Places on This Session are Now Fully Booked
If you’ve watched and enjoyed the hit Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit, you might be interested in taking on a genuine grandmaster in a simultaneous exhibition for yourself. Grandmaster Peter Wells is one of the UK’s best known and most experienced professional chessplayers and coaches, who as a prodigy once drew with Anatoly Karpov in a simul the reigning world champion gave for England’s leading junior players. Peter can’t match Beth Harmon for style and beauty (who can?), and he doesn’t take tranquilisers, but he can still make the chess pieces dance to his tune.
This afternoon there will be an opportunity to play chess against a Grandmaster, when Peter Wells will play a simultaneous display – taking on 25 opponents at the same time against the clock. In normal times this would look something like the photo below (from a simultaneous display at Witney in 2017) and involves a lot of walking for Peter. This time, of course, there will be no such exercise opportunity, but thanks to the popular chess site Lichess, it is now easy enough to host such events remotely.
Peter will take on 25 players and, beyond a knowledge of the rules, there is no minimum (or maximum!) level required to take part. Since numbers are restricted, you will need to sign up for a free account with lichess.org a free online chess website and then register for the simultaneous event. Peter’s simultaneous displays tend to be quite informal. There is a place for serious thought certainly, but he is also hoping for some discussion and gentle banter as well.
Session Presenter
Peter Wells
Peter is a Grandmaster and a Senior Trainer of the International Chess Federation (FIDE). He has worked extensively with the England Open and Women’s Teams and on numerous occasions with the country’s leading junior players too. He has also taught chess over many years at both Abingdon School and Magdalen College School in Oxford. He is the author of ten books on chess, most recently Chess Improvement – It’s All in the Mindset – co-authored with Barry Hymer.
