Chris Murray RIP

[Mick Norris]

From Phil Adams:

Some sad news this morning.

Chris Murray has died.

Formerly a strong player for various Manchester League and Bury League clubs over his long chess career, (Manchester Central, North Manchester, Prestwich, Whitefield, Heywood and I think Bury CC too at one time), Chris was also a keen county first team captain for Lancashire for some time, before his retirement from active play some years ago.

Older players up and down the country will probably remember Chris from the many tournaments at which he ran the "Manchesster Supplies" stall, selling books and chess equipment.

Unlike many chess players of my acquaintance, Chris had a very wide range of interests and one could talk and debate with him on a variety of topics. Only a couple of weeks ago I was at his house, where we spent the afternoon playing ten-minute games on his fine wooden set, using his old BHB analogue clock, and between games setting the world to rights. I shall miss him.

[Matt Mackenzie]

That is indeed sad news, for decades Manchesster Supplies more than held its own in the chess market - the distinctive blue and white scoresheets in particular. Think that I still have one of their actual scorebooks somewhere, and a pocket set I bought from him in 2001 is still going strong.

(before Chris it was run by Peter Furlong, someone else who is still missed by many)

[Nick Ivell]

RIP. I didn't know him well but a very fine captain as I recall.

[Martyn Goodger]

Sad news.

I bought my first-ever chess computer from Chris. I think it was a Mephisto and it would probably have been around the late 1980s. I remember playing a couple of trial games with the computer pre-purchase and Chris gently remonstrating with me for playing too slowly and thereby enabling myself to win.

I still have a stack of his "Manchesster Score Pads" from the same era filled with my games. Each game has a sheet of my subsequent handwritten annotations sellotaped alongside it.

Chess truly was a different game then.

[Mick Norris]

Funeral is Radcliffe (East Lancs) Crematorium, Tuesday 5th March at 2.30pm followed by refreshments at Radcliffe Borough Football Club.

[Paul Kane]

Farewell dear friend. RIP.