The final match in the second division of Young Chelsea’s London Super League was as exciting as it gets. Two teams (out of ten) were going to be promoted, and four teams were within a gnat’s whisker of each other. We were narrowly leading and were playing McGuire, lying second. We needed to secure a
As I write, the former world champion Vladimir Kramnik is leading in the Norway tournament in Stavanger. The line-up is impressive, including Magnus Carlsen, Lev Aronian, Fabiano Caruana and Sergei Karjakin, and missing only Viswanathan Anand, who was defeated in last year’s World Championship match by Carlsen. At his best Kramnik is a subtle tactician,
In Competition No. 2851 you were invited to mark Jeremy Paxman’s departure from Newsnight by supplying an extract from an interview with a politician or statesman in which the interviewer doggedly but unsuccessfully attempts to get a straight answer to a straight question. There’s space only to announce that the winners take £30 and W.J. Webster
Somewhere next to 34 and 12, 33 is 25, the highest mountain is 1D (two words), and the principal 3 and 39 are alongside each other in 19. Solvers must shade the clued light that is an anagram of the place’s name. Elsewhere, ignore two accents. Across 1 Jittery Jonah hides Sonia and
The LITERAL QUINTET (13/22) was TERSE (37). 7A suggests ‘reest’, 40 steer, 5 stere, 6 ester, 19 trees and 26 reset. TERSE was to be shaded. The title suggests ‘teres’. First prize Gordon Fowler, Whitefield, Manchester Runners-up Richard Doye, Tuddenham, Suffolk; P.J.W. Gregson, Amersham, Bucks
White to play. This is a variation from Karjakin-Grischuk, Norway 2014. What key move allows White to deal with the threat to his bishop and emerge with a winning position? Answers to me at The Spectator by Tuesday 17 May or via email to victoria@spectator.co.uk or by fax on 020 7681 3773. The winner will
