FIDE Master Jimmy Adams, who has died aged 79 after a long illness, was one of the great chess storytellers. He was cast in the mould of Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld – lively, versatile and cultured writers he admired, emulated, and surpassed. He honed…
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The Brain Games Scandal click below Brain Games First published in Kingpin 40 (Autumn 2009)
Read MoreMichael Basman Editor’s note: What is striking about these games is how each highlights different aspects of Mike’s playing style. As you might expect, there is his calling card – the outlandish opening 1 e4 g5 (‘totally bonkers’ –Nigel Short), but next is an epic…
Read MoreIn 1968, the American magazine Chess Review introduced Michael Basman as ‘another bright B’ in the tradition of famous British chess players represented by Bird, Blackburne and Burn. That’s some billing for a 21-year-old. Basman would never be the brightest chess star in this firmament…
Read MoreIn Memoriam Brian Eley (1946–2022) British Chess Champion, Suspected paedophile So. Farewell Then, Brian Eley, Fugitive chess master, Touch and move suspect, Reported to the BCF for alleged misconduct in 1979. Fifty years ago You were the British Chess Champion In Brighton. Thirty years…
Read MoreThe first chess column to appear in a newspaper was published in the Liverpool Mercury on this day in 1813.
Read MoreSarah Hurst The Queen’s Gambit is an entertaining Netflix drama based on a novel that presents chess in a positive light and makes all the right points about women’s struggles on and off the board. It’s hard these days not to see all period drama…
Read MoreWriter Patrick Leigh Fermor and wife Joan social distancing with friends on the Greek island of Hydra in 1954 (Clockwise from top left: Patrick Leigh Fermor, Cyril Connolly, Maurice Bowra, unknown, Joan Leigh Fermor) Joan Leigh Fermor (née Rayner) was ‘addicted to chess’ (obituary, Daily…
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Muntaha Anwaar
→ Commenting on: Jimmy Adams, 1947–2026
Amatza Avni
→ Commenting on: Jimmy Adams, 1947–2026
Alan Crombleholme
→ Commenting on: Pub Chat with Jimmy Adams part 1
Epawn
→ Commenting on: Ron Harman (1938–2014) – A Champion of the Chess Club