I am currently working as manager of, ‘The Classical Games Shop’ in Godalming.

This afternoon my friend, Blair Connell, made an appearance in the shop. As well as working on the long overdue e-books we thought that it would be a good idea to start a Blitz chess game marathon.

The result of the first game is given below, I must warn you the quality is very low, let’s just hope things improve in the future…

Williams vs Connell

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I am currently running the Classical Games Shop in Godalming, which is a shop that stocks all types of games, obviously chess included. Just yesterday I got a visit from Simon Whitaker who is one half of the Whitaker brothers.

We closed the shop up, met with his brother Tym, took a trip down to the Rose and Crown and watched his latest music video on the large screen TV.

I have to say that I was so impressed, not just with the music but with the actual video, that I have decided to post it up. It’s not all about chess at gingergm!

They have just finished recording their album and hopefully it will be available to purchase soon. Let me know your views!

The other video they put on was

I must warn you that this video does contain some rather offensive language, you have been warned!!!!

Keep an eye out for Klaus, Mike the landlord of the Rose and Crown’s son…

On Sunday in my French league game I faced, what must be, the most critical line in the Classical Dutch.

Originally I assumed that 7…Ne4 8 Nxe4 would leave White with an advantage but the more I look into this line the less convinced I am. In actual fact, in my last three games played in this variation I have scored 3/3, against decent opposition.

In this game I was paired against French Grandmaster Jean-Luc Chabanon, who had obviously prepared for the game and currently has a rating of around 2490, so a real test for the variation. I will take a look at the game in the video below.

Play Like Tal with GM Simon Williams

Order DVD | Description | Promotional Videos | DVD Contents | Reviews | Discuss   Order DVD   Available now! ^Top Description   “Chess, first of all, is art.” – Mikhail Tal Arguably one of the world’s most exciting chess players of all time, Grandmaster Mikhail Tal will always be remembered as an attacking genius. [...]

A first of it’s kind!!! An interactive chess DVD that can be played on all platforms!

I presented this two DVD box set, the aim of which is to get the viewer to try and think along the same lines as the great Magician from Riga, Tal!

Our interactive promotional video can be viewed below. If you want to go straight to the interactive part, jump to around 8:30 on the video!

This two DVD box set can be pre-ordered from our shop. It has around about seven hours of interactive viewing, with interactive puzzles.

Released soon.

Killer Dragon with GM Simon Williams

Order DVD | Description | Promotional Videos | DVD Contents | Reviews | Discuss   Order DVD   Released soon – pre-order now! ^Top Description   The Dragon variation is considered to be one of the sharpest openings in chess. Made popular due to its aggressive nature, it is little wonder that the Dragon has [...]

The promotional videos for Killer Dragon Parts One and Two have arrived!

I was the presenter of these DVDs and they fully cover the Dragon and Dragadorf. They are quite heavy going, especially DVD one, but they should put you in good shape to be an expert in the Dragon within no time!

They are both around 6 hours long, with a total viewing time of roughly 12 hours. See the trailers below!

Both of these DVDs are available to purchase from our shop.

£24.95 for one, or the discounted price of £40 for both DVDs!

Released soon.

Killer c3 Sicilian with IM Sam Collins

Order DVD | Description | Promotional Videos | DVD Contents | Reviews | Discuss   Order DVD   Available now! ^Top Description   Over the years, the c3 Sicilian, otherwise known as the Alapin Variation, has become increasingly popular not least because it avoids the reams of theory associated with Open Sicilians, but also because [...]

The trailers have finally arrived!

You can view the c3 Sicilian one below. The DVD will be ready to ship late Friday 9th of October/early Monday 10th of October.

Sam Collins is the presenter. Sam has a clear and concise presenting attitude and he has already filmed a large number of DVDs gaining invaluable experience.

He will aim to answer any questions on the DVD by the end of next week.

Purchase the DVD from our shop for £19.95!

A while back we did a couple of tests on gingergm to see whether certain types of music would help one’s speed chess skills.

These tests were obviously  highly scientific and I expect the results will change how people approach the game of chess forever.

This time I am going to take a song that a friend made for me. His name is Simon Fox or SFX, he is the lead vocals and guitar for ‘Thelement’, but he also occasional tries his luck with the odd, old school rave song.

The song used here was put together quickly in his bedroom, you can take a look at his band at http://www.myspace.com/thelementmusic

The music might not be to everyone’s taste and I apologise for the poor sound quality but it certainly worked out well in the following 5-minute game! As always please leave any comments.

What song would you want to play chess to?

I should note that the game finished 17…Kf8 18 Bh6 Bxh6 19 Qf7++!

I do understand that hindsight is a double edged tool but after my victory in round 1 I should have stuck to my guns and played the Classical Dutch!

Anyway, I opted to play the Kings Indian Defence this time, but again I did not know what I was really doing and my opponent played very well and went onto beat me. Video below, any advice is more than welcome!

The game quickly came to life and I managed to get the advantage in the ensuring tactics. This time I managed to convert my advantage.

If only I could play with the White pieces in every game! A video of the encounter is attached below!

In round 6 I was paired against top Romanian player Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu. A great player who frequents some of the strongest tournaments in the world.

I was looking forward to an exciting, crazy game, but my opponent choose to play the Czech Benoni, an opening that has a very solid reputation.

My opponent sacrificed a pawn early on and the game became very interesting after that. I managed to keep things under control and I came a whisker from winning.

The video below shows my thoughts on the game, again, please leave your comments. I will try to answer any questions that you ask.