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| May-03-14 | | weary willy: "Radio Announcer (voice, as Raymond Keene Obe)" (sic). Is it true you were lined up to play Obi-Wan Kenobi in the next Star Wars episode had Sir Alec Guinness been otherwise engaged? Or his brother, Ardee Keen-Obe? |
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| May-03-14 | | HeMateMe: It still bothers me that Magnus turned down a role as an evil villain in the latest Star Trek move, the new stretch that has Chris Pine playing the Captain Kirk role. Star Trek! Hollywood! How could our young charge pass on such an opportunity? I can only guess they wanted to put weird makeup or prosthetics on him. <http://movies.cosmicbooknews.com/co...> |
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May-05-14
 | | ray keene: OBE-WAN-KEENE-OBE please |
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| May-23-14 | | RedShield: Ray, as one of your loyal <Times> readers, could you help us out, please? Yesterday, as your Winning Move puzzle, you gave the following position as a 'variation from' Ivanchuk vs Z Almasi, 2014
click for larger viewThe solution is 1 Bd3! Qxd3 2 Qg7+ Rxg7 3 fxg7+ Kg8 4 Re8+ Bf8 5 Rxf8 mate. But that's where the problems started. First, I noticed that, compared to the actual game, the Rh1 had been accidentally omitted. Then, I had trouble trying to recreate a plausible way in which this position could have reasonably developed from the game. Finally, I noticed that if there's a rook on h1, White can also win simply on material by 1.Qg7+ Rxg7 2.fxg7+ Kg8 3.Re8+ Qf8 4.gxf8=Q+ Bxf8. So, now I'm minded to think that you left out the Rh1 on purpose. In light of this, wouldn't it be fairer to describe the above position as 'inspired by' the Ivanchuk-Almasi game, rather than a 'variation from'? |
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Jun-15-14
| | ray keene: <Redshield> yes inspired by wd be another valid way of putting it but I have been using variation-much like a musical cadenza-for decades, so I wd prefer to stick with that but thanks for the comment |
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| Jun-20-14 | | HeMateMe: Ray, England has no points in the present world cup, in Brazil. Nada, zip, zero. You, being blessed with a Keen (no pun intended) eye, must have some idea of how the national football team can improve, and make it through to the knockout round, in subsequent World Cup play? Staticians say that England has only a 7.4% chance at this moment, 2014, of making it through, based on what other teams will do, and goals scored tiebreakers. The team is in need of some serious middle game advice. |
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Jun-20-14
| | ray keene: football-i have actually devised a programme to instruct leading footballers in 1) strategic thinking
2) memory skills so they can remember what they have learnt i hope to launch it in Mexico next year
in the Uruguay game I wd have gone for a very tight defence at all times with 3 strikers and long balls lobbed as frequently as possible down the pitch a draw wd have been ok-a loss v Uruguay was a disaster-i wd have developed a Petrosian like stratgey for that game and then taught them to remember what they had decided to do hope that helps |
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| Jun-20-14 | | john barleycorn: <ray keene> I saw the video with Stephen Hawking lecturing on how England can do it this time. Seemingly, it was of no use at all. Just stay with the immortal words of Sepp Herberger:
The ball is round and a game lasts 90 minutes. That is probably all they need to know. |
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Jun-20-14
 | | offramp: In the last 2 world cup finals, Brazil and South Africa, the England team has scored only 5 goals in 6 games (so far). There seems to be a stasis that besets England players near the penalty box. There is also this desire to construct goals in some sort of time-honoured respectable way; building up slowly from goalie to midfield to wings to centre - right down to walking the ball onto the goal-line then heading it in, in playground fashion. Teams like Holland score far more goals being freer with their play. |
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Jun-20-14
 | | Paint My Dragon: <Offramp> Indeed, it's way too formulaic and outdated - and crossing the ball from the wings was shown many years ago to be not very successful at the top level. Statistical analysis of the goals scored by the teams reaching the final stages of these tournaments showed that they come mostly from intricate, tricky or varied plays on the central approach to the edge of the 'D' - for example a flick pass, a one-two, a lobbed pass, a flick to one side, combined with a snap shot, etc. The prime exponent of this type of play was hailed to be Bergkamp at the time of the study. However, England remain blissfully unaware and yearn for another Beckham to put in even more ineffective crosses. |
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| Jun-20-14 | | HeMateMe: Wasn't Becks involved in many goals for England, as a young player? Or, is that some sort of myth created by fans who thought the good old days were better than they really were? |
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Jun-21-14
| | Paint My Dragon: No, he made a positive contribution throughout his career ... I certainly wasn't being disparaging of Beckham, who was capable of goals from free kicks and accurate crosses that could tear apart weaker opposition. But as I implied above, that sort of game strategy is only good enough to get you there. Up against the best, you need a lot more in the locker - a few mavericks who are prepared to take risks and make something happen. Alas, England players/managers are mostly too scared of falling flat on their face and bruising their inflated egos / reputations / wage packets. The English media must also take some blame. They would be quick to demonize or scapegoat anyone who stepped out of line and tried something different, should it fail. Consequently, you end up with a strict adherence to the traditional old recipe that <offramp> describes. |
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| Jun-21-14 | | HeMateMe: I don't know enough of the game to describe it accurately, but it seems like teams who try to dribble through a strong defense lose the ball. The distance kick, to a man advanced who will head it in or bicycle kick it seems to have a better shot than trying to advance the ball through a tangle of legs, kicked shins, and people pulling on your jersey. Unless of course you are Diego Maradona, who could dribble like Houdini. Maybe the junior teams in the U.K. need to stress improved dribbling, if the Beckham long ball technique has it's limitations? I guess the pubs will be full, either way, this weekend. Those who would have been cheering an advancement to the knockout will be drowning their sorrows in ale. Hopefully they won't be laughing, if the USA gets killed by Portugal on Sunday. |
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Jun-21-14
| | Paint My Dragon: Yes, of course, the whole dribbling thing is much less prevalent in the modern era. Defenders are stronger, fitter and faster than ever, and get away with a lot of shirt pulling, shielding, blocking etc. It's more about switching the play, staying unpredictable, doing everything at pace and having an end-product (to bundle up a few common clichés)! There may well be some 'drowning the sorrows' this weekend. I was at the pub on Wednesday and surprised at how empty it was, considering how many large screens were dedicated to the world cup. |
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| Jun-21-14 | | SimonWebbsTiger: @<Ray>
yep, a tighter defence was the ticket. Those test games v. Ecuador and Peru ought to have been warning enough for Roy. Surprised you, an old Oxbridge alumini, would suggest Petrosian. I would suggest "Blackadder Goes Forth" -- ie. suggesting the boys XI have a couple of Vickers Machine Guns in the defence. :) |
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| Jun-21-14 | | Refused: The way Costa Rica Italy ended, a draw would have been in all likelihood a ticket home, too. Costa Rica would have been out of reach with 6 points, and if Italy manages to hold on to a point it would have been light's out, too.
Realistically it was a do or die game.
Although I expected England to go home after three games, I did not expect Costa Rica to win that group. And in their first game England did much better than most people would have thought. Maybe if more homegrown talents get playing time in the EPL and ECL, maybe then England will have a decent again in four to six years. |
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| Jul-08-14 | | SimonWebbsTiger: @<Ray>
Sad news. Andrew Whiteley has passed on. I was wondering if you could share some of your memories since many cg.com users probably know precious little about him. |
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| Jul-21-14 | | HeMateMe: Hello, Ray. Will you be participating in the upcoming World Mind Games in China? I think you were there last year? |
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Aug-05-14
| | ray keene: I am going to China but for the world memory championship in Hainan. My obituary for Andrew Whiteley appeared in The Times of July 19-its in The Times online archive. |
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| Aug-05-14 | | Petrosianic: The World Memory Championship! I forgot all about that! |
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| Aug-15-14 | | HeMateMe: Hello Ray. Do you have any thoughts on the recent Olympiad? China put quite a stamp on things! What about Judit Polgar's retirement? Have you met her or either of her sisters? Have you by chance a favorite Judit game, something that sticks in your memory? She did have some Talesque combinations. |
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Sep-13-14
| | offramp: Ray, I thought you might like this great puzzle from the recent Olympics. It is from Hon Ki Tsang vs R Singh, 2014, after 30...Kg5. 
click for larger view
White to play and win.
The solution is at that other game page. (White missed it!) |
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Oct-04-14
| | offramp: The above position was in fact used in the Times of Saturday 4th October 2014. Good puzzle! |
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Oct-25-14
 | | MissScarlett: < times chess @Times_Chess · Oct 13 My most popular tweet last week with 5577 individual views was that naming Dr Manahel Thabet and Prof Tony Buzan as my 2 favourite geniuses!> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manahe...
That's not a Wikipedia article, it's a PR release. |
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Jan-11-15
 | | thegoodanarchist: <ray keene: I am going to China but for the world memory championship in Hainan.> Let me know if any of the participants forgot their plane tickets :) |
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