The reasons why one player is chosen over another to perform a simul are multifarious. On Tuesday December 14th 1926, Luton Chess Club invited former Russian Eugene Znosko-Borovosky to the town to perform a simul but why him in particular? Was it related to his publication mentioned in the reportage? Was he much cheaper? Did it concern availability? Was it about reputation? Who else was available? Was it seen as something of a coup? Most likely we will never know, perhaps it was all of the aforementioned combined.
With the information to hand, we cannot discount this as Znosko-Borovosky’s only visit to Luton.
Should it be the case that E. Znosko-Borovosky did return he would not be alone there. In more recent times (88 & 89) GM Chandler did that in Luton too. When further evidence concerning the aforementioned master is found, I shall post it.
Before the motorization of vehicles, there is evidence that matches were played at mutually agreed venues, halving journey times. We find William Ward, future champion of London, playing for Luton in such an arranged match. Please see the reportage below.
This is quite an important find as it helps us understand William Ward’s movements between Luton and London better. Not before Feb. 18th 1897 then, but before November 1898? Why was St. Albans chosen? It is important to note that at the tail end of the industrial revolution when rail was made available, most matches were between cities and towns who were connected by it. At the time of the match it was possible to travel to St. Albans by train from both Luton and Watford. As the links below show you trains were up and running from 1868 and 1858 respectively.
We can assume, then, that arranging matches with local clubs was a priority. Regarding the renewed matches with St. Albans, at least one has been reported on.
Reportage which refers to the matches against St. Albans and embellishes them can be found below.
Wednesday December 31st 1986, The Luton News and Bedfordshire Chronicle
Thursday, November 27th 1986, The Luton News and Bedfordshire Chronicle
Thursday, November 6th, 1986, The Luton News and Bedfordshire Chronicle
Thursday, October 16th 1986, The Luton News and Bedfordshire Chronicle
Thursday, September 25th 1986, The Luton News and Bedfordshire Chronicle
I feel obliged to comment here due to a lack of clarity. As Mr. Sweby knows all too well since he reported on him numerous, GM Sergio Mariotti played in the Beds. league in the 70/71 season. He was an IM at the time and went on to become a GM 4 years later. James Plaskett also was not a GM when he played in our league and became one afterwards in 1985. But since GM Plaskett developed as a player in Bedfordshire and played in our league for many years as well as play for Bedfordshire, he is perceived as homegrown talent. But strictly speaking, the first person to play in out league and go on to become a GM later was in fact GM Sergio Mariotti.
I have to comment here. As this website shows, no one but no one has put more effort into preserving Tom Sweby’s column than I have -not one single person on this planet has done more than I. Yes of course I used to know him personally and even called him up to borrow books once. Close friends were taught by him also. I know what his style is and what his limitations are. I hate to say it but he is sloppy as a writer and frequently lacks precision. In attempting to draw attention to great players who preceding those present I am quite sure Tom has made a rather embarrassing mistake. If an Irish champion had played for Luton before, I would already know. I have since done research and been in contact with more than one chess historian over the matter. There is no evidence anywhere to suggest this is true and Sweby never mentioned this before ever also. We had a Welsh champion yes, Donald Curtis. Why would he mention an Irish champion but then leave out a Welsh champion, whom he has reported on and knew personally? I suspect Tom simply got mixed up during the writing process and I can assure you, it was not the first time that happened, nor the last for that matter.
Back in the 2000/2001 season, Bedford proved they are the best in the land. They beat the more fancied Wood Green in the final of the National Club Championships, with the Ledger brothers in fine form. This is of course before the 4NCL took shape. Details can be found here: https://sccu-chess.com/archive/0001/nc.htm
In addition, I am once again indebted to Mr. Paul Habershon, long standing member of Bedford Chess Club for his first hand account of the match. The text below is his response to my query.
To the best of my knowledge, this is the only instance of a club from the Bedfordshire league becoming national champions.
Once again, archivist, English chess supremo, and dedicated admirer of our online proletariat John Saunders has done a fine job by placing the 1979 Lloyds Bank Masters on line for all and sundry to wonder over.
My fellow Bedfordshire county team mates, for our purposes this tournament signifies our top end strength well. Participating for Bedfordshire we have:
50th James Plaskett of Bedford (2410) [still untitled, classified as a junior]
63rd Michael MacDonald-Ross of Milton Keynes (2265)
79th Colin. P. Garwood of Dunstabubble (No FIDE rating, est. 2200 classified as a junior)
Something of a discrepancy? (See below)
Did Colin. P. Garwood play in the main event and a junior tournament?
Quick trivia question: The venue was the hotel Ivanhoe. Ivanhoe is the name of a novel by which author?
Another quick trivia Q: James Plaskett achieved his first ever norm, what norm was it?
…history as a constantly moving process, with the historian moving within it…
E. G. Carr – What is history? p. 153
Within the chess world, to compare players of different generations and eras is treated with suspicion, thus deemed inadvisable and ill-judged. This is not the time nor the place to delve into the very great many reasons why. It is not my intention to do so here, however, I do wish to draw attention to the point that the tendency to evaluate players purely in terms of their rating and title can be broadened oh-so-slightly.
I have recently posted regarding the strongest players to have played chess within Bedfordshire, on a number of occasions, and thought that it may be of interest to readers who are more interested in their world rankings, with questions such as ‘Who across time achieved the highest world ranking ever?’. Generally, I am reluctant go down this path for a number of reasons, primarily because I believe narrative should remain synchronic, however, I have done it anyway. I have added sufficient information so that mistakes regarding interpretation cannot be made so easily.
Number 1 – William Ward
Recorded playing in Bedfordshire 1896.
Highest ever world ranking 56 *Classified as unofficial as FIDE did not exist then (historically estimated).
Recorded playing in Bedfordshire 73-80 (approx.) (untitled until 1981)
Highest ever world ranking 100
Year 1985
Rating 2495
So there you have it, if you want to know who played in Bedfordshire and gained the highest ever world ranking, now you know.
The craving for an interpretation of history is so deep-rooted that, unless we have a constructive outlook over the past, we are drawn either to mysticism or to cynicism.
F. Powicke, Modern Historians and the Study of History (1955) p. 174
The strongest Bedford based player ever is without doubt GM James Plaskett -let’s call him number 1.
The second strongest Bedford based player ever is without doubt IM Andrew Ledger -let’s call him number 2.
Despite being a generation apart, they’ve met over the board more than a few times over the years with our number 1 obtaining noticeably better results. However, on this occasion 1 our number 2 defeated our number 1.
Black has just played 27. … Nf5, which will win him the game shortly.
…on what this site initially became…on what this site is now becoming…on what this site cannot become…
On what this site initially became…
…once upon a time, the chess-related musings of an adrift academic were bound playfully and electronically in this online journal of sorts. They grew and grew as the decade did too. I kept on because I love to write whether I had much to say or not; therefore, being read by others was usually of little or no importance, comparatively speaking. Content was based on personal thoughts and experience on various topics with no intended audience borne in mind. With topics broadening, my own take on things always shaped the narrative I constructed: I often thought I was insightful but never that I was right. Sometimes imagination gave rise to originality: and of that I have always remained proud. I often introduced humour, believing that I am funnier than I really am. Sometimes, I found my own style antithetical to the conservatism I believe chess is plagued by -oftentimes that has put a gracious smile on my face… .
On what this site is now becoming…
…this site is now becoming a collaboration of chess in Bedfordshire: much more so of the past than the present -that has become the dominant trend. I document the history of chess in Bedfordshire as much as I can, and as time has passed I have become more thorough and resourceful. However, I am not a trained historian as my background lies principally in philosophy but yes it is true I did study some modules on history as both an undergraduate and a post-graduate too; furthermore, I have trained myself up, particularly in terms of postmodern history. Since 2015, I have only read history and historiography as well as those philosophers who have been so influential on postmodern history, such as Nietzsche (whom I once wrote a 19,000 word dissertation on, entitled: Can the Will to Power be Found in The Birth of Tragedy?), also Richard Rorty and Foucault and I suppose certain structualists such as Claude Levi-Strauss too. Regarding postmodernism, mostly I keep to Hayden White, Keith Jenkins and Alan Muslow.
Some friends and former playing partners back home describe me as the ‘go to guy’ for the history of chess in Bedfordshire. This compliment says more about the lack of interest in the subject than my own endeavour. As mentioned, I am too adrift from academia to feel chuffed by it. Rather, I tend to lament that my historical research, like my chess, just isn’t what it should be. Even though I may well have a broad understanding of Bedfordshire chess history courtesy of the volume of research put into it, all of which began in 2014, this is not something I am particularly proud of. Nonetheless, out of courtesy compliments are graciously received. If the truth be told, I just see it as my job and only that – after all someone’s got to do it and no one else is that interested!
Amongst the many others, I have created three categories: ‘Bedfordshire Chess’ and ‘History of Bedfordshire Chess’ and ‘Luton Chess Club’. This website is slowly moving towards a consolidation of those (all of which can be found in one of the toolbars to the right).
On what this site cannot become…
…I like to be both creative and amusing when I can be, factor in that playfulness has been an ever-present factor, the content of this site should be thought of as multifarious. It could be said I continue to enjoy undermining the conservatism I believe chess is underpinned by even after all these years, and often try to use humour to do it still, believing I have got better at it. Consequently, despite the general direction its going in, this site cannot only be about Chess in Bedfordshire and nor will it be. It may become noted for that yes -in fact that’s been the case for years already even by established historians, archivists, and whoever else. External factors aside, this site is titled McCreadyandChess. I cannot, nor will I not, remove my own personal thoughts and experiences of chess from the posts of this site -especially if I think they are funny or original for they constitute my writing at its very, very best. In addition, the number of categories alone tells you that breadth of content is important to me. I am proud of my site, it is identity conferring and that is how it shall stay -end of story. All you really have are: ‘Some thoughts on the beautiful game’, which, incidentally, just happen to be my very own; nothing more, nothing less, take of it whatever you please… .
A side note on how to read old Tom Sweby's columns
Not perhaps, but quintessentially, Old Tom Sweby is best thought of as a passionate devotee to the newspapers he wrote for. He was well read and knowledgeable of the Bedfordshire chess scene and well beyond, given that he was the president of the S.C.C.U. once upon a time. He was generally well-respected and rubbed shoulders with many, if not all, of those eminent within British chess circles. It would, however, be a critical mistake to see his column is primary source material entirely. That it is not. You will also find secondary source material quoted too, and the reliability of that is not quite as Tom hoped. Given that he wrote for decades, this is to some degree inevitable, and after all we are all prone to error whether we realize it or not. Thankfully, with regards to old Tom Sweby, they are infrequent and for the most part old Tom continued to document events and developments in the Bedfordshire league from the get go as best he could but, of course, everything lies open to interpretation. Despite this, and generally speaking. this does indeed make him informative and thus worth reading. Dare I say his columns constitute a narrative describing the latest developments, match reports and changing nature of the Beds league...he knew his audience and wrote according. This manifested itself over decades but brevity was always in play courtesy of the restictions imposed by writing a column. Should you wish to read a in instrumental figure of the Beds' league post WW2, you are quite welcome to peruse what has been posted here... . :-) I should, however, point out that as the decades wore on he gradually moved on away from narratives concerning the Bedfordshire league towards affairs both historical and international. The reasons for this are multifarous, old age was a predominante factor presumably, however, the bottom line is with regards to how the Bedfordshire chess scene developed post WW2: old Tom Sweby is your go to guy. He wrote more about chess in Bedforshire than anyone else did but given he was a Lutonian and writing for a Luton newspaper there is both bias and greater coverage of his hometown than the rest of the county.
Gallery
I’m either 10 or 11 here
1982, myself versus Brian from Sunderland.
At the Thai Junior chess championships. My daughter of course.
Pattaya 2011
2011
Thai Junior Championships
2008
2011
Around 2011
2011
Pattaya 2009
2011
Kuwait 2008
2012
2012
2011 BKK Chess club
2011
2011 Thai Open
2011 Thai Open
2013 approx
Around 2014
2010
2012
Around 2011
2011
2011
2013
Around 2011
Around 2011
2020
2011
2008
2011
2013 or thereabouts
2010
2017
2014?
2010
2024
2024
2024
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