Bletchley Park female codebreakers

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Christopher Kreuzer
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Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by Christopher Kreuzer » Sun Mar 17, 2024 12:40 pm

There is a mention of Stuart Milner-Barry here:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/ ... debreakers

"Cambridge college unmasks alumnae who were Bletchley Park codebreakers" (Guardian article)

Lots of connections with Newnham College:

"These included the principal, Pernel Strachey, sister of Oliver Strachey, who worked in British military intelligence as a cryptographer. Oliver’s wife, Ray Costelloe, a suffragist who had studied mathematics at Newnham, also helped to find and recruit the 77 women, along with Stuart Milner-Barry, who was in charge of Hut 6 – and happened to be the brother of Alda Milner-Barry, a former vice-principal of Newnham."

I wonder how many of the 77 women played chess?

Richard James
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by Richard James » Sun Mar 17, 2024 12:48 pm

Pernel Strachey's sister Marjorie certainly played chess, so it's quite likely she did as well.

https://streathambrixtonchess.blogspot. ... achey.html

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John Upham
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by John Upham » Sun Mar 17, 2024 1:22 pm

Don't tell Gary Kenworthy of this thread whatever you do!
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Matt Mackenzie
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by Matt Mackenzie » Sun Mar 17, 2024 3:33 pm

John Upham wrote:
Sun Mar 17, 2024 1:22 pm
Don't tell Gary Kenworthy of this thread whatever you do!
Dare one ask why?
"Set up your attacks so that when the fire is out, it isn't out!" (H N Pillsbury)

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John Upham
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by John Upham » Sun Mar 17, 2024 3:38 pm

Matt Mackenzie wrote:
Sun Mar 17, 2024 3:33 pm
John Upham wrote:
Sun Mar 17, 2024 1:22 pm
Don't tell Gary Kenworthy of this thread whatever you do!
Dare one ask why?
I fear that we will all find out soon enough.
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Christopher Kreuzer
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by Christopher Kreuzer » Sun Mar 17, 2024 7:23 pm

The answer appears to lie in postings on LinkedIn by a Gary Kenworthy who appears to be the same as the chess FM. Unless it is someone pretending to be him. You would hope this thread could stay on topic, on the possible chess connections of the female codebreakers.

Roger Lancaster
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by Roger Lancaster » Sun Mar 17, 2024 7:57 pm

Passing over Bletchley Park for a moment, another Linkedin posting reads "When I was a Director of the British Chess Federation, the extent of date rape drugs for sex by English arbiters was heavily covered up". Anyone care to elucidate?

Alan McGowan
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by Alan McGowan » Sun Mar 17, 2024 9:46 pm


David Gilbert
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by David Gilbert » Mon Mar 18, 2024 12:04 am

I don't suppose anyone has noticed but I've been wearing the yellow, black and maroon scarf of Newnham College every winter for the last twenty-odd years. It's an enigma but it keeps me warm.

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John Upham
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by John Upham » Mon Mar 18, 2024 10:22 am

David Gilbert wrote:
Mon Mar 18, 2024 12:04 am
I don't suppose anyone has noticed but I've been wearing the yellow, black and maroon scarf of Newnham College every winter for the last twenty-odd years. It's an enigma but it keeps me warm.
David,

Perchance are you friends with Mark Howitt or Alan Llewelyn?
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Matt Mackenzie
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by Matt Mackenzie » Mon Mar 18, 2024 3:26 pm

John Upham wrote:
Sun Mar 17, 2024 3:38 pm
Matt Mackenzie wrote:
Sun Mar 17, 2024 3:33 pm
John Upham wrote:
Sun Mar 17, 2024 1:22 pm
Don't tell Gary Kenworthy of this thread whatever you do!
Dare one ask why?
I fear that we will all find out soon enough.
I don't think he has an account here any more, so perhaps not.
"Set up your attacks so that when the fire is out, it isn't out!" (H N Pillsbury)

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John Upham
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by John Upham » Mon Mar 18, 2024 3:48 pm

Matt Mackenzie wrote:
Mon Mar 18, 2024 3:26 pm
I don't think he has an account here any more, so perhaps not.
I asked GK about this and his "reason" (don't use the meaning of this word literally) was
I cannot post on EC Forum ,as my account was taken over by one of MI6 trained chess bluffer Boris Johnson/ GCHQ Cheltenham chess cheat, Dr Simon Cases spooks / bots who did very clever AI editing of my posts and fake news newsstreams to my browser to discredit me -- ...etc so the EC Forum account is thus blocked.
Make of that what you will. I was not able to decipher it.
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James Pratt
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Re: Bletchley Park female codebreakers

Post by James Pratt » Fri Apr 05, 2024 10:15 am

Shaun Taulbut's mum worked there ..