What is it like to play chess? Once in a while, I try to convey the atmosphere of a competitive chess tournament to someone who has never witnessed it. I liken it to sitting an exam, in that it lasts for hours and makes your brain hurt; at least everyone can relate to that. But that fails to explain why you would want to do it. So I also mention the thrill of a mental cage-fight, which resonates with some while horrifying others, and then I sow confusion by adding that the game is deeply beautiful.
Here’s hoping that Chess Masters, an eight-episode series to be broadcast on BBC2 next year, will succeed where words often fail, and bring the game’s drama to a new audience. According to Catherine Catton, Head of Commissioning, Factual Entertainment and Live Events, the production company Curve Media ‘has devised a format that makes chess both entertaining and accessible for all’. The BBC press release (spectator.co.uk/bbc-chessmasters) explains that ‘highly skilled players from all backgrounds will battle it out across a series of rapid games before one will be crowned the title of Chess Master.’ Anyone with a passion for chess is invited to apply by email to casting@curvemedia.com.
I wonder what inspiration they will draw from The Master Game, which aired on the BBC between 1976 and 1983. Grandmasters competed in a real tournament, and recorded their thoughts after each game. That footage was then spliced with the live games to create the illusion of hearing their thoughts unfold as the games progressed. The production – once innovative but now quaint – remains gently compelling, and several episodes are available to view online.
More recently, the format was resurrected in a TV series Checkmate, which lasted for two seasons in 2015 and 2016. Presented by Anna Richardson and grandmaster Simon Williams, it featured a selection of top male and female players, including Ju Wenjun, who is now the reigning women’s world champion. She first won that title in 2018, wresting the title from Tan Zhongyi in a ten-game match held in China. Six years later, Tan has earned the right for a rematch after her resounding victory with 9 points from 14 games at the Fide Women’s Candidates tournament, held in Toronto in April.
One quandary modern live commentators face is how much to use the instant feedback from chess engines. The evaluations, often presented as a thermometer-like ‘bar’ to the side of the board, offer an easy way for viewers to gauge what is going on. But explaining every minor fluctuation can distract from the flow, and can anyway be misleading, as the bar may present equality even when both sides are walking a tightrope. At other times, the swings heighten the excitement, as in this game from Toronto. In the diagram position, the crude 32 Bxf6+ was best, since 32…Bxf6 33 Qxf6+ Kh7 34 Ne7 creates overwhelming threats. But Tan was tempted by a more elegant move.
Tan Zhongyi-Anna Muzychuk
Fide Women’s Candidates Tournament, 2024
32 Rxf6 Remarkably, this throws away the win, even though the potential discovered check from the b2 bishop makes the White queen immune from capture: 32…Rxg5 33 Rf8+ Kh7 34.Rxe8 wins another bishop. Bxf6 33 Qxf6+ Kh7 34 Ne7 Re4 Muzychuk had just a couple of minutes left, but this plausible try is a decisive error. The cool 34…Bxe6! saves the day, e.g. 35 Nxg8 Qxg8 36 Qe7+ Qf7 37 Rxe6 Qxe7 38 Rxe7+ Kxh6 with a draw. 35 Rxe4 Nxe4 36 Nxg8! Qxg8 36…Nxf6 37 Nxf6+ wins with a fork 37 Qf7+ Black resigns
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