• Giveaway! Signed posters.

    Giveaway! Signed posters.

    Hi readers (thought I don’t know how many there are of you as you don’t tend to comment so often), At the closing ceremony of the Grand Prix (which I have a story or two to tell) we were given some lovely posters signed by the players and we would love it for a lucky…

  • London Grand Prix/Chessboxing

    London Grand Prix/Chessboxing

    Saturday was a busy day when Gawain and I went to visit two chess events in London. The next day we were meant to go with his Aunt to see the Chess exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery but completely forgot and unfortunately that finishes tomorrow. You can check out a review on Chessvibes where the players from…

  • São Paulo/Bilbao

    São Paulo/Bilbao

      On the other side of the world at the moment (Brazil to be exact) the Chess Masters Finals is happening. With a massive FIDE event happening in London at the moment it’s easy to forget what other chess is happening especially if we are sleeping while they are playing. I’ve never been to Brazil…

  • Photos from the Opening Ceremoy

    Photos from the Opening Ceremoy

    Sorry for the bad photos but all I had was a small camera and the lighting was very dim. Again you can check out the good quality stuff from Ray Morris Hill and if you go right to the end you’ll see a photo of yours truly with Gawain. You can read the write up from…

  • London Grand Prix Opening

    London Grand Prix Opening

    Opening night, I didn’t now what to expect. It was a very fashionable affair (to my knowledge) and everything ran smoothly. If this is anything to go by, I believe the chess world is in very good hands. In the crowd, I even spotted some celebs Sophie Ellis Bextor (murder on the dance floor fame)…

  • The Paralytic Games

    The Paralytic Games

    Yesterday evening my flatmates Tom and Pete and me headed into Central London to The Plough, the pub that hosts the home matches of the Drunken Knights in the London League. Nevil Chan had organised their annual blitz tournament, nicknamed the Paralytic Games – see their name! After a tough Olympiad I wanted to play…

  • Istanbul Olympiad continued

    Istanbul Olympiad continued

    I left off the last report after four rounds when I had drawn every game but the team was on a very creditable 3.5/4 (or 7 match points). Round Five we were paired against India, another very close match. I had White against Pentala Harikrishna and decided to surprise him with the English. The game…

  • 4NCL 2013/14 Season

    I’m pleased to announce that Gawain has been recruited to play for Guilford in this year’s 4NCL season. After Pride and Prejudice breaking down, he switched back to his childhood team White Rose for last’s year season where they managed to finish 3rd=. I on the other hand will be playing for North East England,…

  • Istanbul Olympiad

    Istanbul Olympiad

    After a couple of stressful weeks attempting to sort Sue’s visa situation we managed to get my passport sent to us on Thursday and I flew out very early Monday morning. Alas so far Sue has been unable to accompany me as the UK Border Agency still have her passport. New Zealand decided the risk…

  • Are Chess players especially intelligent?

    Are Chess players especially intelligent?

    Judit Polgar, (Child prodigy, Best Female Chess player in the World ever, Super GM and a Mum to boot) tweeted this website yesterday. Now, I’m not denying that she’s very intelligent. I haven’t met her yet but noticing the list of “The 10 Smartest People Alive Today”, to my knowledge 3 of them are “proper”…

  • London Chess Classic – Playing with the big league!

    London Chess Classic – Playing with the big league!

    Hi guys, Just in case you didn’t know (being on the front cover of CHESS) or haven’t kept up-to-date with the latest tweets from the London Chess Classic, I’m pleased to say that Gawain will be playing the the upcoming London Chess Classic. As you know by the previous editions, the field is extremely strong…

  • 37th Chess Olympiad

    Hi Readers, Sorry for the delay in posting. Things have been hectic after the British as I had sent my passport (as well as Gawain’s) of to the United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) to apply for my spousal visa, luckily I’ve gotten confirmation that Gawain’s passport has been dispatched today and so will be with…

  • British Champion!

    I’m pleased to announce that Gawain is the 99th British Champion after defeating GM Stephen Gordon in a topsy turvy tie break. I had a front row seat and I was super nervous but Gawain came through after blundering his queen. Unfortunately for Ste he found it difficult to control his nerves. Gawain will write…

  • Round 3,4,5,6,7 and 8 Plus a rest day

    Chess wise, the tournament has been going well so far for Gawain and just before the rest day I managed my first win and since then I’ve won one game and drawn another with stronger players.Gawain currently leads outright first with 7/8. Quick on his tail is GM Stephen Gordon with 6.5/8 and David Howell,…

  • British Chess Championship Round 1 and 2

    We arrived into Tynemouth (where we will stay for the duration of the British) on Sunday afternoon and to my delight found a lovely village with lots of amenities including chocolatier! In the afternoon we walked over to Parks Leisure Centre in North Shields. The coastal route was lovely albeit a bit windy with the…

  • Mr and Mrs Maroroa Jones

    For Chess purposes Gawain will remain Gawain Jones and I’ll be Sue Maroroa. I would dread to think the confusion it could cause, knowing FIDE and the hassle it may take. Ga did joke that he could come into the list by becoming a “new” person and trying to gain a massive rating but I…

Got any book recommendations?