First published in Kingpin 27 (Summer 1997)
The joy of chess is nowhere celebrated to such climactic excesses as in Kingpin
leaves my game shiny, manageable, natural looking
uses impiety and parody to hew down the conventions of publishing, even including mock testimonials
a new kind of whiteness I never thought possible with my old Chess Magazine – and without boiling
Utterly irreverent . . . genuine wit . . . good instruction for club players
A great English chess favourite
I actually paid good money for No.9
Kingpin is a very, very nice magazine
In the chess satire stakes @KingpinEd are masters of the art form … a veritable feast: irony, sarcasm, hyperbole
combines an amusing style with solid instruction
Lev Khariton The attractive countryside of Meudon is a 15-minute train ride from Paris. Here I came to interview Boris Spassky just three days before his 60th birthday. He reminiscences about his life, his chess career, his rivals and friends. Dear Grandmaster, I should…
Andy Lewis A common Arimaa starting position Anyone for a variation on chess? Is chess played out? This concern has been voiced periodically over the history of the game, and the challenges has never been more profound: over-refinement of opening-theory; perfection of endgame technique;…
Sarah Hurst was a regular contributor to CHESS magazine in the 1990s and also edited the British Chess Federation’s newsletter, ChessMoves. Her fine book Curse of Kirsan: Adventures in the Chess Underworld is now available on Kindle at a bargain price. Since 2002 she has been translating…
“a must-read for everyone who doesn’t take chess too seriously; it’s especially a must-read for everyone who does take chess seriously!” ChessVibes “. . . very, very entertaining . . . some of the back issues were classics and I have some of them at home ….
© Thomas family collection This is the earliest known photograph of George Thomas (later Sir George). It was taken in Southsea in September 1895 when George was 14 years old. A few weeks earlier he had been a spectator at the great Hastings tournament where…
Ron Katz* The Carlsen/Niemann/Chess.com dust-up has recently been resolved, but not explained. This fictional explanation fills that gap… “According to this article,” Barb Silver said to her husband, Bernie, “Baby Boomers like us are responsible for inflation.” She was peering over the newspaper she held,…
Nearly fifty years ago CHESS published this irate letter: CHESS (October 1973) It provoked a lively response: CHESS (November 1973) One reader sprang to Mr Lorley’s defence with knowing verve: CHESS (December 1973) Having made his point, Mr Lorley kept a dignified silence. No…
Adrian Harvey Steinitz in London A Chess Biography with 623 Games Tim Harding 421 pages | 84 photos | hardback | $75.00 Jefferson: McFarland, 2020 For three reasons this reviewer regards Steinitz as the greatest chess player of all time. In the first…