAndrew Whiteley playing board two in the London – Belgrade Telex Match on April 3rd\, 1976 from the St. James Hotel\, Buckingham Gate. Sourced from BCM\, Volume XCVI (96)\, Number 5\, page 192. Photographer probably Freddy Reilly.\nHe became a FIDE Master in 1980 at the age of 33. His last major tournament was Cappelle Le Grand in 1988 (see photograph below). \nMagnus Magnusson presents Andrew Whiteley (right) with the BCF County Championship trophy as Captain of the Middlesex team in 1986.\nBelow was written by BCM editor James Pratt in Volume CXXXIV (134)\, Number 8 (August) page 417-8 : \n“Unfailingly courteous\, formally dressed\, retired London solicitor\, British Master\, Andrew Jonathan Whiteley (9 vi 1946 Birmingham – 8 vii 2014) has died. The son of an Oxford professor\, AJW was British U21 Champion of 1965. He tied\, with Hans Ree\, for first in the European Junior in 1965/6. \nHans Ree (left) and Andrew Whiteley (right) examine the European Junior Trophy for 1965/6 in which they tied for first.\nThe following game first appeared in the Games Department column of Harry Golombek in British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXXVI (1966)\, Number 3 (March)\, page 148. It was game #14\,118. \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 scooped the Silver medal at the British in 1971 and in 1976. Andrew often worked selflessly at his office in the mornings\, commuting to key games after lunch. He rose to be No. 3 or 4 in England and\, always a loyal team man\, shone in Olympiads. Belatedly\, having turned his back on the law\, in 1988\, he became an IM. He was also a BCF Arbiter and Middlesex County organiser. In 2008\, he won the English Senior Championships aged 61. \nHis was a classical chess style. RIP.” \nAndrew Whiteley at the Nice Olympiad of 1974.\nHere is his Wikipedia entry \nAndrew Whiteley commentating on Kasparov vs Karpov\nHere is a excellent obituary from his old school\, Magdalen College. \nFM Andrew Whiteley\, IM Julian Hodgson and FM Byron Jacobs at Cappelle Le Grand\, 1988. Photograph by Caroline Winkler\nHere is an obituary from Stewart Reuben on behalf of the English Chess Federation \nAndrew Whiteley receives the Rosebowl trophy from John Poole\nSince 2014 King’s Head Chess Club has held an annual blitz tournament in memory of Andrew featuring many of England’s top players. \nAndrew Whiteley faces David Howell whilst Jimmy Adams records the moves\nHere is a discussion of Andrew on the English Chess Forum \nIM Andrew Whiteley at the first 4NCL weekend of 2012 in November.\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-andrew-john-whiteley/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,Hastings,Player,Remembering
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200711
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200712
DTSTAMP:20210708T121536Z
CREATED:20190822T165808Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210708T121536Z
UID:1010-1594425600-1594511999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM David Friedgood (11-vii-1946)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM David Friedgood (11-vii-1946) \nDavid was born in Cape Town\, Republic of South Africa and now resides in England. \nHe first won the South Africa Championship in 1967 in Johannesburg\, again in 1971\, and in 1973 in Cape Town when his main rivals were Piet Kroon and Charles de Villiers. \nHe plays for Cavendish\, Hendon and 4NCL MK Phoenix. \nHe gained his FM title in 1982. \nHis peak rating of 2335 was achieved in January\, 1980. \nDavid Friedgood (far right) and a victorious Wood Green team. Trophy presented by Magnus Magnusson\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nDavid Friedgood at a Lloyds Bank problem solving event with Sir Jeremy Morse\, Jonathan Mestel and ?\nFM David Friedgood at the 2014 Winton Capital Problem Solving Championship at Eton College\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-david-friedgood/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Composer,Player,Problemist
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200711
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200712
DTSTAMP:20210708T122041Z
CREATED:20200716T222423Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210708T122041Z
UID:7483-1594425600-1594511999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM A Howard Williams (11-viii-1950)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM A Howard Williams (11-viii-1950) \n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-arthur-howard-williams-11-viii-1950/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200716
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200717
DTSTAMP:20210708T141006Z
CREATED:20200131T000043Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210708T141006Z
UID:3070-1594857600-1594943999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Lawrence Cooper (16-vii-1970)
DESCRIPTION:BCN wishes Happy Birthday to IM Lawrence Cooper (16-vii-1970) \nLawrence was born in Stone\, Staffordshire and attend Walton High School\, Stafford. \nLawrence Cooper\, Demis Hassabis\, Cathy Hasslinger  and Dharshan Kumaran in around 1986. Possibly at a Lloyds Bank event.\nHe became a FIDE Master in 1989 and then an International Master in 2001. \nLawrence was awarded the FIDE International Organiser title in 2011 and the FIDE Arbiter title in 2016. \nTim Dickinson and Lawrence Cooper at the 2012 London Chess Classic\, Olympia\nHis peak rating was 2430 in January 1988. \nLawrence plays for Wood Green in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL)  plus Newport (Shropshire)\, Stafford\, Bushbury and Worcestershire CCA in other competitions. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nLawrence Cooper (centre with trophy) being presented with 1992 BCF Counties Championship trophy by WIM Cathy Forbes. Others in the group include Michael Gough\, Alan A Smith\, Gerald Acey\, Mike P Townsend\, Malcolm Armstrong\, Martin Costley\, Alan Crombleholme\, Graeme N Buckley\, Paul Wallace\, Mark A . Wheeler\, Dave Carless\, Darren P Wheeler\, Keith Thompson\, Ralph MA Allen and Graham Smith\n\nFull caption in image below\nFull caption for above 1986 BCF Junior Squad group photograph\n\n  \nIM Lawrence Cooper\, photography by Fiona Steil-Antoni\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-lawrence-h-cooper-16-vii-1970/
CATEGORIES:Arbiter,Birthday,British Championships,Organiser,Player
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200717
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200718
DTSTAMP:20210710T142153Z
CREATED:20200720T093008Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210710T142153Z
UID:7616-1594944000-1595030399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Dr. Julian Farrand QC (Hon) (13-viii-1935 17-vii-2020)
DESCRIPTION:BCN mourns the passing of Dr. Julian Farrand (13-viii-1935 17-vii-2020). He was 84 years of age. \nJulian Thomas Farrand was born August 13th\, 1935 in Doncaster in the West Riding of Yorkshire. \nDr. Farrand QC(Hon)\, formerly the Insurance Ombudsman\, became the Pensions Ombudsman\, and he had been a Law Commissioner and a University Professor of Law at the University of Manchester where he was Dean of the faculty. \nMost recently he lived in Morpeth\, London\, SW1. \nDr JULIAN FARRAND Pensions Ombudsman COMPULSORY CREDIT: UPPA/Photoshot Photo UKWT 011879/A-32a 31.07.1996\nHis first recorded game in Megabase 2020 was white at the 1968 British Championships in Bristol against life-long friend CGM Keith Bevan Richardson. Together with Raymond Brunton Edwards\, Julian and Keith were long-time trustees of the BCFs Permanent Invested Fund (PIF). \nJulian played for Pimlico\, Cavendish and Insurance in the London League and he maintained a standard play grading of 172A in 2020 as well as a FIDE rating of 1943 for standard play. He also played in the London Public Services League\, the Central London League and the City Chess Association League. He made regular appearances in the Bronowski Trophy competition and the World Senior’s Team Tournament. \nHis (according to Megabase 2020) peak Elo rating was 2238 in April\, 2004 aged 69. It is likely to have been higher than that if it was measured. \nJulian joined Barbican following its merger with Perception Youth to become Barbican Youth in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). \nHis favourite openings with white were : The Richter-Veresov Opening in later years and the English/Barcza Opening in earlier times. \nWith Black he enjoyed the Czech System and the Lenningrad Dutch. \nHis son\, Tom\, is a strong player and a successful barrister with expertise in Intellectual Property Rights\, Trademarks and Copyright law. \nHis wife (married in 1992)\, Baroness Hale of Richmond\, served as President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom from 2017 to 2020\, and serves as a member of the House of Lords as a Lord Temporal. \nJulian Farrand with Lady Hale at a Buckingham Palace reception. Photo : Press Association\nMemorial messages have been posted on the English Chess Forum and many will\, no doubt\, follow. Included are older games from John Saunders not found in the online databases. \nIn 2015 Julian (together with fellow trustees Keith Richardson and Ray Edwards) received the ECF President’s Award for services to the Permanent Invested Fund. \nHere is the citation from the 2015 award : \n“Julian is best known as the first-ever English ombudsman (in insurance). He is the husband of law lord Baroness Hale. I (SR) first met him at about the age of 12 year old when playing for my school. He is about four years older. Both Ray and Julian are members of the Book of the Year Committee and have been reviewing books for this purpose for many years. Both are quite strong chess players\, indeed playing for England in the same team in the European 60+ Team Championship in Vienna 11-20 July 2015. Keith was to have been a member of the same team\, but his wife’s ill-health forced him to withdraw.” \nHere is an obituary from The Times of London \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 an obituary from Stewart Reuben \nProf. Julian T Farrand at the King’s Place Rapidplay\, 2013\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nLove All Risks by Julian Farrand\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-prof-julian-t-farrand-13-viii-1935-17-vii-2020/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,Player,Writer
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200724
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200725
DTSTAMP:20210724T113420Z
CREATED:20191106T163952Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210724T113420Z
UID:1792-1595548800-1595635199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Marcus Harvey (24-vii-1996)
DESCRIPTION:BCN wishes Happy Birthday to FM Marcus Ross Harvey born on this day (Wednesday\, July 24th) in 1996. Killing Me Softly by the Fugees was top of the hit parade. \nMarcus was born in Oxford and attended The Marlborough School\, Woodstock\, Oxfordshire and then (in 2014) at The University of Southampton he studied mathematics. \nOriginally playing for Bicester Marcus now represents Witney Chess Club in local leagues. \nMarcus first played in the British Championship in 2011 (Sheffield). \nMarcus Harvey at the 2013 King’s Place Rapidplay\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nOriginally playing for Oxford he now plays for Wood Green in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL) and Southampton University in the Southampton League. \nMarcus playing IM Yang-Fan Zhou at the 2013 Delancey UKCC Terafinal at Loughborough Grammar School. Courtesy of John Upham Photography.\nIn 2014 Marcus won the title of “Strat” (the overall Terafinal winner) of the 2014 Delancey UK Chess Challenge at Loughborough Grammar School. \nMarcus Harvey at the 2013 Delancey UKCC Terafinal at Loughborough Grammar School\, courtesy of John Upham Photography.\nMarcus has a FIDE rating of 2440 and an ECF grading of 240. \n2014 Delancey UKCC Terafinal winner\, Marcus Harvey at Loughborough Grammar School. Courtesy of John Upham Photography\nIn 2018 he won the Witney Open outright with 4/5 and\, in the same year\, was runner-up to David Howell in the UK Blitz Open with 12.5/15 and a of 2589. \nIn 2019 he was =1st (with Mark Hebden) in the 4NCL Easter Open in Stevenage. Later that year Marcus was losing semi-finalist (to Gawain Jones) in the London Classic Blitz Knockout. \nMarcus\, on home ground\, won the 43rd Kidlington Open in 2020 and followed this with and is the current 2020 English Online Blitz Champion beating IM Andrew Greet\, FM Jonah Willow\, IM Ameet Ghasi and IM Andrew Horton in the final. \n\nIn the Pro chess league he represents UK Lions. \nMarcus Harvey’s FIDE rating profile according to Megabase 2020\nOn 6th November 2019 we reported that Marcus had obtained his second International Master norm at the recent (October 2019) Hull 4NCL International Congress by scoring 4.5/9 with wins over IM Andrew Greet and IM Richard Palliser. \nOn July 17th 2021 Marcus was joint winner with IM Peter Roberson in the 1st Chessfest Decode Rapidplay with an impressive 6/6 and a TPR of 2911. \nMarcus overcame Rory McLean\, Theo Koury\, Steven Coles\, FM Alexis Harakis\, CM Jonathan Pein and rapidplay / blitz specialist IM Ameet Ghasi to share first place. \nMarcus enjoys playing the Smyslov-Larsen opening with white \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nand the classical French and the Nimzo-Indian Defence. \nIt is clear that Marcus is now easily of IM strength and surely is a strong candidate for England’s next Grandmaster. \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 Marcus Ross Harvey\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-marcus-ross-harvey-24-vii-1996/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200724
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200725
DTSTAMP:20210719T075735Z
CREATED:20200410T131551Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210719T075735Z
UID:4344-1595548800-1595635199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Anthony Kosten (24-vii-1958)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of GM Anthony Cornelis Kosten (24-vii-1958) \nTony was born in North Eastern Surrey\, and eventually relocated to France where he now resides. \nTony is married to Gyongyver Kosten-Forintos\, the daughter of Hungarian Grandmaster Győző Forintos. \nStreatham & Brixton becoming BCF National Club Champions in 1989. The team was Tony Kosten\, Mark Hedben\, Daniel King\, Nigel Povah (Captain)\, Joe Gallagher and Julian Hodgson : quite a strong team\nHere is his Wikipedia entry \nTony played for Lower Earley and played in the Berkshire League and for Streatham & Brixton in the National Club competition. \nHe was =3rd in the 1982 British Championship in Torquay (won by Tony Miles) \nHe was =2nd in the 1984 Robert Silk Young Masters. \nHe won the Berkshire Chess Association Quickplay title in 1985. \nTony was runner-up to Yuri Balashov at Minsk 1986. \nHe won Naujac 2000 with 7.5/9 \nTony won many other events : See his Wikipedia entry for details. \nTony Kosten (fourth from left) at a NatWest Bank sponsored event\nTony is the founder of chesspublishing.com\, a subscription based web site specialising in cutting edge opening theory with many contributors. \nHe plays for Guildford in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL) is registered as a member of the French federation. He also plays for Schott Mainz in the German Team Championship. \nAccording to Megabase 2020 his highest FIDE rating was 2551 in July 2002 at the age of 44. \nWith the white pieces Tony prefers the Ruy Lopez and Giuoco Piano with the English coming a close second. \nWith black Tony defends the Lopez and the Nimzo-Indian defence. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nTony Kosten\nWinning Endgames\, Crowood\, 1987\nWinning with the Philidor\, Batsford\, 1992\n101 Tips to Improve your Chess\, Batsford\, 1996\nThe Dynamic English\, Gambit\, 1999\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-anthony-cornelius-kosten-24-vii-1958/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200725
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200726
DTSTAMP:20210725T144451Z
CREATED:20200725T153156Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210725T144451Z
UID:7849-1595635200-1595721599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Julian Hodgson (25-vii-1963)
DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to GM Julian Hodgson on his birthday\, this day July 25th in 1963. \nJulian Michael Hodgson was born in Hammersmith\, West London son of (Ronald) George Hodgson and Johanna Hodgson (née Birch). \nJulian has claimed to be a descendent of George Jeffreys\, 1st Baron Jeffreys and we are looking to establish this claim following further research. \nJulian attended St. Paul’s School (See below) and then attended The University of Leicester for one year. \nJulian married Lizette and David Norwood was his Best Man. \nJulian and Lizette Hodgson\n(Curiously both Felice and Gaige state Julian was born in Saint Asaph in Wales.) \nJulian Hodgson\nHarry Golombek wrote this about Julian in a 1980 Dataday chess diary : \n“I think that the first time I saw Julian Hodgson in play was some four years ago in a London tournament. Upon my arrival Leonard Barden told him that he must now be careful how he played as Golombek was watching. \nJulian and Nigel Short play Korchnoi in a simul. Leonard Barden observes.\n“Who”\, enquired the twelve-year old Julian\, “is Golombek?” \nNeil Carr and Julian Hodgson 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.\nI felt grateful at the time that he did not say who or what is Golombek but I tell this story chiefly to show the cheerful insouciance with which Master Hodgson treated all comers whether chess masters or chess rabbits. \nJulian playing Simon L Triggs. Event and photographer unknown\nJulian astonishing maturity as a player has been impressive ever since at the age of ten\, he won the Southern Counties Under 14 Championships in 1973. Since then he has acquired a host of such championships culminating in the British Under-21 Championship in 1977. \nStreatham & Brixton becoming BCF National Club Champions in 1989. The team was Tony Kosten\, Mark Hedben\, Daniel King\, Nigel Povah (Captain)\, Joe Gallagher and Julian Hodgson : quite a strong team\nPerhaps his most remarkable performance so far has been his equal 3rd in a strong challengers section at Hastings where he scored 7.5 out of 10. 1977 was a good year for him and here\, from the Lloyds Bank Silver Jubilee Tournament of that year is his fine win over a strong opponent : \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 entry (written by Richard W O’Brien) in British Chess (Pergamon Press\, 1983\, Botterill\, Levy\, Rice and Richardson) : \n“Following a series of excellent results Julian\, at the tender age of 11\, became the second youngest ever to play in an international tournament when he took part in the London Chess Club International Invitation tournament in September 1974. Only Reshevsky had been younger. Julian’s first opponent was Michael Woodhams\, an Australian international who had just scored 15.5/18 in the recent Olympiad (Nice) \nThe following year he became the youngest player ever to win the London Amateur Championship. A year later he reached a grading of 200 (BCF)\, only Reshevsky\, Pomar\, Karpov and Kasparov had done so at an earlier age. \nBy now he was at St. Paul’s School\, which was in the process of becoming one of the strongest chess playing schools in the country. In 1977 he shared first place with WN Watson (also St. Paul’s) in the British U21 Championship. Progress was however not as fast as had at one time been anticipated \n\nIt was at Ramsgate\, late in 1980 before his first IM norm. A month later he finished second in the Hastings Challenger. Other good results followed in 1981. First he was selected for the Glorney Cup and shortly afterwards did well to come fourteenth in the British Championship (Morecambe). He represented England in the World Youth Team championships scoring 4/6. His second IM norm followed when he shared fifth place at Manchester in the same year. Good results in weekend congresses meant that he finished fourth in the Leigh Grand Prix. The year had finished with Julian needing a draw in the last round at Ramsgate to get his title. He lost and was to wait another 12 months to achieve his final norm. \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\nWhen the final norm came it arrived out of the blue. With a score of 2.5/5 at Lewisham in November 1982 the chances seemed remote\, 3.5/4 was required against a strong field and it even seemed doubtful whether he could actually play those he needed to play. He scored 2.5/3 and now had to play Jon Tisdall\, who still had a chance of winning the tournament. \nJulian finished second equal in the tournament behind Jim Plaskett who had beaten him earlier. \nJulian Hodgson\nThe next six weeks saw Julian come equal first in the Pergamon sponsored British Lightning championship\, a highly creditable sixth in the Nightflight International at Brighton (equivalent to an IM rating) and second place yet again in the Hastings Challengers. \nJohn Delaney plays Julian Hodgson at the Bath Zonal Tournament in 1987\nEarlier in 1983 he scored 6.5/9 at Lugano\, probably Europe’s strongest ever Swiss (Swiss !) tournament\, losing narrowly to Jan Timman. \nJulian Hodgson. Event and photographer unknown.\nHe left Leicester University after just one year preferring to concentrate on chess. \nFM Andrew Whiteley\, IM Julian Hodgson and FM Byron Jacobs at Cappelle Le Grand\, 1988. Photograph by Caroline Winkler\nHe plays fairly regularly for Streatham & Brixton Chess Club which encouraged juniors for several years. Daniel King is another junior who also played frequently for Streatham. ” \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\nThis is what was written about Julian prior to the 1979 Spassky vs the BCF Junior Squad simultaneous display : “St Paul’s and Shepherds Bush. Rating 210. Standard London Amateur Champion at age 12\, 1975. \nStandard London under-18 champion\, 1976. British under-21 co-champion\, 1977. Youngest ever to beat two grandmasters in successive games\, 1978.” \nJulian Hodgson drawn by Rupert van der Linden\nJulian was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion in the 1997-98 season. \nJulian has claimed that he is a descended from the (in)famous “hanging judge” Jeffries ! \n\nJulian is the in-house chess teacher at Westminster School. \nHere is his Wikipedia entry : \nGM Julian Hodgson\nAside from more formal achievements\, he developed a sharp\, relentless\, attacking style of play and against lesser opponents this frequently resulted in devastating quick wins\, earning him the epithet “Grandmaster of Disaster”. \nHans Ree plays Julian Hodgson at the Cannes Team Tournament\, 1992\nHodgson’s greatest legacy as a chess player may however lie in his resurrection of an almost forgotten opening system. The Trompowsky Attack (1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5) had floundered in the doldrums for many years\, prior to his adoption and development of the opening. In interviews\, he reveals that this was born out of laziness and a reluctance to learn established chess opening theory. It soon became his weapon of choice with the white pieces\, leading to a surprising popularisation of the system\, the spawning of a whole generation of devotees and ironically\, a number of theoretical guides\, containing a high quota of Hodgson’s own games and analysis. Indeed\, his expert treatment of the system once prompted fellow grandmaster Joe Gallagher to write that it should be renamed the Hodgson–Trompowsky Attack\, a view shared by many other masters. A chess journalist once wrote that Hodgson put the ‘romp’ into Trompowsky. \nA related\, but more obscure version of the system (1.d4 d5 2.Bg5)\, has been dubbed by some the Hodgson Attack and by others the Pseudo-Trompowsky or Queen’s Bishop Attack. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\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\nJulian\, Dominic Lawson and Matthew Sadler\nChess Traveller’s Quiz Book\, Julian Hodgson\, Cadogan Press\, 1996\, ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1857440300\nAttack with Julian Hodgson\, Book No.1\nAttack with Julian Hodgson\, Book No.2\nQuick Chess Knockouts\nJulian Hodgson drawn by Rupert van der Linden\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/happy-birthday-gm-julian-hodgson-25-vii-1963/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200731
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200801
DTSTAMP:20210731T120436Z
CREATED:20200408T184817Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210731T120436Z
UID:4207-1596153600-1596239999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Nigel Davies (31-vii-1960)
DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to GM Nigel Davies on his birthday\, this day (July 31st) in 1960. \nNigel Rodney Davies was born in Southport\, Merseyside. \nHe lived in the Wirral\, Merseyside\, moved to Sidcup and then to St. Helen’s\, Merseyside where he resides with his chess playing son\, Sam who is ECF 1928A currently. \nIn July 2020 Nigel graduated with a BSc (Hons) in Computing from Edge Hill University. \nNigel Davies (centre) at a Lloyds Bank event\nHe became an FIDE Master in 1980\, an International Master in 1982 and a Grandmaster in 1993. \nNigel Davies\nHe won the British Under-21 Championship in 1979 (Chester) and the British Rapidplay Championship in 1987. \nNigel receives a much welcome prize (in Manchester) from Miss Benedictine in 198?\nHe won The Regency Ramsgate Masters 1980\, Wrexham 1994\, Katrineholm 1995 and the Blackpool Hilton Premier in 2003. \nNigel Davies\nNigel publishes his Chess Improver Blog and Tiger Chess for online training. The ECF lists this as his main club. \n\nIn 2015 Nigel transferred his international allegiance from England (the English Chess Federation) to Wales (Welsh Chess Union). He maintains an ECF standard play rating  of 2448E. \nWilliam Watson\, Jonny Hector\, Alexander Khalifman\, Jonathan Tisdall and Nigel Davies at the 1991 Watson\, Farley\, Williams tournament in London.\nHis peak FIDE rating was 2530 in January 1995 at the age of 35. \nHere is one of Nigel’s favourite games \nNigel Davies\, seated\, second from right\, event unknown\nIn 2015 Nigel contributed to an article by Guardian journalist\, Stephen Moss entitled “Grandmaster crash: the inside story of how English chess pawned its future” \nGM Nigel Davies\nHere is his Wikipedia entry \nHere is an article : Fight against the solid Caro-Kann opening with the Caro Krusher – GM Nigel Davies \nNigel’s repertoire with White is wide including Queen’s Gambit\, King’s Indian Attack\, English/Reti and the Ruy Lopez. \nAs black Nigel’s repertoire is also varied and difficult to pin down. The Modern Defence is a favourite and is the Nimzo-Indian Defence. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nNigel is an active user of Twitter and may be found @GMNigelDavies \nIn 2020 the Welsh Chess Union successfully endorsed Nigel’s application to FIDE to become a FIDE Senior Trainer which he became in 2021: \nNigel Davies\, FIDE Senior Trainer\nNigel has had many books and DVDs published : \nThe Chess Player’s Battle Manual. Batsford. ISBN 0-7134-7043-7\nThe Power Chess Program. Batsford. ISBN 0-7134-8415-2.\nThe Grünfeld Defence. Everyman Chess. ISBN 1-85744-239-3.\nThe Veresov. Everyman Chess. ISBN 9781857443356.\nThe Dynamic Reti. Everyman Chess. ISBN 9781857443523.\nThe Trompowsky. Everyman Chess. ISBN 1857443764.\nKing’s Indian Attack. Hamburg: ChessBase. ISBN 978-3-86681-071-6.\nStarting Out: The Modern. Everyman Chess. ISBN 9781857445664.\nPlay the Catalan. Gloucester Publishers plc (formerly Everyman Publishers plc). ISBN 9781857445916.\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-nigel-rodney-davies-31-vii-1960/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200731
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200801
DTSTAMP:20210710T144415Z
CREATED:20200731T001056Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210710T144415Z
UID:3900-1596153600-1596239999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Jacob Aagaard (31-vii-1973)
DESCRIPTION:BCN wishes Happy Birthday to GM Jacob Aagaard (31-vii-1973) \nJacob was born in Hørsholm in Denmark. \nHe became an International Master in 1997 and a Grandmaster in 2007. \nHis peak FIDE rating was 2542 in May 2010 aged 36. \n\nJacob is the owner of publishing house\, Quality Chess and works with IM Andrew Greet. \nGM Jacob Aagaard takes on all-comers!\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nJacob’s publications include : \n (1998). Easy Guide to the Panov-Botvinnik Attack. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-563-3.\n (2000). Easy Guide to the Sveshnikov Sicilian. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-280-9.\n (2001). Dutch Stonewall. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-252-6.\n (2001). Excelling at Chess. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-273-1.\n (2002). Queen’s Indian Defence. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-300-4.\n and Esben Land (2002). Meeting 1.d4. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-224-3.\n (2003). Excelling at Positional Chess. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-325-7.\n (2004). Excelling at Chess Calculation. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-360-8.\n (2004). Excelling at Combinational Play. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-345-5.\n (2004). Excelling at Technical Chess. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-364-6.\n (2004). Starting Out: The Grunfeld. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-350-9.\n (2004). Inside the Chess Mind. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1857443578.\n (2006). Practical Chess Defence. Quality Chess. ISBN 978-91-975244-4-5.\n (2008). The Attacking Manual: Basic Principles. Quality Chess. ISBN 978-91-976004-0-8.\n (2008). The Attacking Manual 2: Technique and Praxis. Quality Chess. ISBN 978-91-976004-1-5.\n (2012). Grandmaster Preparation – Calculation. Quality Chess. ISBN 978-1-907982-31-6.\n(2012). Grandmaster Preparation – Positional Play. Quality Chess. ISBN 978-1-907982-27-9.\n (2013). Grandmaster Preparation – Strategic Play. Quality Chess. ISBN 978-1-907982-29-3.\n(2013). Grandmaster Preparation – Attack & Defence. Quality Chess. ISBN 978-1-907982-70-5.\n(2014). Grandmaster Preparation – Endgame Play. Quality Chess. ISBN 978-1-907982-27-9.\n (2017). Grandmaster Preparation – Thinking Inside the Box. Quality Chess. ISBN 978-1-907982-35-4. \n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-jacob-aagaard-31-vii-1973/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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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\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-cm-david-william-anderton-obe-02-viii-1941/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Honours,Official,Player,Remembering
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200803
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200804
DTSTAMP:20210803T163522Z
CREATED:20200409T080423Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210803T163522Z
UID:4233-1596412800-1596499199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Sam Franklin (03-viii-1994)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Samuel Gideon A Franklin (03-viii-1994) \nFM Samuel GA Franklin from the Varsity Match\, 9th March 2014\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nFM Samuel GA Franklin from the London Chess Classic\, 29th December 2013.\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-samuel-ga-franklin-03-viii-1994/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200809
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200810
DTSTAMP:20210802T084332Z
CREATED:20200408T212410Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210802T084332Z
UID:4215-1596931200-1597017599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Angus Dunnington (09-viii-1967)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM Angus Dunnington (09-viii-1967) \nAngus James Dunnington was born in Wakefield\, West Yorkshire\, his mother’s maiden name was Townend. \nHe has lived in Castleford\, West Yorkshire and most recently in Lockerbie\, Dumfriesshire. \nAngus became a FIDE Master in 1990 and an International Master in 1991. \nAngus has been a recipient of a Chess Journalists of America award and was chess correspondent for The Yorkshire Post. He has been an Olympiad trainer. \nAngus has played for 4NCL White Rose and his peak FIDE rating was 2450 in January 1996\, aged 29. \nHe won Toulouse 1993 with 6.5/9\, we was first equal (3) in the London Agency tournament on 1997 with 6/9\, we was equal first in the 1999 Hampstead IM tournament with 6.5/9. \nAs White Angus prefers a Reti style double fianchetto\, the King’s Indian Attack and also the Queen’s Gambit and is an expert on the Catalan and KIA. \nAs Black Angus essays the Modern Defence for most of the time. \nHis most recent ECF grading was 212E in 2005 and was 232A in 1996. \nIn 2018 after a lengthy absence Angus made a welcome return to the Scottish Championship Open with a strong =3rd place. \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\nIM Angus Dunnington\, photograph by Gisbert Jacoby\nHere is his Wikipedia entry \nThe Ultimate King’s Indian Attack\, 1993\nPawn Power !\, 1994\nWinning with the Catalan\, 1997\nEasy Guide to the Reti Opening\n101 Winning Chess Strategies\, 1999\nWinning Unorthodox Openings\, 2000\nMastering the Middlegame\, 2001\nChess Psychology\, 2003\nNimzo-Indian Rubinstein: Complex Lines with 4e3\, 2004\nBlunders and How to Avoid Them\, 2004\nIM Angus Dunnington\, photograph by Cathy Rogers\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-angus-dunnington-09-viii-1967/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Poker,Writer
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200812
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200813
DTSTAMP:20210805T102719Z
CREATED:20190822T222527Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210805T102719Z
UID:1016-1597190400-1597276799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Bill Hartston (12-viii-1947)
DESCRIPTION:IM William Hartston\, FIDE Candidates\, 2013\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\nOn the “glorious twelfth” of August we celebrate the birthday of one of England’s most popular chess players and writers\, IM Bill Hartston. \nWilliam Roland Hartston was born in Willesden\, Middlesex on Tuesday\, August 12th\, 1947. His father was William Hartston\, a significant member of the Royal College of Physicians who was married to Mary Rowland. Bill has a sister. \nBill Hartston\nHe studied at the City of London School and then studied mathematics at Jesus College\, Cambridge and graduated with a BA in 1968 and an MA in 1972\, but did not complete his PhD on number theory. \nAn early Bill Hartston\, event unknown\nWhile studying for his PhD at Cambridge\, Hartston developed an intricate system for balancing an entire chess set on top of a single rook. Here is an article with an explanation letter from Bill. \nBill married Dr. Jana Malypetrova in January\, 1970 in Cambridge. In 1978 Bill married Elizabeth Bannerman\, also in Cambridge and from that marriage he had two sons\, James and Nicholas. \nBill and Dr. Jana Hartston (née Malypetrova)\nBill became an International Master in 1972 and his highest FIDE rating was 2485 in January 1979. \nWith the white pieces Bill almost exclusively played 1.e4 and the Ruy Lopez. \nWith the black pieces Bill played the Sicilian Taimanov and the Czech Benoni. \nBill plays his trusty Sicilian Taimanov against an unknown opponent\nBill is a self-proclaimed follower of Prof. AJ Ayer (See the Acknowledgements in “Soft Pawn”) Clint Eastwood and Tottenham Hotspur Football Club. \nBill and Jana Hartston are shown with some of their many chess sets. CHESS\, August 1973\, page 323\nBill was the chess correspondent of The Independent and The Mail on Sunday. He was also a regular presenter and commentator for television. He worked with Jeremy James on the BBC’s Master Game. \nThe Master Game\, Series 6&7 with Jeremy James and Bill Hartston\nBill is an industrial psychologist. \nCuriously the 1984 edition of the usually reliable The Oxford Companion to Chess by Hooper and Whyld does not have an entry for the twice British Champion : was this simply an oversight ? Jana is also not mentioned. \n\nBill wrote about himself in British Chess (Pergamon\, 1983) : \n“To summarise more than 20 years of playing competitive chess in a few hundred words is an impossible task. My attitude to the game has changed a great deal\, especially in recent times\, but I have always enjoyed and felt at home in the tense and lively atmosphere of chess tournaments\, whether as a competitor\, spectator or journalist. \nCaption as per photograph below\nCaption for above photograph\nI consider myself lucky to have been a ‘promising junior’ just at the time when chess was beginning to be taken seriously as a sport in England. The English team consisted mainly of amateurs and there were clear opportunities for anyone willing to work at the game. As a result of the changing attitudes to the game in this country\, the development between 1965\, when I first played for the national team\, and 1975 was far greater than in any other decade. One statistic which I have always found personally amusing is that I progressed from youngest player in 1967 for the Clare Benedict tournament to become the oldest in the 1971 team. From promising junior to veteran in four years = is this a record ? \nBill Hartston commentating on games from the Phillips & Drew King’s 1982\nSince my second British Championship win in 1975\, I have been writing more and playing less. I always realised that I was not going to become a sufficiently strong player to be happy just wandering round the tournament circuit\, but giving up chess entirely is\, of course\, unthinkable. I believe now that the time is ripe for chess to be presented to far wider audiences and I like to think that some of what I do will help in that aim. If the Master Game television series and “Soft Pawn” cannot sell chess to the masses then nothing will.” \nBill was always a keen supporter of junior chess. Here at the Teachers Assurance National Schools Championships in 1980\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHarry Golombek wrote the following in a 1980 Dataday chess diary : \n“Hartston played hardly at all during the period from my last entry of him in the 1977 diary and that little\, though respectable\, was hardly the performance of an active master. His equal 3rd to 5th at the big Aaronson’s Masters Tournament (a swiss system event with 72 players) did not really affect his rating and indeed he finished up without changing his Elo rating at all. \nNevertheless\, this glimpse of his true powers was impressive as can be seen in the following game which was played in the 6th round of the Aaronson tournament.” \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(Robert Hale\, 1970 & 1976) by Anne Sunnucks : \n“International Master (1972) and British Champion (1973) William Hartston was born in London on the 12th August 1947. He was taught to play chess by his father when he was seven and five years later joined Enfield Chess Club. His results in junior events included 1st in the London Boys’ Under 16 Championship and 2nd in the British Boys’ Under 15 Championship in 1962 and =2nd in the British Boys Under 18 Championship in 1963. \nBill had a keen interest in computer chess and technology\nIn 1965\, Hartston made his first appearance in the British Championship and came =5th. In the same year he won the Ilford and Paignton Premier tournaments. Playing on board 3 for England in the 1966 Olympiad. Hartston scored the best result of any British player\, 66.7%. In the Olympiad of 1970\, he had the best overall score on board 3\, 12.5 out of 16 and in the Olympiad of 1972 he won the prize for the 3rd best score on board 2\, 12.5 out of 18. In 1972 he narrowly failed to qualify for the Interzonal tournament\, when he came 3rd in the Zonal tournament at Vranjacka Banja.” \nMike Basman plays Bill during the play-off for the 1973 British Championship\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977) by Harry Golombek : \n“British International Master and twice British Champion. Hartston was born in London and his early chess was played there.\, where he became London Boy (Under-16 Champion in 1962. \nHe was educated at the City of London School and Jesus College\, Cambridge\, where he took a degree in mathematics. \nIt soon became clear that he was one of the leading young players in England and a rivalry developed between him and Raymond Keene in which first one and then the other obtained the upper hand. \nAfter a number of near misses he won the British Championship at Eastbourne in 1973 and again at Morecambe in 1975. \nJana & Bill Hartston celebrate a family double at the British Championships in 1973 at Eastbourne\nInternationally he has already had a distinguished career and has been especially good and consistent in his representation of England at the Olympiads. At Havana in 1966 he scored 66.7% on board 3 but did not play at Lugano in 1968. Again on board 3 at Siegen in 1970 he obtained the best score on board 3 with 78.1%. At Skopje 1972 he fulfilled the second norm of the international master title with 12.5 points out of 18 on second board. Playing on first board at Nice 1974 he attained 52.7% and had a most meritorious and well fought draw with the World Champion\, Karpov. \nBill Hartston draws with Anatoly Karpov at Nice 1974\nHe achieved a breakthrough in the field of international tournament chess when he came third in a strong Premier tournament at Hastings 1972/3 \nHastings\, England\, 4th January 1972\, Chess\, Russian Grand Master Viktor Korchnoi (right) is pictured in a match with William Hartston (UK) during the 47th Hastings International Chess Tournament (Photo by Popperfoto via Getty Images/Getty Images)\nand in 1973 he scored a first at Alicante. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nHis best tournament result came three years later when he won 1st prize at Sarajevo 1976. \nSarajevo 1976 Crosstable from English Chess Explosion (1980)\nHis style of play is sound and competent in all the spheres of the game. That he can be brilliant when necessary he demonstrated his beautiful brilliancy game against the Finnish grandmaster Westerinen at Allicante in 1973. He has a fine\, broad knowledge of the openings and has written a number of articles and books on that theme. \nBill was always a keen supporter of junior chess. event 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\nDanish chess grandmaster Bent Larsen (1935 – 2010\, left) takes on English player William Hartston (right) during the annual Hastings International Chess Congress\, UK\, 13th January 1973. Larsen won the game. (Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)\nA lucid and entertaining writer\, he has also appeared with success in BBC Television chess programmes. \nBill Hartston at a promotional event\nAmong his chief works are : \nThe Benoni\, London\, 1969\nThe Grunfeld Defence\, London\, 1971\nThe Best Games of CHO’D Alexander (with H. Golombek)\, Oxford\, 1976.” \nIn modern times Bill has made regular appearances with World Cluedo champion\, Josef Kollar on Channel Four’s Gogglebox with a pair of painted breasts as background. \nHere is his Wikipedia article \nSee his entry from the Jewish Lives Project \nThe King’s Indian Defence\, 1969\nThe Benoni\, 1969\nHow to Cheat at Chess\, 1976\nThe Best Games of C.H.O’D. Alexander\, 1976\nThe Grünfeld Defence\, 1977\nBenoni\, 1977\nKarpov-Korchnoi\, 1978\nSoft Pawn\, 1980\nThe Phillips & Drew King’s Chess Tournament\, 1980\nThe Penguin Book of Chess Openings\, 1981\nThe Psychology of Chess\, 1984\nShort vs Kasparov\, 1993\nThe Kings of Chess\, 1995\nThe Guinness Book of Chess Grandmasters\, 1996\nWilliam Hartston\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-william-hartston/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,History,Journalist,Player,Writer
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200815
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200816
DTSTAMP:20260811T102336Z
CREATED:20200411T181253Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260811T102336Z
UID:4474-1597449600-1597535999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Andrew Smith (15-viii-1959)
DESCRIPTION:BCN wishes Happy Birthday to FM Andrew Smith (15-viii-1959) \nAndrew became a FIDE Master in 1994 and is registered with the Irish Chess Union. \nHis highest FIDE rating was 2310 in July 1994 at the age of 35. \nFM Andrew Smith\, photographer unknown\nHe plays for Bourne End Chess Club in the Buckinghamshire League and in the Berkshire League. \nAndrew also plays for 4NCL Barnet Knights (he has played for Atticus)\, Buckinghamshire CCA in the Chiltern League and Hon Members LCCL. \nHe has won the Berks & Bucks Congress in 2018 and 2016 (joint) and he became Berkshire Individual Champion as a direct consequence winning the Cadogan Cup. \nWith the white pieces Andrew is (almost) exclusively a 1.e4 player favouring the Centre Game \nand as the second player Andrew plays the Philidor Defence and the Benoni. \nHe is known to favour “enterprising” variations such as the Mason Variation of the Philidor\, the Haldane Attack versus the French and other such exotica. \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume CXXXII (132)\, Number 7 (July) front cover features FM Andrew Smith from the final 4NCL weekend of the 2011-2012 season\, 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 Andrew Smith at the 2019 Keith Richardson Memorial\, courtesy of John Upham Photography\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-andrew-p-smith-15-viii-1959/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200820
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200821
DTSTAMP:20210820T094736Z
CREATED:20190822T152431Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210820T094736Z
UID:977-1597881600-1597967999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of Leonard Barden (20-viii-1929)
DESCRIPTION:Ninety-two today is Leonard Barden\, born Tuesday\, August 20th\, 1929. \nHis mother’s maiden was Bartholomew and she became Elise EM Barden when she married Leonard’s father who was William C Barden and in 1939 they lived at 89\, Tennison Road\, Croydon. \n89\, Tennison Road\, Croydon\nFrom The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977) by Harry Golombek OBE: \n“British Master and joint British Champion 1954. Barden was born in Croydon and learned to play at his school\, Whitgift\, which became a frequent producer of fine players. \nIn 1946 he tied for first place in the London Boys Championship and in the following year he tied with Jonathan Penrose for first place in the British Boys Championship\, but lost the play-off. \nIn 1952 he came first at Paignton ahead of the Canadian Grandmaster Yanofsky and he reached his peak in 1954 when \, after tieing for first place with the Belgian Grandmaster O’Kelly de Galway at Bognor\, he tied for for first place in the British Championship at Nottingham with A. Phillips. The play-off was drawn and so the players became joint champions. \nAlan Phillips and Leonard Barden are joint British Champions of 1954 in Nottingham\, photographer unknown\nHe played for the BCF in four Olympiads from 1952 to 1962 and then abandoned competitive chess\, applying all his energies to writing (he is chess correspondent of the Guardian\, the Financial Times\, the Evening Standard and the Field\, and has written many books on the game. \nHe has also developed two special interests\, in junior chess and in grading\, working with utmost persistence and energy in both of these fields. \nLeonard authored a series of articles on what was to become the Yugoslav Attack versus the Sicilian Dragon. Source : British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXXIII\, Number 7 (July)\, page 208\nAmongst his best works are : a A Guide to Chess Openings\, London\, 1957; The Ruy Lopez\, Oxford\, 1963; The King’s Indian Defence\, London\, 1968.” \nDisappointingly  Sunnucks Encyclopedia does not mention Barden at all and and surprisingly Hooper and Whyld’s usually excellent Oxford Companion only from a connection with Jim Slater. \nLeonard Bardens’ Evening Standard column ends after 63 Years \nSignature of LW Barden from a Brian Reilly “after dinner” postcard from Southsea 1951.\nHere is an in-depth article from Edward Winter \nLeonard Barden’s Blunder Theory from Kingpin Magazine \n54-Year-Old Chess Record established in 2009 \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Leonard William Barden (born 20 August 1929\, in Croydon\, London) is an English chess master\, writer\, broadcaster\, organizer and promoter. The son of a dustman\, he was educated at Whitgift School\, South Croydon\, and Balliol College\, Oxford\, where he read Modern History. \nTravel Chess2nd January 1951: British chess champions Jonathan Penrose and Leonard Barden prepare their openings over breakfast in the Yelton Hotel before the 9.30 am round start at Hastings 1950-51. (Photo by Walter Bellamy/Express/Getty Images)\nHe learned to play chess at age 13 while in a school shelter during a World War II German air raid. Within a few years he became one of the country’s leading juniors.[1] He represented England in four Chess Olympiads. Barden played a major role in the rise of English chess from the 1970s. As a chess columnist for various newspapers\, his column in London’s Evening Standard is the world’s longest-standing chess column. \nLeonard Barden (seated\, second from right) Before Botvinnik’s 1981 Pergamon Press clock simul against England juniors\, the final competitive event of the Patriarch’s career.Standing: Stuart Conquest\, Neil Dickenson. Gary Lane\, Alan Byron\,Daniel King\, John Hawksworth\, Pergamon editor.Seated: Julian Hodgson\, Byron Jacobs\, Mikhail Botvinnik\, Leonard Barden\, Bernard Cafferty.\nIn 1946\, Barden won the British Junior Correspondence Chess Championship\, and tied for first place in the London Boys’ Championship. The following year he tied for first with Jonathan Penrose in the British Boys’ Championship\, but lost the playoff. \nBarden finished fourth at Hastings in 1951–52. In 1952\, he won the Paignton tournament ahead of the Canadian future grandmaster Daniel Yanofsky. He captained the Oxfordshire team which won the English Counties championship in 1951 and 1952. \nBarden making a move at Southend 1955.\nIn the latter year he captained the University of Oxford team which won the National Club Championship\, and he represented the university in the annual team match against the University of Cambridge during his years there. In 1953\, he won the individual British Lightning Championship (ten seconds a move). \nThe following year\, he tied for first with the Belgian grandmaster Albéric O’Kelly de Galway at Bognor Regis\, was joint British champion\, with Alan Phillips\, and won the Southern Counties Championship. \nLeonard Barden vs Victor Korchnoi\, Leipzig Olympiad\, 1960\nHe finished fourth at Hastings 1957–58\, ranked by chessmetrics as his best statistical performance. In the 1958 British Chess Championship\, Barden again tied for first\, but lost the playoff match to Penrose 1½–3½. \nLeonard Barden (centre) with Raaphi Persitz\, JB Sykes\, OI Galvenius and DM Armstrong\, Ilford\, May\, 1953\n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nLWB observes analysis between David Rumens and Murray Chandler from Brighton 1980. Photograph courtesy of John Upham.\nHe represented England in the Chess Olympiads at Helsinki 1952 (playing fourth board\, scoring 2 wins\, 5 draws\, and 4 losses)\, Amsterdam 1954 (playing first reserve\, scoring 1 win\, 2 draws\, and 4 losses)\, Leipzig 1960 (first reserve; 4 wins\, 4 draws\, 2 losses) and Varna 1962 (first reserve; 7 wins\, 2 draws\, 3 losses). The latter was his best performance by far. \nLeonard Barden (left) and Murray Chandler display the Lloyds Bank Trophy which the 19-year old New Zealander won ahead of 3 Grandmasters and 10 International Masters for his finest international success up to 1979. in the Lloyds Bank Masters\nBarden has a Morphy number of 3\, having drawn with Jacques Mieses in the Premier Reserves at Hastings 1948–49. Mieses drew with Henry Bird in the last round of Hastings 1895\, and Bird played a number of games with Paul Morphy in 1858 and 1859. \nEngland’s under-12 junior teams finished first and second in the international Eumig Cup\, 1981.Front row: Peter Morrish (organiser)\, Jimmy Hockaday\, Darren Lee\, Neil Fox\, Neil Carr. Second row: James Howell\, Stuart Conquest\, Teresa Needham. Far right: LB.\nIn 1964\, Barden gave up most competitive chess to devote his time to chess organisation\, broadcasting\, and writing about the game. He has made invaluable contributions to English chess as a populariser\, writer\, organiser\, fundraiser\, and broadcaster. \nLeonard Barden at Bob Wade’s 80th birthday party\, 2001.\nHe was controller of the British Chess Federation Grand Prix for many years\, having found its first sponsor\, Cutty Sark. He was a regular contributor to the BBC’s Network Three weekly radio chess programme from 1958 to 1963. His best-known contribution was a consultation game\, recorded in 1960 and broadcast in 1961\, where he partnered Bobby Fischer against the English masters Jonathan Penrose and Peter Clarke. This was the only recorded consultation game of Fischer’s career. The game\, unfinished after eight hours of play\, was adjudicated a draw by former world champion Max Euwe. Barden gave BBC television commentaries on all the games in the 1972 world championship. From 1973 to 1978 he was co-presenter of BBC2’s annual Master Game televised programme. \nJulian and Nigel Short play Korchnoi in the Evening Standard 1976 simul. Leonard Barden observes.\nAs of 2021\, his weekly columns have been published in The Guardian for 65 years and in The Financial Times for 46 years. A typical Barden column not only contains a readable tournament report\, but is geared toward promoting the game. His London Evening Standard column\, begun in summer 1956\, is now the world’s longest running daily chess column by the same author\, breaking the previous record set by George Koltanowski in the San Francisco Chronicle. Koltanowski’s column ran for 51 years\, 9 months\, and 18 days\, including posthumous articles.” \nLeonard Barden (Linda Nylind of the Guardian)\nLeonard wrote this on the English Chess Forum in 2021 : \n“I retired after Ilford 1964 when I finished a poor last in the England Olympiad team qualifier\, returned at Hammersmith 1969 (equal 2nd behind Keene) and then played around 6-8 weekenders a year until 1972. My overall performance level between early 60s and early 70s dropped from around 225 to 215 BCF\, so I wasn’t encouraged to pursue the comeback further.” \nLeonard was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion in the 1953-54 season. \nLeonard Barden\, Stewart Reuben and Michael Franklin at the 1978 Aaronson Masters\nLeonard reveals this as his best game : \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 has authored or co-authored a number of highly regarded books\, most of which are highly instructional to this day: \nA Guide to Chess Openings (1957)\, \nA Guide to Chess Openings\nHow Good Is Your Chess? (1957)\, \nHow Good is Your Chess ?\nChess (1959)\,\nIntroduction to Chess Moves and Tactics Simply Explained (1959)\, \nAn Introduction to Chess Moves and Tactics Simply Explained\nModern Chess Miniatures (with Wolfgang Heidenfeld\, 1960)\,\nErevan 1962 (1963)\,\nThe Ruy Lopez (1963)\, \nThe Ruy Lopez\nThe Guardian Chess Book (1967)\, \nThe Guardian Chess Book\nAn Introduction to Chess (1967)\, \nAn Introduction to Chess\nThe King’s Indian Defence (1969)\, \nThe King’s Indian Defence\nChess: Master the Moves (1977)\,\nGuide to the Chess Openings (with Tim Harding\, 1977)\, \nGuide to the Chess Openings\nLeonard Barden’s Chess Puzzle Book (1977) (a collection of his Evening Standard columns)\, \nLeonard Barden’s Chess Puzzle Book\nThe Master Game (with Jeremy James\, 1979)\, \nThe Master Game\nHow to Play the Endgame in Chess (1979)\, \nHow to Play The Endgame in Chess\nPlay Better Chess (1980)\, \nPlay Better Chess\nBatsford Chess Puzzles (2002)\, \nBatsford Chess Puzzles\nOne Move and You’re Dead (with Erwin Brecher\, 2007) : Can you supply an image? \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:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-leonard-william-barden/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Organiser,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200821
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200822
DTSTAMP:20260811T104024Z
CREATED:20200411T122812Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260811T104024Z
UID:4412-1597968000-1598054399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of WCM Dinah Norman (née Dobson) (21-viii-1946)
DESCRIPTION:BCN wishes Happy Birthday to Dinah Norman on August 21st\n\nDinah Margaret Dobson was born on Wednesday\, August 21st 1946 in Exeter\, Devon. Her parents were Leslie and Barbara Dobson (née Hayward).\n\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\n\nDinah became a WCM in 2002.\n\nAccording to chessgames.com : “Dinah Margaret Norman Dobson is a WCM. She was British champion (w) in 1967 (=Rowena Mary Bruce\, Oxford)\, 1968 (Bristol) and 1969 (=Rowena Mary Bruce\, Rhyl).”\n\nDinah Dobson 22-year-old Champion British Chess Player Deep In Thought During Chess Competition In Hastings. Mandatory Credit: Photo by ANL/Shutterstock\n\nDinah played on board three (i.e. 1st reserve) for England in the third FIDE Women’s Olympiad in Oberhausen\, Germany in 1966 and in 1969 she played board 1 in Lublin\, Poland.\n\nEnglish Chess Champion Dinah Dobson Playing Against Two German Boys During Lunch-break At Chess Competition In Hastings. Box 658 221121512 A.jpg.English Chess Champion Dinah Dobson Playing Against Two German Boys During Lunch-break At Chess Competition In Hastings. Mandatory Credit: Photo by ANL/Shutterstock\n\nShe played in the 1968 Anglo-Dutch match on the Ladies board\, which\, at that time\, did not count in the overall match result.\n\nThe Annual International Chess Championship opened today at Hasting. Dinah “Dobson\,” “23\,” of Northwood Middlesex. December 1969\n\nNow (1071) living in Northwood\, Middlesex\, she married Danny Wright in Westminster and in 1983 she married Ken Norman in Richmond.\n\nDinah Wright (third from right) playing in the 1971 British Ladies Championship in Palatine School\, Blackpool. Courtesy of Lancashire Evening Post.\n\nDinah has been a member of Crowthorne Chess Club and has played in the Berkshire League.  She has represented 4NCL Iceni and Guildford in other competitions.\n\nAccording to Megabase 2020 her highest FIDE rating was 2085 in July 1990 at the age of 44. However\, it would have been higher than this in the late 1960s and 1970s had ratings been established then.\n\nDinah Norman at the 2017 Keith Richardson Memorial organised by Camberley Chess Club. Courtesy of John Upham Photographic\n\n\nWith the white pieces she has essayed the Colle-Koltanowki Opening for many years and as the second player she has played the Caro-Kann\, Smyslov Variation and the Semi-Slav Defence.\n\n\nDinah Norman with Sandra Richardson at the 2017 Keith Richardson Memorial organised by Camberley Chess Club\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-dinah-margaret-norman-nee-dobson-21-viii-1946/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,History,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200822
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200823
DTSTAMP:20260811T104346Z
CREATED:20200427T164449Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260811T104346Z
UID:5018-1598054400-1598140799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Ernst Klein (29-i-1910 22-viii-1990)
DESCRIPTION:Death Anniversary of Ernst Klein (29-i-1910 22-viii-1990) \nFrom CHESS\, July 1946 (and also The Anglo-Soviet Radio Chess Match) : \nSince Ernst Klein came to England in 1935 his play has earned our ungrudging admiration. Born in Vienna\, 1910\, he learned chess at the age of eleven. His grandmother taught him the moves\, his father having died when he was eight. Steinitz was a frequent guest in his grandparents house. At eighteen\, he shared first\, second and third prizes in the Championship of Vienna. Before coming to England\, he had lived for some years in Switzerland\, France and Italy and his French\, German and English are equally impeccable. In his last tournament at Bournemouth\, in 193\, he finished equal with Flohr after Euwe ahead of König\, Landau\, Aitken and others. He met his wife\, who is an Englishwoman\, during the blitz. They were married in 1944. He holds a London University degree and teaches mathematics in Southend. \nAbout 1940\, he offered to give any opponent in Great Britain the odds of the draw.; his challenge was never taken up\, no doubt owing to the conditions of the moment\, but we imagine there would be many “takers” if it were repeated now.” \nLater\, Klein clarified matters by writing What I said was: “I am ready to accept the challenge of any player in this country and am prepared to give the odds of a draw in a contest at least twelve games if he so wishes. That is\, I offered to concede victory on a score of 6 : 6 draws counting\, which is the necessary and sufficient condition to justify my offer. It is still open.  \nSee below photograph for caption \nCaption for above photograph \nHere is his Wikipedia entry \nEdward Winter has written a detailed article here.  \nThe Anglo-Soviet Radio Chess Match (1947\, Pitman) \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/remembering-ernest-ludwig-klein-29-i-1910-22-viii-1990/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,History,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200826
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200827
DTSTAMP:20210826T123948Z
CREATED:20190823T074915Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210826T123948Z
UID:1032-1598400000-1598486399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Aaron Summerscale (26-viii-1969)
DESCRIPTION:BCN offers best wishes to Aaron Summerscale on his 52nd birthday. \nAaron Piers Summerscale was born on Tuesday\, August 26th 1969 in Westminster\, Greater London. His mother’s maiden name is Mayall. Aaron lives in SW18 and teaches chess. He married Claire Lusher (Basingstoke) but they are now separated. \nAaron Summerscale \nHe became a FIDE Master in 1992\, an International Master in 1994 and a Grandmaster in 1997. \nAaron was runner-up (to Jonathan Parker) with 8/11 in the 1995 British Championship in Swansea. \nBritish Championship (Swansea) 1995 Crosstable \nHis highest FIDE rating was 2513 in October 2000 and was joint (with Ameet Ghasi) British Rapidplay Chess Champion in the same year. \nAaron Summerscale courtesy of John Henderson \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nHis highest ECF grading was 244A in 2001 and he won the Staffordshire GM tournament in the same year : \nStaffordshire GM Tournament 2000 Crosstable \nAaron plays for Wood Green in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL) and has played for Pride and Prejudice. \nAaron Summerscale \nAaron wrote “Confessions of a British Nightclubber” for Kingpin Magazine. \nWith the white pieces Aaron is very much a Queen’s pawn player mainly employing the Colle-Zukertort System and the Barry Attack. \nAaron Summerscale from Foxy Video 20. d4 Dynamite! talks about the Barry Attack\, \nAs the second player Aaron prefers the Classical French and the Slav Defence. \nHere is a video of a young Aaron talking about his 150 Attack video for Foxy Video : \n \nAaron Summerscale courtesy of Gabriele Winkler \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 \nBooks : \nSummerscale\, Aaron (1999). A Killer Chess Opening Repertoire. Globe Pequot. ISBN 978-1-85744-519-0. \nA Killer Chess Opening Repertoire \nA Killer Chess Opening Repertoire \nSummerscale\, Aaron; Summerscale\, Claire (2002). \nInterview With a Grandmaster. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-243-4. \nInterview with a Grandmaster \nFoxy Video : d4 Dynamite by Aaron Summerscale \nGM Aaron Summerscale courtesy of John Upham Photography \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-aaron-piers-summerscale/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200828
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200829
DTSTAMP:20210828T101013Z
CREATED:20190823T075053Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210828T101013Z
UID:1034-1598572800-1598659199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Daniel King (28-viii-1963)
DESCRIPTION:We offer best wishes to GM Daniel King on his birthday \nDaniel John King was born on Wednesday\, August 28th 1963 (the same day as the Martin Luther King “I have a dream” speech) in Beckenham\, Kent. \nHe attended Langley Park School whose motto is “Mores et Studia” meaning “good character and learning” or “morals and study”. \nDaniel has a brother Andrew (AJ King) who is also a strong player. \nDaniel became an International Master in 1982 and a Grandmaster in 1989. \nDaniel King \nHis peak FIDE rating (Felice) was 2560 in July 1990 at the age of 27. \nDaniel plays for Guildford in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL) and has played for Guildford in local leagues. \nThis was written (by Leonard Barden) about Daniel who was 15 just prior to the 1979 Spassky vs the BCF Junior Squad simultaneous display : \n“Langley Park School\, Shortlands and Bromley. Rating 201. British under-14 co-champion\, 1977. 2nd Lloyds Bank junior international\, 1979.” \nDanny was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 1983-84 and 1985-86 seasons. \nAccording to Test Your Chess With Daniel King\, Batsford\, 2004 : \n“Grandmaster Daniel King has been a professional chess player for 20 years. During that time he has represented his country on many occasions including an historic match victory over the Soviet Union in Reykyavik\, 1990. Besides his chess career\, Daniel has built up a reputation as a commentator on TV and radio\, \nJonathan Speelman and Daniel King share headphones at the 2013 FIDE Candidates event in London\, courtesy of John Upham Photography \nand has reported on four World Championship matches and several Man vs Machine events\, including the controversial Kasparov vs Deep Blue encounter in New York\, 1997. He is an award-winning author of 15 books\, including Winning with the Najdorf\, Mastering the Spanish\, and Kasparov vs Deep Blue for Batsford. ” \nOn April 8th\, 2020 New in Chess released Sultan Khan: The Indian Servant Who Became Chess Champion of the British Empire which is Daniel’s most recent book. \nAccording to British Chess (Pergamon\, 1983) by Botterill\, Levy\, Rice and Richardson : \n1977 British Under 14 Champion\n1979 Lloyds Bank 6/9 (aged only 16)\n1980 First Ilford Open\n1981 Represented England in Glorney Cup scoring 4.5/5\n1981 Fourteenth equal British Championship\n1981 IM norm Manchester 5.5/9\n1981 Second equal Ramsgate Regency Masters 6.5/9 IM norm with a round to spare\n1982 First Equal Guernsey 6/7\n1982 First Hamar IM norm and title\n1982 Second equal Molde\n1982 Second equal Hallsberg Junior\n1982 Third equal Phillips and Drew Knights\n1982/3 Tenth equal Ohra\, Amsterdam 5/9\n1982/3 Fifth European Junior\n1983 Fourth equal Gausdal\n1983 First Portsmouth Open \nIn the same article Daniel gave the following game as his favourite up to 1983: \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nStreatham & Brixton becoming BCF National Club Champions in 1989. The team was Tony Kosten\, Mark Hedben\, Daniel King\, Nigel Povah (Captain)\, Joe Gallagher and Julian Hodgson : quite a strong team \nDaniel King (seated\, second from left) \nHere is his Wikipedia entry \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 \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 \nMastering the Spanish\, Batsford\, 1993 \nKasparov v. Deeper Blue: The Ultimate Man v. Machine Challenge. Batsford. ISBN 0-7134-8322-9.\, 1997 \nHow to Win at Chess: The Ten Golden Rules (Cadogan Chess Books)\, 2000 \nKasparov Against the World: The Story of the Greatest Online Challenge. KasparovChess Online. ISBN 0970481306.\, 2000 \nWinning With the Najdorf. Sterling Pub Co Inc. ISBN 0713470372.\, 2002 \nHow Good Is Your Chess?. Dover. ISBN 048644676X.\, 2003 \nTest Your Chess With Daniel King\, Batsford\, 2004 \nHow To Play Chess. Kingfisher. ISBN 0753419181.\, 2009 \nChessbase Fritz Trainer \nChessbase Tutorials \nSultan Khan: The Indian Servant Who Became Chess Champion of the British Empire \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-daniel-john-king/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200901
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200902
DTSTAMP:20210901T103404Z
CREATED:20190822T155139Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210901T103404Z
UID:983-1598918400-1599004799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Joseph Blackburne (10-xii-1841 01-ix-1924)
DESCRIPTION:BCN remembers Joseph Blackburne (10-xii-1841 01-ix-1924) \nThe following (excerpts of) information were obtained via ancestry.co.uk / findmypast.co.uk: \nJoseph Henry Blackburne was born on Friday\, December 10th\, 1841 in Chorlton\, Manchester. His father was Joseph Blackburn (aged 23\, a temperance reformer) and his mother was Ann Pritchard (aged 24). He had eight sons and five daughters. \nHis brother Frederick Pritchard Blackburn died on 11 October 1847 in Lancashire\, Lancashire\, when Joseph Henry was 5 years old. \nHis sister Clara was born on 4 November 1847 in Street\, Lancashire\, when Joseph Henry was 5 years old. \nHis half-sister Clara was born in 1848 in Manchester\, Lancashire\, when Joseph Henry was 7 years old. \nHis mother Ann passed away on 26 November 1857 in Manchester\, Lancashire\, at the age of 40. \nHis half-brother William Thomas was born on 17 June 1865 when Joseph Henry was 23 years old. \nJoseph Henry Blackburne married Eleanor Driscoll on 10 December 1865 when he was 24 years old. \nJoseph Henry Blackburne married Beatrice Lapham on 3 October 1876 when he was 34 years old. \nHis wife Beatrice passed away in January 1880 in St Olave Southwark\, London\, at the age of 26. They had been married 3 years. \nJoseph Henry Blackburne married Mary Jane Fox in St Olave Southwark\, London\, on 16 December 1880 when he was 39 years old. \nJoseph Henry Blackburne lived in Everton\, Lancashire\, in 1891. \nAccording to Edward Winter in Chess Notes JHB lived at the following addresses : \n\n16 Lucey Road\, London SE\, England (The Chess Amateur\, October 1924\, page 32 (address in 1879) and the 1881 British census (C.N. 4756)*).\n116 Barkworth Road\, Camberwell\, London\, England (1891 British census (C.N. 4756)*).\n7 Whitbread Road\, Lewisham\, London\, England (1901 British census (C.N. 4756)*).\n45 Sandrock Road\, Lewisham\, London SE\, England (Ranneforths Schach-Kalender\, 1915\, page 56\, and Hastings Chess Club address list\, 1922*).\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 \nAccording to chessgames.com : \n“Joseph Henry Blackburne was born in Chorlton\, Manchester. He came to be known as “The Black Death”. He enjoyed a great deal of success giving blindfold and simultaneous exhibitions. Tournament highlights include first place with Wilhelm Steinitz at Vienna 1873\, first at London 1876\, and first at Berlin 1881 ahead of Johannes Zukertort. In matchplay he lost twice to Steinitz and once to Emanuel Lasker. He fared a little better with Zukertort (Blackburne – Zukertort (1881)) and Isidor Gunsberg\, by splitting a pair of matches\, and defeating Francis Joseph Lee\, ( Blackburne – Lee (1890) ). One of the last successes of his career was at the age of 72\, when he tied for first place with Fred Dewhirst Yates at the 1914 British Championship. \nJoseph Blackburne (10-xii-1841 01-ix-1924) \nIn his later years\, a subscription by British chess players provided an annuity of £100 (approximately  £4\,000 in 2015 value)\, and a gift of £250 on his 80th birthday.” \nIn 1923 he suffered a stroke\, and the next year he died of a heart attack.” \nJoseph Henry Blackburne (10-xii-1841 01-ix-1924) \nFrom The Oxford Companion to Chess (OUP\, 1984) by Hooper and Whyld : \n“For more than 20 years one of the first six players in the world and for even longer the leading English born player. Draughts was the most popular indoor game in his home town\, Manchester; he learned this game as a child and became expert in his youth. \nHe was about 18 when\, inspired by Morphy’s exploits\, he learned the moves of chess. In July 1861 he lost all live games of a match against the Manchester chess club champion Edward Pindar\, but he improved so rapidly that he defeated Pindar three months later (-1-5=2—1)\, and in 1862 he became champion of the club ahead of Pindar and Horwitz. \nInstructed by Horwitz\, Blackburne became one of the leading endgame players of his time; and wishing to emulate the feats of L. Paulsen\, who visited the club in November 1861\, he developed exceptional skill at blindfold chess. He spent most of the 1860s developing his chess and toying with various occupations. \nAfter winning the British championship\, 1868-9\, ahead of de vere\, he became a full-time professional player. \n \nBlackburne achieved excellent results in many tournaments: Baden-Baden 1870\, third equal with Neumann after Anderssen and Steinitz; London 1872\, second (+5-2) after Steinitz ahead of Zukertort; Vienna 1873\, second to Steinitz after a play-off; Paris 1878\, third after Winawer and Zukertort: Wiesbaden 1880\, first equal with Englisch and Schwarz; Berlin 1881\, first (+13=2 — 1)\, three points ahead of Zukertort\, the second prize winner (Blackburne’s greatest achievement); London 1883\, third after Zukertort and Steinitz; Hamburg 1885\, second equal with Englisch\, Mason\, Tarrasch\, and Weiss half a point after Gunsberg; Frankfurt 1887\, second equal with Weiss after Mackenzie; Manchester 1890\, second after Tarrasch; Belfast 1892\, first equal with Mason; London 1892\, second ( + 6-2) after Lasker; London 1893\, first ( + 2=3). \nHe was in the British team in 11 of the Anglo-American cable matches\, meeting Pillsbury on first board six times (+2-3 — 1)\, and he continued to play internationally until he was 72\, long enough to meet the pioneer of the hypermodern movement Nimzowitsch\, whom he defeated at St Petersburg 1914. \n \nBlackburne had remarkable combinative powers and is remembered for his swingeing king’s side attacks\, often well prepared but occasionally consisting of an ingenious swindle that would deceive even the greatest all his contemporaries. The tournament book of Vienna 1873 refers to him as ‘der schrwarze Tod [Black death] der Schachspieler’\, a nickname that became popular. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nHis unflappable temperament also earned him the soubriquet “the man with the iron nerves’. Even so\, neither his temperament nor his style was suited to set matches\, in which he was rarely successful against world-class players. He had other chess talents: a problem composer\, he was also a fast solver\, allegedly capable of outpacing the great Sam Loyd. Blackburne earned his livelihood by means of simultaneous displays\, for this purpose touring Britain twice-yearly\, with a few breaks\, for more than 50 years. \nChess\, circa 1896\, JH Blackburne\, well known chess player\, who had toured both on the Continent and America\, able to make between 40 to 60 moves when blindfolded by sheer memory (Photo by Bob Thomas/Popperfoto via Getty Images/Getty Images) \nBefore this time such displays were solemn affairs; Lowenthal\, who would appear in formal dress and play for several hours in silence\, was shocked when Blackburne turned up in ordinary clothes\, chatting and making jokes as he played\, and refreshing him self with whisky\, (Blackburne confessed\, however\, that when fully absorbed in a game he never noticed whether he was drinking water instead\,) Once\, walking round the boards\, he drained his opponent’s glass\, saying when rebuked He left it en prise and I took it en passant‘ \nThe illustrator Julius Hess depicted Blackburne in a New Yorker Staats Zeitung evening edition as sitting at a chesstable and beckoning: “Waitah! A whiskey and limejuice!” \nHe played his blindfold displays quickly\, and with little sign of the stress that besets most blindfold players. Probably the leading blindfold expert of his time\, he challenged Zukertort\, a close rival in this field\, to a match of ten games\, played simultaneously\, both players blindfold; but Zukertort declined. Many who knew and liked Blackburne subscribed to a fund which sustained him in his last years. \nImage Supplied by a reader of the book ‘Eminent Victorian Chess Players’ to Tim Harding \nP. A. Graham\, Mr Blackburne’s Games at Chess (1899) contains 407 games annotated by Blackburne and 28 three-movers composed by him. \nMr Blackburne’s Games at Chess by PA Graham \nA reprint\, styled Blackburne*s Chess Games (1979)\, has a new introduction and two more games. \nOne of Blackburne’s contributions was the suggestion of using chess clocks rather than the archaic hourglasses. \nHere follows a reproduction of an article from British Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXX1 (1961)\, Number 12 (December)\, page 340-342 written by RN Coles entitled “Early Days of a Great Master” : \n“The only record of how J. H. Blackburne first\, entered the chess world is the one provided by P. Anderson Graham in the introduction to his collection of Blackburne’s games. This has all the ingredients of a romanticized version of the truth-the first casual games in a temperance hotel\, then entry to the important Manchester Club and a series of victories over ever stronger opponents until at last Pindar\, Champion of the Provinces\, comes along\, plays the unknown youth and is defeated. \nReference to C. H. Stanley’s column in the Weekly Guardian and Express helps to supply a more accurate version. Young Blackburne’s earliest interest was in problems and he submitted one to the Guardian and Express which appeared in January\, 1861\, only to be found by several solvers to be cooked\, Then silence till May 11th\, when the column carries a note: \nJ. H. B. Problems received with much pleasure…Shall be glad to see you at the Club.” \nHere are a couple of published problems. For a complete listing see below. \nManchester Express\, 1861 \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \n#4. 6+4 \nThe Field\, 1893 \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \n#3\, 7+6 \n  \nNot yet a member\, clearly. Nevertheless\, he contrived somehow to meet Pindar outside the club and played some games-with him (two scores appear in the Guardian and Express\, July 20th)\, and a set-match of five up was then arranged\, still played in private (Guardian and Express\, August 3lst)\, which “was terminated by Mr. Pindar winning a clear victory\, the score being Pindar 5\, Blackburne 0” (one game was quoted in the July “B.C.M.” and another score can be found in the Guardian and Express\, July 27th. \n“A second match was agreed upon\, level games to entitle either player to the victor’s palm. The result … is calculated positively\, to startle the chess world. The first game was scored by Mr. Pindar; of the next seven\, Blackburne won five and the two remaining were drawn. ‘At this point Mr. Pindar resigned the match.” (Guardian and Express\, September 7th\, with the score of a Blackburne win from this match quoted February 1st\, 1962.) \nOnly now does Blackburne appear to have joined the Manchester Club\, meeting such players as Stanley himself for the first time (Guardian and Express gives the score of a casual game\, November 9th)\, though Stanley later claimed personally to have discovered the young prodigy. \nIn November\, 1861\, Paulsen visited the club and the score survives of a casual game in which he beat Blackburne\, who played a Winawer Variation of the French Defence long before Winawer ever came on the-scene (Guardian and Express\, December\,1861); Paulsen concluded his visit with one of his celebrated ten-board blindfold displays and not unnaturally the young Blackburne eagerly took a board; his defeat is No.25O in his games collection. This so stimulated him that he himself tried blindfold play and by January 20th\, 1862\, was able to give his first display against four boards\, winning them all (Guardian and Express\, January 25th\, with one of the scores). This he followed with seven games on February 8th\,\nwinning five and losing two. (Guardian and Express\, February 8th) and finally ten games on February 8th\, winning five\, losing two\, and drawing three (Guardian and Express\,February 15th\, which quotes the score of one game in addition to No. 254 in his games). \nInter-club matches were something of a rarity in those days and were regarded as of considerable importance when they occurred; one such was the annual Manchester-Liverpool match and in 1862 Blackburne took part for the first time\, being matched against Wellington\, another young player of promise who seems to have got no further; as many games were played between opponents as time allowed and these two young men played three\, all won by Blackburne. (Guardian and Express\, February 22nd\, which quotes the score of one game in addition to No. 138 in the collection). \nDuring this spring the rivalry with Pindar was renewed in a third match for the first five wins and after eleven games the score stood at 4 each\, with three drawn (Guardian and Express\, March 15th\, quoting the score of the eleventh game)\, but I cannot find who won the last game. Since Blackburne was hailed as club champion this season\, one must suppose he was the victor. \nSuch was his first club season. ln June\, 1862\, he played in the London lnternational Tournament and from then on his chess career was public property. \nTo conclude\, here is the score of the eleventh game of his third match with Pindar\, a critical struggle in which his budding mastery appears at the-end. From an inferior opening he struggles into an equal ending but by a rash exchange of Rooks on the 36th move gives Pindar a clear advantage\, which could have been held by 41. P-R4. Blackburne seizes on this omission like a real master to switch into a most accurately calculated queen ending. \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 original article: \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXX1 (1961)\, Number 12 (December)\, page 340 \nBritish Chess Magazine\, Volume LXXX1 (1961)\, Number 12 (December)\, page 341 \nMany juniors and beginners will know the Blackburne Shilling Gambit (or Kostić Gambit) in some circles known (named by Julian Hodgson) as the ‘Oh My God’: \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nThere are variations named after Blackburne as follows : \nThe Blackburne Attack in the Four Knights is \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nand the Blackburne Variation of the Dutch defence is \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nand a popular line in the Queen’s Gambit \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess diagram visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nare attributed to Blackburne in the literature. \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 The Encyclopedia of Chess (Batsford\, 1977) by Harry Golombek : \n“British grandmaster and highly successful tournament player who was one of the most prominent masters of the nineteenth century. He did not learn to play chess until the age of nineteen\, but his natural gifts soon brought him into the front rank of British players\, and in 1868 he abandoned his business interests and adopted chess as a profession. \nBlackburne’s international tournament career spans an impressive fifty-two years from London 1862 to St. Petersburg 1914 – a total of 53 events in which he played 814 games\, scoring over 62%. Although he rarely won international events\, he generally finished in the top half of the table and his fierce competitive spirit coupled with his great combinative ability earned the pleasant nickname of ‘the Black Death’. \nJoseph Blackburne (10-xii-1841 01-ix-1924). Photograph from The Encyclopedia of Chess by Harry Golombek \nHis most notable successes were =1st with Steinitz at Vienna 1873 (Blackburne lost the play-off match)\, 1st at Berlin 1881 ahead of Paulsen\, Schallopp\, Chigorin\, Winawer and Zukertort\, and 2nd to Tarrasch at Manchester 1890. \nBlackburne won the BCA Championship in 1868 and for many years was ranked as Britain’s foremost player. In 1914 – at the age of 72 – he shared first place at the BCF congress in Chester. \nIn match play his success was mixed. He defeated Bird in 1888 (+4-1) and Gunsberg in 1881 (+7-4=3) but lost a second match to Gunsberg in 1886 (+2-5=6). He lost to Lasker (+0-6=4) in 1892 and was defeated heavily twice by Steinitz : in 1862/3 (+1-7=2) and in 1876 (+0-7=0)\, the latter of these matches being for the World Championship. \nBlackburne excelled at blindfold play and in simultaneous exhibitions\, which provided a major portion of his income. He died in Lewisham\, a much respected veteran of eighty-three.” \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 \nJoseph Henry Blackburne (10-xii-1841 01-ix-1924) \nEdward Winter discusses the Zukertort-Blackburne game of 1883. \nHere is an article on chess.com by Bill Wall \nProblems of the Black Death by Batgirl \nMeson Database of JHBs problems \nHere is his Wikipedia entry \nEminent Victorian Chess Players\, Tim Harding\, McFarland & Co; 1st edition (20 April 2012)\, ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0786465682 \nJoseph Henry Blackburne: A Chess Biography\, Tim Harding\, McFarland & Co; Annotated edition (30 July 2015)\, ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0786474738 \nBlackburne : The Black Death in Spades by Bob Long \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-joseph-henry-blackburne/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,History,Player,Remembering
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200904
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200905
DTSTAMP:20200904T143051Z
CREATED:20190823T081815Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20200904T143051Z
UID:1036-1599177600-1599263999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Michael Stean (04-ix-1953)
DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to GM Michael Stean on his birthday\,  \nMichael Francis Stean was born Michael Francis Stein on Friday\, September 4th\, 1953 in Pancras\, London. His mother’s maiden name was Feldman. Michael has a brother\, Howard.  \nMichael Stean \nHe attended Latymer Upper School and Cambridge University. \nHis early chess days were spent at Richmond Junior Chess Club. \nHe became an International Master in 1975 and England’s third (OTB) Grandmaster in 1977 winning £2\,500 from the Jim Slater Foundation. \nHis peak FIDE rating was 2540 in January 1979.  \nHis mother (Jean) presented a trophy to the Marlow Congress (now the Berks and Bucks Congress) which became the Mrs. Jean Stean Cup. \nTony Miles and Michael Stean at the FIDE Zonal in Amsterdam\, 1978. (Source: http://gahetna.nl) \nAccording to British Chess (Pergamon\, 1983) by Botterill\, Levy\, Rice and Richardson : \n“Stean was educated at Cambridge University\, He was equal first in the British Championship\, Clacton\, 1974\, although only 4th in the playoff. He has been an important member of Korchnoi’s team for the last 5 years\, and this perhaps has been responsible more than anything for the rounding out and maturing of his style from the sharp tactical play of the early 1970s to the solid positional GM (especially with the White pieces) of today. \nKorchnoi\, Stean and Keene try out matching vests and T-shirts from The University of Sussex sports centre\, Falmer\, East Sussex. It is likely that the yellow one was only worn for this press photo shoot. \nStean is a fine author; Simple Chess and the Sicilian Najdorf are both excellent books. \nMichael Stean at the 1977 Lord John Cup \nTemperamentally he is generally pleasant\, good humoured and self confident\, although he suffers from intermittent poor health which might help to explain his at times erratic results.” \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 Chessgames.com : \n“Michael Francis Stean was born on the 4th of September 1953 in London\, England. He finished 3rd at the 1973 World Junior Chess Championships behind Alexander Beliavsky and Tony Miles. Awarded the IM title in 1975 and the GM title in 1977 (The third Englishman to attain the title after Miles and Keene).  \nHe finished 1st= in the 1974 British Championship but lost the play-off. He played on 5 English Olympiad teams from 1974 – 1983 and has won 1st prizes at Vrsac 1979\, Smederevska Palanka 1980 and Beer Sheba 1982.  \nA specialist in Opening Theory he served as one of Viktor Korchnoi’s seconds in the 1977 – 1981 period. He is the author of Simple Chess\, an introduction to chess strategy.” \nMchael Stean\, Hastings 1972-1973. Source : British Chess Magazine\, Volume 93\, Number 2\, page 53 \nThe Robert Silk Fellowship Tournament\, Canterbury\, 1973. Source : British Chess Magazine\, Volume 93\, Number 5\, page 192 \nPost-banquet photograph – left to right : Harry Golombek\, Andras Adorjan\, Danny Wright\, Brian Eley\, Michael Stean\, D. Silk\, Robert Silk\, AK Henderson. The Robert Silk Fellowship Tournament\, Canterbury\, 1973. Source : British Chess Magazine\, Volume 93\, Number 5\, page 192 \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nHarry Golombek wrote this about Michael in a 1980 Dataday chess diary : \n“The fact that he has sprung up into second place among English players as regards Elo ratings demonstrates the considerable advance Michael Stean has made in the course of a year.  \nKorchnoi vs Stean at the Philips & Drew Masters of 1980. The game was drawn in 19 moves. \nIn the 1978 diary I wrote that it would not be long before he gained the grandmaster title since he already possessed one norm of the title. The forecast proved to be correct as he duly acquired the title a few months after I wrote the prophecy.  \nHe had though to take two more bites at the cherry before he managed to gain the required norms since the tournaments in which he played were not long events. They were Montilla in August 1977 where he came third below Gligoric and Kavalek and the Lord John Cup Tournament in London in September 1977 where he was equal 2nd with Quinteros and Mestel\, first place being occupied by the Czechoslovak grandmaster\, Hort. \nJan Timman plays Michael Stean at the 1978 Amsterdam FIDE Zonal. The Dutch GM won in 39 moves. \nBefore that he had assisted Keene in seconding Korchnoi in his candidates match versus Polugayevsky and had done this to such effect that Korchnoi asked him and Keene to act as his seconds at his final match in the Candidates at Belgrade and later on still at the World Championship match against Karpov in the Philippines. \nNigel Short\, Lubomir Kavalek and Michael Stean \nHe also played successfully in Yugoslavia in 1977 (equal 2nd at Virovitica and equal 2nd at Bar). In 1978 he was 3rd at Beersheba below Korchnoi but head of Keene. Five points out of nine at the very strong Swiss System tournament at Lone Pine was followed by an excellent equal 4th with Miles at the tournament at Las Palmas. He has shown that he not only possesses the title of grandmaster but also plays like one. \nMichael Stean (far right) at an unknown event \nA good example in the following game (Stean-Sax) against one of the joint first prize winners at the Las Palmas event. It was awarded the prize for the best game :” \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 Oxford Companion to Chess (OUP\, 1984) by Hooper & Whyld : \n“English player\, International Grandmaster (1977). At Nice 1974\, in the first of his several Olympiads\, he won the brilliancy prize for his game against\nBrowne.  \nSince then he has had several good results: Montilia 1976\, equal second with Kavalek and Ricardo Calvo (1943— ) after Karpov; Montilia 1977\, third (-1-3 = 6)after Gligoric and Kavalek ahead of R. Byrne\, Taimanov\, and Andersson; London 1977. second (+4=4—1) equal with Mestel and Quinteros after Hort ; Vrsac 1979\, first (+ 8=5—1); Smederevska Palanka 1980\, first (+7-6); Beersheba 1982\, first\, Stean was one of Korchnoi’s seconds in the world championship cycles of 1977-8 and 1980-1\, and the two became close friends.  \nIn particular Stean provided help with the openings\, a subject on which he specialises. He published a book on the Najdorf variation of the Sicilian defence in 1976\, and Simple Chess\, a guide to the understanding of positional ideas\, in 1978.” \nGM Michael Stean \nFrom Wikipedia : \n“Michael Francis Stean (born 4 September 1953) is an English chess grandmaster\, an author of chess books and a tax accountant. \nMichael Stean chats with David Levy at the London Chess Classic \nThe game below (Stean-Browne) was the first winner of the World Brilliancy Prize established in 1974 by Isador Samuel Turover. The value of the prize was $1\,000.” \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nSee Michael Stean’s Wikipedia entry  for more \nVideo Chess Event (See caption below) \nVideo Chess Caption \nIn 1983 at the height of his powers Michael left the chess work and became a tax accountant.  He is now a senior partner at RSM UK. \nMchael Stean\, tax accountant \nMichael Francis Stean \nSimple Chess by Michael Stean \nSicilian Najdorf by Michael Stean \nSimple Chess by Michael Stean \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-michael-john-stean/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,History,Player,Writer
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200904
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200905
DTSTAMP:20200904T154337Z
CREATED:20190823T081958Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20200904T154337Z
UID:1038-1599177600-1599263999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Stephen Gordon (04-ix-1986)
DESCRIPTION:We wish Stephen Gordon all the best on his birthday\, this day (September 4th) in 1986. \nStephen John Gordon was born on Thursday\, September 4th 1986 in Oldham\, Lancashire where he has lived since. \nHe attended The Blue Coat School in Oldham \nHe became a FIDE Master in 2004\, an International Master in 2006 and a Grandmaster in 2009. \nIn 2012 he shared first place with Gawain Jones in the British Championships in North Shields. \n2012 British Championships part crosstable \nAccording to Felice his peak FIDE rating was 2556 in September 2012 at the age of 26. \nCrosstable from the 2013 Budapest First Saturday GM Tournament \nStephen plays for 3Cs in the Manchester Chess League and for Wood Green in the London League and for 4NCL 3Cs in the Four Nations Chess League. \nStephen Gordon at the final 4NCL weekend in 2014. Courtesy of John Upham Photography \nWith the White pieces Stephen almost always plays 1.d4 aiming for a Queen’s Gambit and other main lines. \nAs the second player\, Stephen plays the Sicilian Najdorf and the Nimzo-Indian Defence. \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“Stephen J. Gordon (born 4 September 1986) is an English chess grandmaster. \nIn September 2004 he took a break from his A-level studies at The Blue Coat School\, Oldham to compete in the thirteenth Monarch Assurance Isle of Man International. \nIn 2005\, while still a FIDE Master\, he finished 6th in the British Championships ahead of a Grandmaster and several International Masters. \nAt the EU Individual Open Chess Championship held at Liverpool in 2006\, he led the tournament after eight rounds and finished a very creditable (joint) second\, a half point behind winner Nigel Short and level with Luke McShane among others. \nProbably his best result to date however\, was second place in the 2007 British Championship\, narrowly losing his share of the lead in the final round. In previous rounds\, he defeated both tournament victor Jacob Aagaard and previous champion Jonathan Rowson. \nBy 2008\, his rating had reached grandmaster level\, although the title itself had not yet been secured. At the British Championship in Liverpool\, he almost repeated his performance of the previous year\, by taking a share of third place. He was the British under-21 Champion each consecutive year between 2005 and 2008. He became a grandmaster on 1 August 2009. \nHe has been one of the co-presenters of the chess podcast The Full English Breakfast since its inaugural show in October 2010.” \nStephen Gordon at The Plough Public House in 2014 for the annual Drunken Knights vs Wood Green London League match. Courtesy of John Upham Photography \nFor more see Wiki Entry for Stephen Gordon \nGM Stephen Gordon\, courtesy of John Upham Photography \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-stephen-john-gordon/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200904
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200905
DTSTAMP:20200904T082751Z
CREATED:20200410T213141Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20200904T082751Z
UID:4381-1599177600-1599263999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Joseph McPhillips (04-ix-1997)
DESCRIPTION:BCN says Happy Birthday to IM Joseph McPhillips (04-ix-1997) \nJoe became a FIDE Master in 2015 and an International Master in 2018. \nHis peak FIDE rating is 2434 as at August 2019 and we predict it will increase. \nFIDE rating profile of IM Joseph McPhillips \nIn Joseph won outright the Kecskemet IM Tournament : \nKecskemet 2015 IM Tournament \nIn 2016 Joseph won the Delancey UK Chess Challenge Terafinal to become a “Strat”* for the first time. \n*Only Mike Basman knows what this means! \nIM Joseph McPhillips\, UKCC Terafinal 2016 Winner\, courtesy of John Upham Photography \nJoseph plays for Bolton and for Wood Green in the Four Nations Chess League. \nJoseph won outright the Budapest First Sunday IM tournament in 2018 : \nCrosstable for Budapest First Sunday IM 2018 \nWith the white pieces Joseph prefers a main line Ruy Lopez and the Open Sicilian and he has recently started dabbling with 1.d4 \nAs the second player Joseph employs the Classical French and the Queen’s Indian Defences. \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 Joseph McPhillips\, UKCC Terafinal 2014\, courtesy of John Upham Photography \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-joseph-mcphillips-04-xi-1997/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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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 \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/remembering-paul-m-list-1887-09-ix-1954/
CATEGORIES:British Championships,Death Anniversary,History,Player,Remembering
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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 \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-anya-sun-corke/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200918
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200919
DTSTAMP:20200918T090155Z
CREATED:20200918T001027Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20200918T090155Z
UID:1372-1600387200-1600473599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Richard Palliser (18-ix-1981)
DESCRIPTION:We wish IM Richard Palliser all the very best on his birthday \nRichard Julian David Palliser was born September 18th in 1981 in Birmingham\, West Midlands. His mother’s maiden name was Hyde. \nHe became a FIDE Master in 2000 and an International Master in 2001. \nRichard Palliser \nHis peak FIDE rating (according to Felice and Megabase 2020) was 2482 in July 2012 at the age of 31. \nIn 1995 Richard was joint British U13 Champion together with David Hodge and Richard S. Jones. \nPalliser was joint British Rapidplay Chess Champion in 2006. He writes regularly for ChessMoves and “Everyman Chess” who also employ him as an editor and advisor. \nRichard represents in matches 4NCL White Rose\, York RI\, Yorkshire CA\, and ‘Eagle and Child’ \nAccording to “Play 1.d4!” : \n“is an international master and recipient of a special British Chess Federation young player’s award for achievement. In addition to being a very active tournament and match player he also writes regularly for CHESS magazine and other periodicals and is noted for his theoretical knowledge and analytical ability.” \nIM Richard Palliser at the King’s Place  Rapidplay\, 2013. \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 “tango!” : \n“His debut book Play 1.d4! was very well received by critics and the chess public alike” \nHis handle on the Internet Chess Club is “worcester”. \nIM Richard Palliser \nWith the White pieces Richard plays 1.d4(!) and the Queen’ Gambit\, Exchange Variation is the main weapon of choice. \nAs the second player Richard plays the Sicilian Najdorf and the King’s Indian Defence. \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 Richard Palliser and IM Jovanka Houska\, British Championships\, 2019 \nRichard is Editor of “CHESS”  and has authored a number of publications : \nPlay 1.d4 !\, Batsford\, 2003 \nPalliser\, Richard (2005). Tango! A Dynamic Answer to 1 d4. Everyman Chess. ISBN 1-85744-388-8. \nTango! A Dynamic Answer to 1 d4 \nPalliser\, Richard (2006). Beating Unusual Chess Openings. Everyman Chess. ISBN 1-85744-429-9. \nBeating Unusual Chess Openings \nPalliser\, Richard (2006). Starting Out: Closed Sicilian. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-414-8. \nStarting Out: Closed Sicilian \nPalliser\, Richard (2007). Starting Out: Scilian Najdorf. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-601-2. \nStarting Out: Scilian Najdorf \nPalliser\, Richard (2007). Starting out: the Colle. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-527-5. \nStarting out: the Colle \nThe Complete Chess Workout\, Everyman\, 2007 \nPalliser\, Richard; Kosten\, Tony; Vigus\, James (2008). Dangerous Weapons: Flank Openings. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-583-1. \nDangerous Weapons: Flank Openings \nPalliser\, Richard (2008). Starting out: d-pawn attacks. The Colle-Zukertort\, Barry and 150 Attacks. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-578-7. \nStarting out: d-pawn attacks \nPalliser\, Richard (2009). Starting Out: the Trompowsky Attack. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-562-6. \nStarting Out: the Trompowsky Attack \nPalliser\, Richard; Williams\, Simon; Vigus\, James (2010). Dangerous Weapons: The Dutch. Everyman Chess. ISBN 978-1-85744-624-1. \nDangerous Weapons: The Dutch \nDangerous Weapons  : The Caro-Kann\, Everyman\, 2010 \nThe Complete Chess Workout II\, Everyman\, 2012 \nIM Richard Palliser \n\n Save as PDF
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-richard-palliser/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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