English Chess Forum

Hi Andrew You're quite right: there are lots of beginners' books on the market, which sell pretty well, and lots of books for competitive players of all levels, but very little designed to take you from one to the other. I'm currently writing a series of books aimed at players who have learnt the mo...

My Google search produced a different answer(?) to David's: Richard Doddridge Blackmore who, likewise, is previously unheard of to me - though I'm not a student of chess history. That was my answer as well. There was an excellent article about him in CHESS a couple of months ago. He was a pretty de...

John Townsend wrote: ↑

Fri Mar 02, 2018 10:45 am

Which famous chess player was called to the Bar on 7 June 1852?

If we're thinking about the same person, I paid a small tribute to him the Monday before last. I took a slight detour on my way home from school to walk along a road bearing his name.

Despite Leonard Barden's evidence-based demolition of this garbage, it's making a regular appearance on my Facebook timeline, pumped out by familiar names who really should be checking the facts David, some of us posted this on social media for interest and comment, rather than because we agreed or...

I don't have nearly as many years experience, nor am I at the same level, in teaching chess as the likes of Andrew Martin or Richard James, so please excuse me if what I say is too specific to the area and level I teach at. My children got me into my new career and right from the beginning I have a...

Having read your book on this subject... You're one of the few who have. On the other hand, my book for children is still selling well, as, no doubt, are other books for children. Which suggests that many parents buy a book and give it to their kids for them to teach themselves. Of course chess doe...

The Swedish GM Pontus Carlsson, who is of African descent, received some very unpleasant racist abuse from a chess.com user named funnychess9, who plays under the flag of the Solomon Islands, yesterday. You'll find it on his Twitter feed if you care to look. I think that said user has been banned n...

The article Harry quotes is very important and there's a lot of truth in it, although some children will thrive on the pressure. But for every chess parent putting children under too much pressure there are a hundred parents who teach their children the moves because it 'makes kids smarter' but refu...

In all the years I have been playing and all the 'teachers' and 'trainers' of chess I have met and worked with I have noticed a general trend emerge between those who have children themselves and those who don't. A German FM I once taught with had a far greater knowledge of chess than I but no real...

The Swedish GM Pontus Carlsson, who is of African descent, received some very unpleasant racist abuse from a chess.com user named funnychess9, who plays under the flag of the Solomon Islands, yesterday. You'll find it on his Twitter feed if you care to look.

Diaereses seem to be an issue. I used to have a problem uploading the master database into UTU because of a player with the first name Gaël, but his name has now been changed to Gael. It looks like the bug has been partially corrected in the current version of UTU: Dr de la Motte was accepted last t...

Chielamangus (Cecil Purdy)?

John Townsend wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 20, 2017 12:12 pm

Which famous chess player was born during the eighteenth century, died in Poland, and gave his name to a popular opening in the modern game?

Alexander Dmitrievich Petrov?

John Clarke wrote: ↑

Tue Oct 31, 2017 10:59 pm

Anthony Buckeridge committed the same sin in Jennings Follows A Clue. Someone's chess set is knocked off his head (don't ask) and " .... castles, knights and bishops flew in all directions".

Good to meet another Jennings fan. My favourite books as a boy.

Tim Harding wrote: ↑

Sat Oct 28, 2017 7:17 pm

To get back to the book in question, does it mention Claude Bloodgood?

Yes, there are two pages on Bloodgood, most of which is taken up by an annotated game. Nothing on Raymond Weinstein, though. Nor on chess in Broadmoor.