Chess Blogs

I bought a lamp in a charity shop (50p), I rubbed it...


..and a three wishes Genie appeared.

I took all the wishes in my next game of chess.
1st. I want to win a Rook
2nd. I want to wins a Rook
3rd. I want to win a Queen.

And to avoid any traditional Genie trickery. I insisted that at...

This weeks blog came about due to a diagram in saw in the Mike Fox
and Richard James column ‘Addicts Corner’ CHESS magazine May 2003.


It was sent in by a reader and was played in 2002 in the U-10 BCF Ch.


White, in check can play 1.Kf4 or Kg2 etc but they saw an idea.
Why not play 1.Kh4 and threaten 2.g5 mate. This only succeeded
in dropping a massive hint for what Black played next. 1...g5 mate....

Last blog was a bit heavy so let’s go back to having some fun.

Hearing by chance on the radio that the Bo’ness Railway Museum
was closing down for the winter at the end of October I leapt out
of bed and two hours later I standing in front of 765243 ‘Maude’


This was the train used in T.V. version of ‘The Railway Children.’

I came home and looked at RHP game No. 86 ‘65243’...

Yes, you are correct in thinking that I am now at the stage where I buy
any book from a charity or junk shop that has a chess reference in the title.
Of course I have not read it, the back of the book blurb put me right off


Though six weeks from now when I’m trying to persuade my pieces to get
off the back rank, I will suddenly be struck by a strong desire to know just
what Queen Bee Kimberly from a parochial Scottish town has been up too.

no title[/imgblock...

Always on the look out for ways to lower the tone of the blog
this week I’ve stooped into the world of cringe worthy puns.

‘Anything You Can Do - I Can Do Better’ is a song from the
musical ‘Annie Get Your Gun’ and having failed miserably
to get an ‘Alekhine Get Your Gun’ Red Hot Pawn game to suit
that pun I lowered my sights and aimed at a game by Carissa Yip.

C. Yip - S. Foisor, Saint Louis, USA 2017...

I picked up this, my 3rd copy, I was not going to leave on a shelf for 50p.


It is one of those books everyone claims to have read but very few ever have.
Like most people I have flicked though it memorising a quote here and there
to recite parrot fashion giving the impression I’ve read it and appear to be smart.

This need to appear smarter than what we are is a chess players curse. When
asked about our rating we give it but hastily add it really should higher and
whoever you are talking to agrees, as they too think their rating should higher. ...

Pause for a while and figure out how you would win this as White.


We will come back to it. Meanwhile here is a cartoon


CHESS magazine May 1978.

A selection of puzzles from the 1960’s but first a quiz.

Q. How many players won the Chess World Championship between 1960 and 196...

I picked up this for 10p...


...on the inside back page the magazine it shows you how to castle.


The magazine cost £7.99 but it came with came with a chess piece.


This is just some of them....

This week we look at...


It is not really a chess puzzle book as in a real chess puzzle book,
its actually a chess themed puzzle book. I’ll show you what I mean.
I will give a solution to a few of the puzzles, not the word searches etc.

Which piece comes next in this logical sequence.

The Black Bishop[/hidden...

Viz, the popular British distinguished and...er...educational magazine
has again lampooned chess. This time with a double page feature which
is a bit too indelicate, near the knuckle and too racy to reproduce here.


Inside they are running a chess competition.

What is the least number of moves it will take for the Knight to
capture the Rook, Queen and Bishop, which will remain stationary....