I was very sorry to learn of the death of the legendary American player and author Eddie Kantar – he was still writing articles with such youthful vigour that I had no idea he was 89. Kantar was considered to be the greatest player-teacher-writer of all time. The clarity of his writing, combined with his
Modern chess computers, like the program ‘Stockfish’, are treated as oracles. Plug in a position, start the engine, and within a fraction of a second it will identify the best move and its numerical evaluation (+1.27 pawns!). So it is a natural misconception that an ambitious player must commit to endless clicking and memorising. On
White to play and mate in two. Composed by Philip Hamilton Williams, British Chess Magazine, 1895. Answers should be emailed to chess@spectator.co.uk by Monday 25 July. There is a prize of £20 for the first correct answer out of a hat. Please include a postal address and allow six weeks for prize delivery. Last week’s
In Competition No. 3258, you were invited to submit a postcard sent while on holiday in a well-known fictional destination of your choice. The enforced concision of postcard–writing sometimes produces little master-pieces. Alongside the clichés and forced jollity, you find lyricism and poignant detail. It’s a shame that people rarely send them these days. So
The unclued lights (two single words, one a proper noun, four pairs and one trio) share a certain feature. Across 4 Insightful patient, ever worried (11) 11 Report of joints at hideout in London suburb (7) 12 Instruction to massage deep’s not hard (6) 16 Fears one is concealing crime (5) 19 Escape from
The title resolves into CL RVW which suggests the 150th anniversary of the birth of Ralph Vaughan Williams. The unclued lights are seven of his compositions: 1A, 1D, 8D, 11A, 15D, 19D/3D and 21D/39A. First prize Julian Prouse, Redditch Runners-up James Bristol, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire; Caroline Arms, Ithaca, NY
