English Chess Forum

https://www.gofundme.com/f/british-ches ... cer-appeal

UPDATE:

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Jonathan. Jonathan passed away peacefully this morning, 22nd December in Torbay hospital.

He was just 42 years old.

Jonathan’s cancer was unbelievably aggressive. The speed at which he has been taken has shocked us all, but we are at least grateful that Jonathan did not suffer for long and was not in pain.

He is survived by his parents, his two brothers and his wife Angela.

Angela and his family have asked us to pass on their deep gratitude for all the kindness and support shown by the chess community and other contributors.

Your contributions will go a long way to supporting them through this terribly distressing and challenging time.

This is the worst and most tragic news I have heard for a very long time.

Not sure what to say so I won't

Rest in Peace Jonathan

My dear God, how awful. Really not much else to say.

Really sorry to hear that, I didn't know Jonathan but would see him around all the time when he was still playing in weekenders, before he got titled.

42 absolutely no age and taken so quickly.

RIP

Devastated.

I can’t believe it. I was hoping he would pull through. Had no idea he was this advanced. Totally devastated. Loved Jon so much. Was so lovely to me and we got on so well and had so many laughs. And due to our friendship we decided to become blitz partners at Hastings. And we won it. We spoke before the tournament about tactics and openings. And his sheer amazing chess knowledge and mentality helped us win the Hastings title. I was so fond of Jon. And we chatted a bit on fb as well. Thoughts and condolences to his family and close friends. The chess world is a far worse place now Jon is gone .

I never knew him at all but he was still an inspirational figure to see steadily grow and show us that hard work and determination can go a really long way, all the way to grand master and British champion. The fact that even though he was relatively withdrawn from the chess circuit there were still hundreds of people lining up to gift donations shows just how deeply he was liked by the English chess community and will now be missed deeply as well.

Massive loss; I remember back in 2003 at York he was a steady 170 player (late teens) and he drew with me and, that evening had drinks with him and Brett Addison (who shared 1st place with me); thereafter his improvement was off the scale and proves hard work can prevail

Very sad news and only 42 years old

Incredibly sad news. Jonathan was an inspiration to chess players everywhere of what could be achieved with sheer hard work. He was an incredibly strong player who could play almost any position and at his peak when fully active a match for almost any player in the country (and consistently, not just in an “on his day” sense that is often trotted out). Perhaps even more importantly he was somebody who i think i barely ever heard a bad word said about - a genuinely nice guy who got on with everyone (or kept well hidden if he didn’t).

I think i first came across his name at Hastings in the mid to late 2000s i guess as (to me) a total unknown. He was playing Simon Williams who played a brilliant game but somehow failed to finish him off and even lost. What could at the time be put down to an aberration helped by a surprising level of resilience obviously rapidly proved to be far more substantial. It seemed he never looked back from that point.

Condolences to his family and particularly close friends who i know will be devastated, especially with the speed it has all happened.

RIP.

That really is tragic. We've made lot of progress but it's still a horrible disease.

He was still playing in the Durham evening league in 2012/13. He was far too strong for anyone in the league to give him a meaningful game by then, but Consett wouldn't have had a team otherwise.

Awful news. I never met him but only heard good things. And he got a GM title, without being an awesome junior, which is truly amazing.

RIP

Kevin Thurlow wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 23, 2025 1:47 pm

Awful news. I never met him but only heard good things. And he got a GM title, without being an awesome junior, which is truly amazing.

RIP

Indeed. There are parallels here with Joe Gallagher who (I think) followed a similar slow burner development path.

I seem to recall Gallagher had a more distinguished junior career, albeit not stellar.

Truly awful news, although we had been given due warning.

This is very sad news. Condolences to Jonathan's family and friends.

I think that Jonathan must have been the only player to have beaten both of the Barbican GMs (Jonathan Parker and Matthew Turner) in the 4NCL. He had a very smooth playing style, and tended to win convincingly, and indeed there is an awful lot of work concealed behind such performances. I remember his win v Conquest in 4NCL 2010/11 (note that exd4 by Conquest would not have been simply met by ...exd4 in reply) and years later, when he was playing less regularly, a smooth win v Fressinet in 2018/19. I remember that some of his fellow GMs thought of him of being of 2600+ strength and it is easy to see why.

Evidently it was his choice not to defend his British title after he won it, but had he been so motivated one would have expected him to win another two or more titles. Similarly, if motivated, he would have been a strong reserve (or more) for the English team in many of the 2012-2019 years.

Nick Ivell wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 23, 2025 3:52 pm

I seem to recall Gallagher had a more distinguished junior career, albeit not stellar.

Truly awful news, although we had been given due warning.

Well by a matter of a few weeks, yes. I don't think anybody was expecting the end to be *this* quick.