British Chess Championship - Live!

by ChessBase
8/1/2026 – The 112th edition of the British Chess Championship is taking place on 1-9 August at the University of Warwick in Coventry. The main event is a 9-round Swiss open with a classical time control. Topping the starting rank are Luke McShane, Michael Adams and Shreyas Royal. Also noteworthy is the presence of 11-year-old prodigy Bodhana Sivanandan, already the highest-rated woman player in this year's edition. | Follow the games live starting at 15.30 CEST (9.30 ET, 19.00 IST)
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Round 1

This year's British Chess Championships are being held at the University of Warwick in Coventry, with the main tournament running from 1 to 9 August.

This is the 112th British Chess Championship in a series which has run almost unbroken since 1904. A late surge has seen more than 1,750 entries, making the 2026 edition the biggest in the event's history. The nine-day festival will also feature the largest prize fund ever offered at the Championships, an expanded programme of festival events and a significant boost for women's chess.

The tournament is a 9-round Swiss open with a time control of 90 minutes for the first 40 moves plus 30 minutes until the end of the game and 30 seconds increment from move 1.

Rounds are played daily from 1 to 9 August, with no rest days. The action starts daily at 14.30 local time (15.30 CEST), except for the final round, which starts at 10.00.

Live games and commentary

In this insightful video course, Grandmaster David Navara shares practical advice on when to calculate deeply in a position — and just as importantly, when not to.
In this insightful video course, Grandmaster David Navara shares practical advice on when to calculate deeply in a position — and just as importantly, when not to.
Free sample video: Introduction
Free sample video: Invisible moves

Links

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Norway Chess - Live!

6/5/2026 – The 14th edition of the Norway Chess super-tournament is taking place from 25 May to 5 June at Deichman Bjorvika in Oslo. An open event and a women's event are being played concurrently with an identical number of players, the same format and an equivalent prize fund. Wesley So, Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu and Alireza Firouzja enter the final round with chances to take the title. Key pairings: Firouzja v. So and Pragg v. Keymer. | Follow the games live starting at 17.00 CEST (11.00 ET, 20.30 IST) | Photo: Norway Chess / Michal Walusza
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Record £34,000 prize pot announced as entries open for 2026 British Chess Championships in Coventry

2/20/2026 – Entries are open for the 2026 British Chess Championships, which will return to Coventry from 1 to 9 August at the University of Warwick. The event will feature a record £34,000 prize fund, a significantly increased women’s prize fund and an expanded festival programme. Organised by the English Chess Federation, the nine-day championships are expected to attract more than 1,000 players across all age groups. | Photo: <a href="https://www.chessinschools.co.uk/">Chess in Schools and Communities</a>
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Video

60m English The Elephant Gambit

The Elephant Gambit (1.e4.e5 2.Nf3 d5!?) has never really been given the attention it deserves. It is a very useful surprise weapon. Let us list the advantages of playing this particular opening: 1) Shock value 2) It is very aggressive. Black can take over the initiative early. 3) Many tricky lines 4) Unorthodox. Black is basically taking the game to the opponent as early as move two. Not many openings do that! It's a perfect opening for young players and club players to adopt. Let Andrew Martin select a repertoire for you on this 60 mins, which, if used with discretion, will rack up the points. I am sure that you will enjoy this unusual tour of the Elephant Gambit.