Author Archives: David McAlister

Wenman-O’Hanlon, Hastings 1945-46

Posted on May 8, 2022 by David McAlister

Sean has recently posted about a couple of newly rediscovered O’Hanlon games in A Lively Skirmish: O’Hanlon – Scott, British Championship 1921 and O’Hanlon – Seitz, British Championship Major Open B 1938. The nine-time winner of the Irish Championship lost … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Chess at the 1957 FISEC Games in Dublin

Posted on February 3, 2022 by David McAlister

“For some 280 youths, representing eight countries, tonight is their big night when the curtains go up on their ” Little Olympics ” — the International Catholic Students’ Games — in Dublin. The Irish officials have, through hard work, brought … Continue reading →

Posted in Tournaments | Leave a comment

The Road to Tel Aviv, or the misadventures of a photojournalist

Posted on October 14, 2021 by David McAlister

I suspect I had as much fun on the road to Tel Aviv as ever Bob Hope had on any of his “Roads”. – Beth Cassidy, The Road to Tel Aviv Beth Cassidy played for Ireland in the very first … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The Irish Pawn Centre

Posted on September 11, 2021 by David McAlister

English Grandmaster Tony Miles identified “a revolutionary new concept” – the Irish pawn centre (or IPC) – in his report on the 1978 FIDE West European Zonal in Amsterdam. That report appeared in the Number One issue of the short-lived … Continue reading →

Posted in Analysis, Games | Leave a comment

Barker and Marshall

Posted on April 6, 2021 by David McAlister

In the previous post Malcolm Barker, Sean had queried Barker’s attribution of a photograph of him in play against Walter Marshall (and being watched by Sir George Thomas and W. Ritson Morry) to the 1949 Glorney Cup, because the contemporary newspaper reports had … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Glorney Cups, Junior events, Players | Leave a comment

Littleton at the 1969 Praia da Rocha Zonal

Posted on February 14, 2021 by David McAlister

In his post on the high quality photograph of Michael Littleton playing at the World Championship Zonal at The Hague in 1966, Sean pointed out the much improved result Littleton achieved in the following World Championship qualifying process at the 1969 Zonal at … Continue reading →

Posted in Games, Irish champions, Tournaments | 1 Comment

Paddy Kennedy correspondence game

Posted on January 26, 2021 by David McAlister

We have previously posted about Patrick Brendan Kennedy’s victory in the 1949 Irish Championship. As that article pointed out, all seven of his games from that event are in the ICU database, but beyond those very few others appear to … Continue reading →

Posted in Correspondence, Irish champions | Leave a comment

Johannesburg 1955

Posted on July 9, 2020 by David McAlister

In my earlier article Heidenfeld and the 1958 Irish Championship I touched upon the circumstances in which Wolfgang Heidenfeld, German born but resident in South Africa for over 20 years, came to Ireland. In Mark Orr’s broader biographical sketch Wolfgang Heidenfeld … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Maeve Binchy and the intricacies of chess

Posted on December 30, 2019 by David McAlister

In the Comments in the Simuls page Oisin McGuinness referred to an article on chess by the celebrated writer Maeve Binchy which had appeared in the Irish Times. He thought it might have been in connection with a Hecht simul … Continue reading →

Posted in Articles, Players | 1 Comment

Glorney -v- König

Posted on August 11, 2019 by David McAlister

The Glorney Cup was held last month at Carrickdale Hotel and Spa, Co Louth, 71 years after the initial competition between schoolboy teams representing Ireland and England took place in Dublin on the 26th and 27th August 1948. We have … Continue reading →

Posted in Games, Players, Simuls | Leave a comment