Kingpin Chess Magazine » George Botterill, New Statesman

Posted by Jon Manley

No Regrets: Boris Spassky at 60

November 27, 2007· 13 Comments

Lev Khariton The attractive countryside of Meudon is a 15-minute train ride from Paris. Here I came to interview Boris Spassky just three days before his 60th birthday. He reminiscences about his life, his chess career, his rivals and friends. Dear Grandmaster, I should…

Sarah Hurst: 20 Questions

January 8, 2015· 7 Comments

Sarah Hurst was a regular contributor to CHESS magazine in the 1990s and also edited the British Chess Federation’s newsletter, ChessMoves. Her fine book Curse of Kirsan: Adventures in the Chess Underworld is now available on Kindle at a bargain price. Since 2002 she has been translating…

Arimaa, Computers and the Future of Chess

February 6, 2015· 7 Comments

Andy Lewis A common Arimaa starting position Anyone for a variation on chess? Is chess played out? This concern has been voiced periodically over the history of the game, and the challenges has never been more profound: over-refinement of opening-theory; perfection of endgame technique;…

Buy all the back issues

March 4, 2020· 6 Comments

“a must-read for everyone who doesn’t take chess too seriously; it’s especially a must-read for everyone who does take chess seriously!” ChessVibes “. . . very, very entertaining . . . some of the back issues were classics and I have some of them at home ….

Jimmy Adams, 1947–2026

July 1, 2026· 1 Comment

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…

Machiavelli on Ice

October 5, 2025· No Comments

The Brain Games Scandal click below Brain Games First published in Kingpin 40 (Autumn 2009)

A Creature without Counterpart

July 9, 2025· 1 Comment

Sir George Thomas wrote more about badminton than chess, which makes this article (published in 1927) something of a rarity. In it he compares chess with his favourite sports, tennis and badminton. ‘the true chess fiend is a creature without counterpart’ Chess Fiends! By…

Chess and the Nazis

July 3, 2025· No Comments

Tim-Jake Gluckman Chess in the Third Reich How the Game Was Played, Glorified, and Abused in Nazi Germany, 1933–1945 Taylor Kingston vi + 285 pages | 98 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, indexes hardback | €49.95 Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2025 Taylor Kingston (TK) is…

Amatza Avni

July 6, 2026

...Just learned about his death. very sad. He edited two or three of my books and proofed my Baron articles…
→ Commenting on: Jimmy Adams, 1947–2026

Alan Crombleholme

May 9, 2026

I hope that this message will reach someone who can help and that it will not be thought an outrageous…
→ Commenting on: Pub Chat with Jimmy Adams part 1

Epawn

November 27, 2025

And now, November 2025, Ron's brother Kenny has passed away.
→ Commenting on: Ron Harman (1938–2014) – A Champion of the Chess Club

Sista

July 19, 2025

This is such a well-researched and informative piece. Thank you for sharing! cnnslot
→ Commenting on: A Creature without Counterpart

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