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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201002
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201003
DTSTAMP:20211002T102326Z
CREATED:20190824T104835Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20211002T102326Z
UID:1163-1601596800-1601683199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Jonathan Speelman (02-xi-1956)
DESCRIPTION:We wish GM Jonathan Speelman all the best on his birthday. \nJonathan Simon Speelman was born on Tuesday\, October 2nd\, 1956 in Marylebone\, London. His mother’s maiden name was Freeman. In March 2002 Jon and Lindsey Thomas were married in Camden\, Greater London. They have a non-chess playing son\, Lawrence who studied Ancient Languages at The University of Chicago. \nJonathan attended St. Paul’s School\, London and then Worcester College\, Oxford and read mathematics. \nHe became an International Master in 1978 (England’s tenth) and a Grandmaster in 1980 (England’s fifth) and achieved a peak FIDE rating of 2645 at the age of 32 in July 1988. \nJon is a Life Member of King’s Head Chess Club and has helped them organise a number of tournaments including the NatWest Young Masters where he has adjudicated the winner of the Best Game Prize. \nCurrently\, Jon plays for Wood Green in Four Nations Chess League and in the London League and maintains an ECF grade of 245. \nJon is the chess correspondent for The Observer and The Independent. \nWith the white pieces Jon prefers 1.Nf3 and against 1…Nf6 to follow with c4 and d4. Interestingly\, if black plays 1…d5 then Jon plays an early king-side fianchetto. \nAs the second player Jon prefers the Smyslov Caro-Kann\, the Nimzo-Indian and Queen’s Indian defences. \nHis record against contemporary players is impressive : \nNigel Short : +5\nMurray Chandler : +4\nJonathan Mestel : +4\nJohn Nunn : +3\nJames Plaskett : +4\nMark Hebden : +7\nTony Miles : +1\nTony Kosten : +3\nDaniel King : +2 \nJon Speelman and Nigel Short at the start of their 1989 Candidates match. Jon won 3.5 – 1.5\nFrom British Chess (Pergamon Press\, 1983) by Botterill\, Levy\, Rice and Richardson : \n“Having been asked to contribute an article on myself to this book I have decided to concentrate almost exclusively on my ‘relationship with chess’\, but first quickly summarize my life. \nJS\nBorn on 2nd October 1956 I went to a ‘Nursery School’ whose name I forget. Then to Arnold House School followed by St. Paul’s School. I had a ‘Year off’ from January to October\, 1976\, when I went up to Worcester College\, Oxford\, where I studied mathematics. In 1977 I left Oxford with a 2nd degree. Since then I have been a professional chess player. \nI was taught chess at the age of 6 by my cousin on Boxing Day\, 1962. Then as now\, I was an inquisitive person and the idea of a ‘complicated and difficult game’ interested me. Sadly my first game of chess ended in checkmate in four moves; but I persevered and soon became more competent. \nJS at the London based Philips & Drew Kings tournament\nI have always seen life to some in terms of barriers. There are things which one can do easily and which one finds difficult or almost impossible. For any given task the transition from one state to the other is not as smooth. One builds up energy and finally is able to succeed for the first time. After that the task becomes successively easier: Partly because one is aware that one can succeed. \nJonathan Speelman without glasses\nln order to illustrate my chess career to date\, I shall therefore pick out examples of barriers which I managed to break through. \nJonathan was an early follower of fashion\nUntil a few Years ago there were few titled players in Great Britain. But recently\, thanks largely to a change of emphasis in organisation\, several players have broken through to obtain international titles. This is not only because British players have become stronger – which they undoubtedly have – but also because they have received opportunities which were previously denied them. \nJS at the London Robert Silk Fellowship invitational tournament\nI first started seriously to contemplate becoming an international master in 1977. Previously\, I had of course aspired to this but without really investigating the mechanics of obtaining norms. In August\, 1977 England sent a team to the World Student Team Championships in Mexico City. We came third: a year later we were to win the event (though on that occasion it was a World Under 26 Team Championship). On our return there was an invitation tournament in London: the ‘Lloyds Bank Silver Jubilee’. Although I was rather tired after Mexico I decided to play and to my surprise\, I obtained an IM norm with a round to spare. It all seemed rather easy. I drew with six strong players including GM Torre and four IM’s and beat three weaker ones. \nGrandmaster Uses PressTel Chessbox to Play Long Distance Chess. Jonathan Speelman the UK Grandmaster is pictured here deciding his next move in a computer chess game against five simultaneous opponents. Players exchanged moves online via the ChessBox club on PressTel\, BTs videotex service.\nIn December\, 1977 I played for the first time in the Annual Grandmaster Tournament at Hastings. I was very pleased to ‘shut up shop’\, abandoning any pretensions to an exciting style to score one win\, one loss and – wait for it – twelve draws; but 7/14 was sufficient for another international master norm. \nThese two events left me with twenty three games of norm\, one less than the required minimum. Early in 1978 I played in a tournament in London but failed to get my final leg. It was in April that year that I had my next chance at the famous Lone Pine Tournament in California. I have already stressed the importance of barriers. It was in round one of the Lone Pine tournament that I broke through another important one – that of beating a grandmaster. \nJS was a frequent giver of simultaneous displays\nNowadays (and here I hear myself sounding like an old man!) the strongest young players (under twenty-six) beat international masters quite regularly and indeed grandmasters from time to time. ‘In my day’ this was not so much the case. Titled foreign players could still come over to pillage weekend tournaments; and succeed much of the time! When one of them lost to homegrown talent it was news. \nIM Jonathan Speelman vs IM Simon Webb at the 1978 British Championships in Ayr\, Courtesy of John Upham\nI first started to play regularly against grandmasters in my first Hastings tournament\, which I mentioned previously. Of course\, I had played grandmasters before\, but at Hastings seven of the fourteen games were against them. I scored there six draws and a loss to the tournament winner\, Dzindzihashvili. \nJulian Hodgson and Jonathan Speelman prepare to play each other at their own home via CEEEFAX. This was organised by Peter Andrews of BBC Chess Club and was the first match of its kind.\nIn round one of Lone pine I was White against Bent Larsen of Denmark. Given that one is going to beat a strong grandmaster (l hadn’t even beaten a weak one) then White against Larsen is quite a good chance. Although he is an extremely strong player\, Larsen loses quite a lot of games to much weaker opponents and wins an enormous number against them as well\, with not many draws. I was fortunate in obtaining a nice position from the opening and won a good game. That is one of the games I have chosen. \nJS receives one of many awards\nAfter beating Larsen the rest of the tournament was rather an anti-climax for me. I drew some games\, then lost in successive rounds to Browne and Biyiasas. Needing a win to reach fifty per cent the chance of my final norm\, I clawed my way to victory in a dreadful game against a young American P. Whitehead. Two short draws in the final two rounds brought me the title. \nAt the Praxis British Zonal in February 1987 here at the roman baths. Murray Chandler\, Jonathan Speelman\, and Jonathan Mestel\nSome years ago the British Championship really was the Championship of Britain. But in the early seventies there was a decline as several of the strongest players did not enter. In the last two years the decline has been halted and then reversed by the sponsorship of stockbrokers Grievson Grant. In 1979 two of our four Grandmasters\, Miles and Nunn\, competed in the British Championship at Chester and there were no fewer than six International Masters; indeed Nigel Short succeeded in obtaining his first IM norm there. \nJS plays Alexander Khalifman during the SWIFT World Cup in Reykjavik\, 1991. The game was drawn\nI first competed in the British Championship at Brighton in 1972. After a good start\, beating Michael Basman in the first round and drawing with Craig Pritchett in the second\, I lost to Haygarth in round three. Thereafter\, I found it incredibly difficult to win games. My old British Chess Magazine reminds me that I succeeded in winning in round nine\, but that was the only one after round one. I finished with 4.5/11. \nJS\, Jana Bellin and Nigel Short in a publicity shoot outside Simpsons in the Strand\nA year later at Eastbourne I was still finding it hard to win games. Again I finished with 4.5/11. By Clacton\, 1974 I had improved. A loss in the last round to the eventual winner Botterill left me a point behind the seven (!) who had to play off for the title. \n\nI competed at Morecambe\, 1975 and Portsmouth\, 1976\, missing only Brighton\, 1977 when the students team was in Mexico. By Ayr\, 1978 I was probably one of the favourites along with Jonathan Mestel\, who ran away with the tournament in Portsmouth\,\n1976\, George Botterill\, the defending champion\, and some others. \nJonathan shows off his all seeing four eyes\nIn fact I won at Ayr. I played quite well throughout. ln the last round half a point ahead of Mestel I played a quick draw with Webb but was lucky when Mestel could only draw with Clarke. Of course winning the British was a big breakthrough for me. But I feel that the most important psychological change came in 1974 when I started to discover that it is possible to win games in the British Championship. \nJonathan Simon Speelman (02-x-1956) as imagined by Roger Morgan\, 1982\nSince late 1978 I have made no dramatic breakthrough but have\, I believe\, almost imperceptibly made the change from a ‘medium’ to a ‘strong’ international master. \nJonathan Speelman telephones good news\nI’ve selected three games to go with this article. The one with Larsen I’ve already mentioned. Mihaljcisin-Speelman I like as a game in which I played very actively as Black. \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 game against Biyiasis is a good ‘rough and tumble’ not free from errors of course – but wouldn’t that be boring? \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nTo find out more about JSs chess career we suggest you read his autobiography : \nSpeelman\, Jon (1997). Jon Speelman’s Best Games. B.T. Batsford (London\, England). 240 pages. ISBN 978-0-7134-6477-1.\nwhich contains many heavily annotated 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\n  \nFrom The Oxford Companion to Chess (OUP\, 1984) by Hooper & Whyld : \n“British Champion in 1978\, Speelman played at Mexico City later that year in the English team that won (ahead of the USSR) the world’s first youth teams (under-26) championship. \n(from l-r) Jonathan Kinlay\, Shaun Taulbut\, Jonathan Speelman\, David Goodman and Jonathan Mestel accepting 1st prize at the 1978 World U26 Student Olympiad in Mexico City\nTwo good performances in 1980\, as score of +5=5-3 to share fourth place in the category 13 London tournament and a second place (+6=7) at Maribor\, brought him the title of International Grandmaster (1980). His subsequent achievements include : Dortmund 1981\, first (+5=6) equal with Ftacnik and Kuzmin; Hastings 1981-2\, second equal with Smyslov after Kupreichik; and London 1982\, category 14\, +2=10-1 to share fourth place. An excellent analyst\, Speelman has written several books\, among them Best Chess Games 1970-1980 (1982).” \nGM Jonathan Speelman\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 :\nA winner of the British Chess Championship in 1978\, 1985 and 1986\, Speelman has been a regular member of the English team for the Chess Olympiad\, an international biennial chess tournament organised by FIDE\, the World Chess Federation. \nIn 1989\, he beat Kasparov in a televised speed tournament\, and then went on to win the event. \nIn the April 2007 FIDE list\, Speelman had an Elo rating of 2518\, making him England’s twelfth-highest-rated active player. \n\nHe qualified for two Candidates Tournaments: \nIn the 1989–1990 cycle\, Speelman qualified by placing third in the 1987 interzonal tournament held in Subotica\, Yugoslavia. After beating Yasser Seirawan in his first round 4–1\, and Nigel Short in the second round 3½–1½\, he lost to Jan Timman at the semi-final stage 4½–3½.\nIn the following 1990–93 championship cycle\, he lost 5½–4½ in the first round to Short\, the eventual challenger for Garry Kasparov’s crown.\nSpeelman’s highest ranking in the FIDE Elo rating list was fourth in the world\, in January 1989. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n\nJonathan Speelman in happy mood\nWriting\nHe has written a number of books on chess\, including several on the endgame\, among them Analysing the Endgame (1981)\, Endgame Preparation (1981) and Batsford Chess Endings (co-author\, 1993). \nAmong his other books are Best Games 1970–1980 (1982)\, an analysis of nearly fifty of the best games by top players from that decade\, and Jon Speelman’s Best Games (1997). Today he is primarily a chess journalist and commentator\, being the chess correspondent for The Observer and The Independent and sometimes providing commentary for games on the Internet Chess Club. \nJonathan Speelman and Daniel King share headphones at the 2013 FIDE Candidates event in London\nTilburg 1978\, Tony Miles & Jonathan Speelman\, Master Chess Publications\, 1978\nRiga Interzonal 1979\, AJ Miles & J Speelman\, Batsford\, 1979\, ISBN 0 7134 3429 5\nSpeelman\, Jonathan (1981). Analysing the Endgame. Batsford (London\, England). 142 pages. ISBN 978-0-7134-1909-2. \nSpeelman\, Jonathan (1981). Analysing the Endgame. Batsford (London\, England). 142 pages. ISBN 978-0-7134-1909-2.\nSpeelman\, Jonathan (1981). Endgame Preparation. B.T. Batsford (London\, England). 177 pages. ISBN 978-0-7134-4000-3. \nSpeelman\, Jonathan (1981). Endgame Preparation. B.T. Batsford (London\, England). 177 pages. ISBN 978-0-7134-4000-3.\nSpeelman\, Jon (1982). Best Chess Games\, 1970-80. Allen & Unwin (London\, England; Boston\, Massachusetts). 328 pages. ISBN 978-0-04-794015-6. \nSpeelman\, Jon (1982). Best Chess Games\, 1970-80. Allen & Unwin (London\, England; Boston\, Massachusetts). 328 pages. ISBN 978-0-04-794015-6.\nSpeelman\, Jon; Livshits\, August (1988). Test Your Endgame Ability. BT Batsford (London\, England). 201 pages. ISBN 0-7134-5567-5 \nSpeelman\, Jon; Livshits\, August (1988). Test Your Endgame Ability. BT Batsford (London\, England). 201 pages. ISBN 0-7134-5567-5\nSpeelman\, Jon (1992). New Ideas in the Caro-Kann Defence. BT Batsford (London\, England). 155 pages. ISBN 0-7134-6915-3. \nSpeelman\, Jon (1992). New Ideas in the Caro-Kann Defence. BT Batsford (London\, England). 155 pages. ISBN 0-7134-6915-3.\nSpeelman\, Jonathan; Tisdall\, Jon; Wade\, Bob. (1993). Batsford Chess Endings. B.T. Batsford (London\, England). 448 pages. ISBN 978-0-7134-4420-9. \nSpeelman\, Jonathan; Tisdall\, Jon; Wade\, Bob. (1993). Batsford Chess Endings. B.T. Batsford (London\, England). 448 pages. ISBN 978-0-7134-4420-9.\nSpeelman\, Jon (1997). Jon Speelman’s Best Games. B.T. Batsford (London\, England). 240 pages. ISBN 978-0-7134-6477-1. \nModern Defence. Everyman\, 2000\nSpeelman\, Jon (2008). Jon Speelman’s Chess Puzzle Book. Gambit Publications Ltd. 143 pages. ISBN 978-1-904600-96-1. \nSpeelman\, Jon (2008). Jon Speelman’s Chess Puzzle Book. Gambit Publications Ltd. 143 pages. ISBN 978-1-904600-96-1.\nJonathan Speelman
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-jonathan-simon-speelman/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201002
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201003
DTSTAMP:20260829T140741Z
CREATED:20191002T001012Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260829T140741Z
UID:1451-1601596800-1601683199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of WFM Sarah Longson (née Hegarty) (02-x-1988)
DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to WFM Sarah Longson (née Hegarty) on her birthday this day\, (October 2nd) in 1988.\n\nFrom Sarah’s web site:\n\n“I have played competitive chess since the age of 7 when I became UK U7 Girls Chess Champion and appeared on Blue Peter where I met the then world champion Garry Kasparov. Since then I have represented England in many international competitions and in 2013 won the British Ladies Championship.”\n\nIn 2016 Sarah and partner FM Alex Longson made a successful bid for ownership of the UK Chess Challenge which auctioned by the bankruptcy receiver of IM Mike Basman\, the previous owner. Sarah and Alex have \n\nWFM Sarah Longson
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-sarah-longson-nee-hegarty/
CATEGORIES:4NCL,Birthday,Organiser,Player,UKCC
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20201002
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20201003
DTSTAMP:20260829T140824Z
CREATED:20200424T203521Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260829T140824Z
UID:4897-1601596800-1601683199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Happy Birthday Susan Caldwell (02-x-1958)
DESCRIPTION:Happy Birthday Susan Linda Caldwell (02-x-1958)\n\nSusan is / was a director of the Hallas Foundation Ltd. and Larkham Printers and Publishers Ltd. and is married to former Scottish international Les SF Blackstock.\n\nSusan Caldwell 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.\n\nA few (11) of her games may be found on chessgames.com\n\nSusan Caldwell\, from the CentYMCA Story by Jimmy Adams\n\nBeginners Guide to Playing Chess\n\nBeginners Guide to Playing Chess
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/happy-birthday-susan-linda-caldwell-02-x-1958/
CATEGORIES:Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230108
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230109
DTSTAMP:20230109T124705Z
CREATED:20230109T124704Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230109T124705Z
UID:22151-1673136000-1673222399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Keith Arkell (08-i-1961)
DESCRIPTION:We send birthday wishes to GM Keith Arkell\, born this day (January 8th) in 1961. \nKeith Arkell \nHere is Keith’s Wikipedia entry \nGM Keith Arkell (ENG) \nThis was written about Keith aged 18 prior to the 1979 Spassky vs the BCF Junior Squad simultaneous display : \n“Rednal\, Birmingham. Rating 188. 2nd Lloyds Bank junior international\, 1979.” \nKeith was Southern Counties (SCCU) champion for the 2014-15 season sharing with Jonathan Hawkins \nHere is an interview with ChessBase from 2016. \nGM Keith Arkell \n \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \n \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nArkell’s Odyssey \nArkell’s Endings\, Keith Arkell\, GingerGM\, 2020\, ISBN-10 : 1527265595 \nBCN has reviewed Arkell’s Endings in depth
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-keith-charles-arkell-08-i-1961-2/
CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20200110
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20200111
DTSTAMP:20260817T141234Z
CREATED:20200504T085859Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T141234Z
UID:5221-1578614400-1578700799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Death Anniversary of Roland Scott (25-iii-1888 10-i-1953)
DESCRIPTION:BCN remembers Roland Scott who passed away in Monte Carlo on Saturday\, January 10th\, 1953. \nRoland Henry Vaughan Scott was born in either Barnes or Holloway depending which Census record is correct. His parents were Walter Frederick Scott\, a GP who was born in April 1960 and died in 1891 when Roland was three years of age. \nHis mother was Lucie Vaughan was born in 1855 and died in October 1933. \nRoland had two sisters\, Nina Vaughan Scott and Lucie / Lucia Audrey Scott (who died before her first birthday) and a brother Guy Francis D Scott who lived until 1977. \nIn 1891 Roland lived in Tottenham\, in 1901 in Hampstead and in 1911 in St. Pancras where he was listed as a law clerk. \nIn 1917 The London Gazette lists him as a lieutenant in the Norfolk Regiment. \nThe 1920 electoral rolls for the Gospel Oak polling district lists Scott as voter #2006 living at 2\, Estelle Road\, North St. Pancras which is now in Belsize Park\, NW3 2JX. At the same address was his sister Lucie and in 1921 they were joined by brother Guy. \nIn July 1922 in the district of Brighton Roland married Irma Clareboudt. No children from the marriage are recorded. \nThe 1939 register lists Scott as “War Disabled ? Officer Retired In War 1914” (invalided from army) and Irma as a saleswoman (born 25th July 1895) living at 42\, Sherwell Lane\, Paignton\, Torquay\, TQ2 6BD. \n42\, Sherwell Lane\, Paignton\, Devon\, TQ2 6BD. \nThe April 1953 British Chess Magazine (Volume LXXIII\, Number 4\, page 101 onwards) contained this obituary from DJ Morgan: \nIt is with much regret that we record the death\, on January 10th\, at Monte Carlo\, of R. H. V. Scott. He had long been out of active chess\, but older readers will need no reminding of the 1920 British Champion\, with his quiet manner but attacking chess; one who was composure itself at the table but aggressiveness personified on the board. \nThe son of a doctor\, Scott was born in 1889. He was nineteen before taking to the game\, but a ready aptitude combined with great enthusiasm led to rapid progress. He joined the Hampstead Club in 1908\, and in his first tournament\, the Third Class\, came out first. ln the years that follow he pursued the game with much energy. \nAt the B.C.F. Congress\, Glasgow\, l9ll\, he won the only section of the First Class. In 1913 and in 1914 he was Hampstead Club Champion. In 1913 he was tenth in the British Championship\, at Cheltenham\, and equal fifth to sixth at Chester in the following year\, defeating Yates and drawing with Blackburne. \nIn 1915 he came second in the City of London Club Championship\, but won that of the Metropolitan Club. During the same year he lost a short match with Sir G. A. Thomas 1-3. The war years\, with a commission in the Norfolk Regiment\, intervened\, but chess filled his available moments. \nIn 1916 he defeated L. I. Estrin\, a young Russian who was Hampstead Champion\, 5-2 in a match. ln 1919 he lost a match with Winter at Hastings (2-4)\, and shared seventh to eighth positions with Dr. Olland (Holland) at the B.C.F. Hastings Victory Congress\, with victories over Olland\, \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nR. P. Michell\, Marchand\, and Conde. Then came the B.C.F. Edinburgh Congress of 1920\, Scott became British Champion\, losing only\nto Sir G. A. Thomas. \nIn this year he also drew a match\, 3-3\, with Marchand\, of Holland\, also at Hastings. There followed three more appearances in the championship\, Malvern\, 1921 (equal fifth to sixth); Southsea\,1923 (equal third to fourth); and Southport\, 1924 (fourth). And with this Scott passed out of British chess. Ill health and failing eyesight\, direct results of sufferings and injuries endured on active service during the war\, began to take their toll. On medical advice he sought a warmer climate\, and the Riviera henceforth became his home. \nWe find him sharing seventh to eighth positions at the Hyères Congress\, in 1926\, and coming equal fifth to sixth\, with B. Reilly (our Editor’s first international tourney we believe)\, at Hyères\, 1927. \nThe days of active play were over\, but his great interest in the game remained. Scott was a natural attacking player\, more likely\, perhaps\, to win the Brilliancy Prize than the First Prize. \nEdo rating profile for RHV Scott \nWe have given the bare outline of a career that was all too short\, one cut down\, in a sense before reaching full maturity. Contemporary records sometimes expressed the need for more stability in Scott’s chess\, but they chronicle games of his that speak forcibly of the imaginative\, refreshing\, and invigorating qualities of his play. We offer an early game\, the Brilliancy Prize winner\, City of London C.C. Championship\, 1913-14. White’s 20th move sets the game alight. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nFrom British Chess Magazine\, Volume XLI (1920)\, Number 10 (October)\, page 305 we have the following report of his exploits winning the 1920 British Championship in Edinburgh: \n“We are glad to be able to present to our readers a photograph of the new champion\, Mr. R.H.V Scott. He informs us that it is his most recent one\, taken in 1917 when subaltern in the Norfolk Regiment. He saw service with the latter in France\, and\, as is probably know to most of our subscribers\, was badly gassed\, from the effects of which is now happily quite recovered. \nHis victory in the recent Congress in Edinburgh is welcome from at least two points of view; one\, that he is one of our youngest first class players (ed: he was 32 at the time\, a veteran by the standards of 2022!)\, having been born in 1889 (ed: this should have been 1888)\, and therefore may justifiably be expected to improve still further with experience and some curbing of his impatience in defence; and\, two\, that he claim to represent the more brilliant school of chess\, that of Pillsbury\, Marshall\, Charousek\, and Morphy\, rather than the more solid school\, of say\, Steinitz and Rubinstein\, who theory was the pilling up of small advantages. \nScott has an excellent “nose” for attack\, and has some exceedingly “chessy” ideas. During the congress he put a much greater restraint on himself than is his wont\, and we believe this to be the reason he so improved on his previous records. \nHe had what might be described as the worst of the draw\, since he had Black against Sir George  Thomas\, EG Sergeant and RP Michell. Some writers have described him as lucky to win\, but a study of his games and a comparison with those of others in the tourney go to prove that he played more far-sightedly than any of the others. \nWe are quite aware that the form of any player is variable\, and we have seen Sir George Thomas play much better chess and much less strainedly than he did at Edinburgh. EG Sergeant was generally playing quite at his best\, but once or twice his play deteriorated\, perhaps as the result of a sleepless night\, he then seemed bereft of ideas\, and allowed the clock to beat him. This also was the case with Michell\, who had many a rush to save his flag falling before the necessary moves were made. Now Scott almost invariably had time to spare. \nPerhaps the worst reversal of form was that of JH Blake; but he had been working very hard and late for some time right up to the day the Congress commenced\, and was not really in a fit state of health to take part. \nScott has twice before competed for the Championship; in 1913 where he finished eighth\, and in 1914 when he was fifth\, beating FD Yates\, the then Champion and drawing with JH Blackburne. \nHe has won several brilliancy prizes in congress and club tourneys\, and was the champion of the Hampstead Chess Club (where he may have been said to have learnt the game) in 1913 and 1914. He was first acquainted with the moves in 1908. \nHe is keen on all sports\, and puts his whole energy into each line he may be taking. With yet more self-restraint we think his chess will still further improve\, and we venture to prophesy this will not be the last British Chess Championship he will win.” \nIn his memoirs William Winter wrote this: \n“I also had the opportunity of playing a number of semi-serious games with RHV Scott and D. Miller\, two of the leading London amateurs. Scott was probably the most brilliant combinative played England has ever seen and had already won almost every honour except the British Championship\, which fell to him in 1920. \nSince those days I have played over hundreds of games\, including the beautiful brilliancies of the modern Russian school\, and Scott’s best combinations stand up quite well beside them. There were however weaknesses in his play which I shall discuss later. Miller was just the opposite type\, a dour solid player exceptionally hard to beat. He is\, I am glad to say\, still with us\, but Scott died a few years ago – he had been out of chess for a long time.” \nand this: \n“It is entirely legitimate\, and can prove very useful until one comes up against an opponent like Capablanca who had no weaknesses of any kind. ln Scott’s case\, one of his foibles was an aversion to exchanging queens\, and I took full advantage of this in the first two games of the match both of which I won with comparative ease; but Scott was not finished yet.’ In the third game he tied me up in a variation of the Sicilian which I had not previously seen\, and in the fourth I made the fatal mistake in going for an early win of material and allowing him a king’s side attack. Things now looked bad for me. I had the black pieces in the fifth game and I dared not play my favourite Sicilian defence because I could not discover a satisfactory answer to his new line.” \nStrangely\, none of the Encyclopaedia’s by Golombek\, Sunnucks or Hooper & Whyld felt that RHVS merited an entry. However Gaige does not forget. \nHere is an interesting article from “introuble2” entitled 100 years ago… chess in London during World War I in which Scott is mentioned. \nHere is an excellent article from John Saunders \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/death-anniversary-of-roland-henry-vaughan-scott-25-iii-1888-10-i-1953/
CATEGORIES:2023,British Championships,History,Player,Remembering
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230111
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230112
DTSTAMP:20260817T141002Z
CREATED:20191230T140104Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260817T141002Z
UID:2645-1673395200-1673481599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Shaun Taulbut (11-i-1958)
DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to IM Shaun Mark Taulbut born on this day (January 11th) in 1958. \nIM Shaun Mark Taulbut \nHere is his Wikipedia article from the Polish (!) version : \nIn 1974. I shared m. In the championship of Great Britain juniors to 16 years [1] \, whereas in 1977. Won the Brighton title of vice-champion of Great Britain (won the George Botterill ). He achieved the greatest success in his career at the turn of 1977 and 1978 in Groningen \, where he won the title of European champion up to 20 years [2] . In 1978 in Mexico he won the title of team world champion in the category up to 26 years [3] . He achieved another success in 1981 in Copenhagen \, sharing the first town (together with Petyr Welikow and Tom Wedberg ) inopen tournament Politiken Cup . In the same year\, he divided II-IV in New York \, while in 1982 he repeated this achievement in London (after William Watson \, together with Jonathan Tisdall and Mark Hebden ). In 1983 he ended his chess career. \nIM Shaun Mark Taulbut \nHe reached the highest ranking in his career on July 1\, 1982\, sharing 9-10 points with 2465 points. place among English chess players [4] . \nHe is the author of many books on chess\, primarily devoted to the theory of debuts . \nIM Shaun Mark Taulbut (right) playing Adrian Mikhalchishin \nand here is the game from the above photograph : \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \n(from l-r) Jonathan Kinlay\, Shaun Taulbut\, Jonathan Speelman\, David Goodman and Jonathan Mestel accepting 1st prize at the 1978 World U26 Student Olympiad in Mexico City \nShaun Taulbut (upper right) and David Goodman (lower right) from the 1978 U26 Olympiad \nShaun coached strong juniors especially Michael Adams. In MAs case it was by means of correspondence and this was funded by the Friends of Chess. \nShaun largely gave up competitive chess in 1983 to pursue a financial services career. He reached a senior position in ANZ (Australia and New Zealand Banking Group) reporting to Ian Snape. In ANZ Shaun met Stephen Lowe and on September 19th 2005 they became Directors and owners of British Chess Magazine Ltd. Shaun lives in Wokingham with his wife\, Christine and several pets including a wormery. \n(second from right standing ) Shaun Taulbut \nShaun occasionally plays for Crowthorne in the Berkshire League and the Surrey Border League and has played for the BCM Dragons 4NCL team managed by John Upham. \nPositional Chess by Shaun Taulbut
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-shaun-mark-taulbut-11-i-1958/
CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20210115
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20210116
DTSTAMP:20230109T222958Z
CREATED:20200409T181200Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230109T222958Z
UID:4293-1610668800-1610755199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Andrew Horton (15-i-1998)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM Andrew P Horton (15-i-1998) \nAndrew became a FIDE Master in 2015 and an International Master in 2018.
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-andrew-p-horton-15-i-1998/
CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230118
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230119
DTSTAMP:20230118T103106Z
CREATED:20230118T103105Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230118T103106Z
UID:22215-1674000000-1674086399@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Paul Littlewood (18-i-1956)
DESCRIPTION:BCN wishes Happy Birthday to Paul Littlewood \nPaul Edwin Littlewood was born on Wednesday\, January 18th\, 1956 in Skegness\, East Lindsey\, Lincolnshire. His parents were John and Jean Littlewood (née) Hadwick. Paul’s chess playing uncle was Norman Littlewood. \nJohn and Paul on Skegness beach circa 1958. Kindly supplied by Paul Littlewood. George and Ringo are out of shot ! \nJohn\, Jenny and Paul Littlewood\, circa 1962. Kindly supplied by Paul Littlewood. \nPaul attended Glenburn Comprehensive School in Skelmersdale from 1967 and then read Natural Sciences at Christ’s College\, Cambridge from 1974. \nPaul played badminton for Lancashire and Cambridge and\, in 1971\, won the English Schools Mixed Championship when he was 15 years old. \nPaul and family receive a chess lesson from John following John’s win in the 1972 Southport Open \nOn leaving University Paul taught science at Southbrook Comprehensive\, Daventry. Four years later Paul became a dealer at Phillips & Drew and followed this as an Executive Director at Goldman Sachs. Stays at Lehman Brothers and JP Morgan were followed by a change of direction and since then Paul has been director of various food supply companies retiring in 2014. \nPaul is married (3rd November 2006) to (his second wife) Fiona and lives in St. Albans\, Hertfordshire. \nPEL won the ECF President’s Award in 2007 and from the 2008 ECF Yearbook we have the following citation : \n“International Master and accomplished bridge player. From British Chess champion (1981) Paul has presided over the 4NCL as chairman during its most successful period. When he became chairman over ten years ago the league consisted of two divisions and 32 teams. The league has now expanded to four divisions and a total of 72 teams. Most of England’s juniors play 4NCL. During this time 4NCL became one of the strongest leagues in Europe\, at one time boasting a Division 1 rivalling the Bundesliga in strength in the top matches. \nPaul has demonstrated the sound judgement of Solomon when dealing with league disputes and has drawn on his business acumen\, honed during a successful career in the City with Goldman Sachs to make 4NCL the financially stable and expanding league it is today.” \nRoll of Honour \n\nBritish U18 Champion 1972\nBritish U21 Champion 1975\nBritish Champion 1981\nAs a junior represented England in Glorney Cup\nInternational Master 1980\n\nFrom British Chess (Pergamon Press\, 1983) by Botterill\, Levy. Rice and Richardson we have this article from Richard W. O’Brien : \n“Paul Littlewood was destined to become a strong player from birth. His father John was for some time one of the strongest players in the country and represented England on many occasions. His uncle Norman was for a few years not far behind. Paul\, however\, has surpassed them both and has become the first in the family to reach IM status. (Ed: JEL was very much worthy of the IM title but insufficient events of the right type held him back). \nA. Howard Williams\, Martyn J. Corden\, Paul E. Littlewood and A. Jonathan Mestel \nAll three are essentially attacking players. There have been times in recent years when play at the Hastings Premier has become dull. However\, Paul one of the English representatives at the last three tournaments\, was certainly not to blame. (His game against Brito of Brazil which follows is a striking example of this).” \nCoached by his father\, Paul became British U18 champion in 1972 and three years later became British U21 champion. \nClearly more interested in an academic career he went up to Cambridge and then followed his father into the teaching profession. Opportunities to play in strong tournaments were thus very limited. These opportunities\, however\, were grasped in both hands. Three times in thirteen months between August 1978 and August 1979 he obtained an IM norm and thus the title. \nPartial crosstable for the Lloyds Bank Open\, 1978 \nThe first caused a sensation as it was totally unexpected. He shared first place at Lloyds Bank ahead of several grandmasters including Shamkovich\, who was the first grandmaster he ever defeated. \nLeonid Shamkovich plays Paul Littlewood during the 1978 Lloyds Bank Masters. Paul won the game. \nEight months later Aaronson Masters was won and then came the final norm\, also at Lloyds Bank. \nTournaments abroad were limited although he represented England students. He did play at Kringsja (2nd equal) in 1978 and Borovo where he scored 6.5.13 finishing ahead of 3 GMs. \nIn 1981 came his finest achievement – winning the British Championship with a massive 9/11. \nPartial crosstable from the 1981 British Championship in Morecambe \nHis father who was also competing in the championship was as proud as could be and deservedly so (he also coached Sheila Jackson who retained her British Ladies Championship that year). His excellent all round play took him to the title and only once during the tournament did he stand worse. His endgame play was so good that CHESS even published an article solely on these endings. \nPaul Littlewood and friends during the 1978 Lloyds Bank Masters \nDuties at school in Daventry meant he was\, in February 1982\, unable to take part in the zonal at Marbella. This followed an excellent Hastings when as British Champion he made a plus score – a rare event indeed. \nIM Paul Littlewood during filming for the “Trick of the Mind” series from Derren Brown \nIn the summer he gave up teaching and joined Phillips & Drew (stockbrokers). He now (ed : this was in 1983) lives with his (first) wife Sue and family in the wilds of Essex (Billericay). \nIM Paul Littlewood\, event and photographer unknown \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nPaul gives a simultaneous display in Letchworth. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nChess Tactics\, Paul Littlewood\, Crowood Chess Library\, 1991 \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-paul-edwin-littlewood-18-i-1956-2/
CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230120
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230121
DTSTAMP:20230120T111043Z
CREATED:20200118T154340Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230120T111043Z
UID:2910-1674172800-1674259199@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Ali Mortazavi (20-i-1971)
DESCRIPTION:We send best wishes to IM Ali Mortazavi on his birthday\, this day (January 20th) in 1971 \nIM Ali Mortazavi \nAli is a British IM who was a successful trader in the financial markets. \nIn the FIDE directory he is listed as a Councillor in the Global Strategy Commission (GSC). \nHe was a professional player and became the CEO of Silence Therapeutics (SLN) : \n \nAli reached his hightest FIDE rating of 2410 in July 1994 aged 23. \nHe has played for Beeson Gregory in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). He played at the Isle of Man Open in 2018 but sadly\, little since. \n \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nIM Ali Mortazavi
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-ali-mortazavi-20-i-1971/
CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230121
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230122
DTSTAMP:20230123T102607Z
CREATED:20230120T150446Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230123T102607Z
UID:22227-1674259200-1674345599@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of GM Neil McDonald (21-i-1967)
DESCRIPTION:We send birthday wishes to GM Neil McDonald born on this day (January 21st) in 1967. \nNeil McDonald \nNeil McDonald \nFrom Wikipedia : \nNeil McDonald (born 21 January 1967) is an English chess grandmaster and a player on the international chess circuit. He is an English Chess Federation coach\,[1] who has trained many of the country’s strongest junior players. McDonald is a regular coach of the English junior team and was Head Coach of the English Chess Federation team at the Greece World Schools Championship in 2013.[2] He regularly escorts blind and partially sighted chess players to international World Championship events and is also a chess writer. \nMcDonald authored the French Defence monthly updates on chesspublishing.com from October 1999 until March 2009\,[3] 1 e4 … updates from November 2009 until January 2010\,[4] 1 e4 … from June 2014 until February 2015[5] and returned to 1 e4 … in March 2017 until January 2018.[6] \nNeil shared first place in the 1986 GLC Masters with Jonathan Levitt\, was outright first at the Elekes Memorial\, 1995\, first at The Leinster IM Tournament in Dublin\, 1997\, and other tournaments since. Neil plays for Wood Green in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL). \nHe became an International Master in 1986 and was awarded the Grandmaster title in 1996. \nMcDonald obtained his FIDE Trainer qualification in 2016.[7] \n \nNeil is a prolific and successful author\, most recently with “Coach Yourself” \nCoach Yourself : A Complete Guide to Self Improvement at Chess \nbut also thirty eight titles for Chess Press\, BT Batsford Ltd. and Everyman Chess Books. \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nModern Defence. Everyman\, 2000 \nGM Neil McDonald
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-gm-neil-mcdonald-21-i-1967-2/
CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player,Writer
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230122
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230123
DTSTAMP:20230121T130520Z
CREATED:20230121T130519Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230121T130520Z
UID:22231-1674345600-1674431999@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM Richard Pert (22-i-1981)
DESCRIPTION:Happy Birthday IM Richard Pert (22-i-1981) \nIM Richard Pert \n\n\n \n\n\n    \n        \n            You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.        \n    \n    \n    \n\n\n \n \nNick and Richard Pert \nNick and Richard Pert
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-im-richard-pert-22-i-1981-2/
CATEGORIES:2023,4NCL,Birthday,British Championships,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20210124
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20210125
DTSTAMP:20230124T232223Z
CREATED:20200408T130222Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230124T232223Z
UID:4195-1611446400-1611532799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of IM David Cummings (24-i-1961)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of IM David H Cummings (24-i-1961) \nDavid Cummings (front\, second from right) at a Lloyds Bank event \nThis was written about David who was 18 just prior to the 1979 Spassky vs the BCF Junior squad simultaneous display : \n“Varndean and Brighton. Rating 207. British men’s championship finalist\, 1977. First Danish junior international championship\, 1978.” \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 \nDavid was joint (with PG Large) Southern Counties (SCCU) champion in the 1979-80 season. \nIM David H Cummings
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-david-h-cummings-24-i-1961/
CATEGORIES:2023,Birthday,Player
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20230129
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20230130
DTSTAMP:20230119T000147Z
CREATED:20200331T140002Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230119T000147Z
UID:3867-1674950400-1675036799@britishchessnews.com
SUMMARY:Birthday of FM Steve Giddins (29-01-1961)
DESCRIPTION:Birthday of FM Stephen William Giddins (29-01-1961) \nHere are his games from chessgames.com \nWe reviewed his most recent book\, co-authored with IM Gerard Welling : Side-Stepping Mainline Theory \n \nSide-Stepping Mainline Theory
URL:https://britishchessnews.com/event/birthday-of-fm-stephen-w-giddins-29-01-1961/
CATEGORIES:2023,Birthday,Honours,Journalist,Player,Writer
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END:VCALENDAR