Brighton & Hove Chess Club moves to a new venue

The oldest chess club in England, founded in 1842, and now going stronger than ever, is about to move. For many years it has been in the noisy Railway Club, which in recent years has proved increasingly unsuitable for the quiet meditations involved in our beautiful game. The Railway Club has suffered terribly as a result of the smoking ban but it has not helped itself hugely either.

The new venue is very kindly provided by the Third Avenue Bridge Club at 15 Third Avenue, Hove, BN3 2PB. I haven’t been in there myself yet but it promises to be a much more suitable venue for playing chess. Another local chess club meets there already: the much smaller Woodpushers. Brighton & Hove Chess Club will, from 24th February 2011, be meeting there twice a week, on Thursdays between 6:45pm and 11:30pm and on Saturdays between and 7:00pm.

Brighton & Hove Chess Club has 45 members who play match games against each other in 5 league tournaments, demarcated along grading lines:

• The Denman Cup, for players with either no grade or an English Chess Federation (ECF) below 70;
• The Eric Cohen Cup, for players graded below ECF 130;
• The Plummer Knight Trophy, for players graded below ECF 160;
• The Challenge Shield, which is open to all players; and
• The Club Championship, which in recent years has been an invite only event.

In addition to all that, from Easter onwards there is a Rapid Play Ladder tournament. Club members regularly play in various external events such as chess congresses around the country. The club also enters 6 teams in the local Mid Sussex Chess League. It the biggest club in the League. One of the club’s 1st team players has captained the English Veterans Team abroad. Lessons are available for small fees but more importantly, there is a very friendly and welcoming atmosphere, especially for beginners. Many of us have joined only having grasped the moves and an enjoyment of the game, only to find that other club members, notwithstanding that they be opponents even, have been more than willing to make suggestions for how to play better.

Come and join us!