3/29/2019 – After 16.Rxb7+! in the diagram position White checkmates the black king by force. Four variations, four key moves, and everything goes with check. Enjoy!

3/15/2019 – With hindsight it's easy to claim that 30.Qxf3! in the diagram position is the right way to recapture for White, but can you also spot the downside of the actual game move 30.Bxf3?

2/11/2019 – In this Simon Says we take a look at a few additional highlights of the Gibraltar Masters plus some recent games. Simon is live this week at the usual time: 18:00 CET (17:00 UTC). If you miss the show, you can watch it in the archive with a ChessBase Account. Don't have an account? You can register a free 90-day account to watch!

2/9/2019 – The Gibraltar Masters was the first very strong open of 2019 and it might indicate which openings will be particularly popular in 2019. THORSTEN CMIEL had a look which openings were "trendy" in Gibraltar and how the Grandmasters started the new year. Yesterday we looked at Black's choices after 1.e4. Now Thorsten tackles 1.d4 and 1.c4/1.Nf3 openings.

2/8/2019 – The Gibraltar Masters was the first very strong open of 2019 and it might indicate which openings will be particularly popular in 2019. Thorsten Cmiel had a look which openings were "trendy" in Gibraltar and how the Grandmasters started the new year. Previously he examined the openings in the last major event of the year the World Blitz and Rapid. In focus in Part II is 1.e4, met by the Caro-Kann, Sicilian and French.

2/6/2019 – One more look back at the Gibraltar Chess Festival with one of the players, GM JAN WERLE, who takes a tour of the highlights from this year's tournament, including a selection of games from the winners — Vladislav Artemiev, Karthikeyan Murali and Tan Zhongyi — plus the best game prize-winner: Gawain Jones vs Alejandro Ramirez. You'll also find video from GM Simon Williams and IM Lawrence Trent and interviews with Vassily Ivanchuk, Levon Aronian and D. Gukesh — one of the young stars of the festival. | Photo: Niki Riga

2/5/2019 – IM Lawrence Trent brings you the latest trends, games and combinations from elite chess tournaments ever Tuesdays at 17:00 UTC (18:00 CET, Noon EST). This week he looks at games from the Gibraltar Chess Festival. Free to watch on-demand for a limited time with a ChessBase Basic Account. You can register a free 90-day account to watch.

2/1/2019 – Vladislav Artemiev left no doubt by winning with Black against Yu Yangyi to take clear first and avoid a possible playoff. It's the first time the Gibraltar Masters has had a single player in first place after ten rounds since 2015. Karthikeyan Murali capped a fantastic tournament by beating Maxim Vachier-Lagrave and thereby finishing in sole second place. Tan Zhongyi from China took the top women's prize | Photo: John Saunders

1/31/2019 – The Gibraltar International Chess Festival 2019 takes place from January 21st to 31st at the Caleta Hotel in Gibraltar. The Masters is always incredibly strong and this year there are 14 players Elo rated over 2700. Traditionally, many of the world's best women players also take part and this year World Champion Ju Wenjun is among them. Live games and commentary on Round 10 by IM Jovanka Houska and GM Simon Williams from 10:00 UTC (11:00 CET, 5:00 AM EST).

1/31/2019 – Vladislav Artemiev beat David Navara on top board and is back in the sole lead with 7½/9. Maxim Vachier-Lagrave dispatched upstart Kirill Alekseenko and is a half point back along with Yu Yangyi and Karthikeyan Murali. Thirteen players have 6½ out of 9. The tournament will be decided on Thursday with Round 10 and a possible playoff. | Photo: John Saunders

1/29/2019 – After seven rounds at the Gibraltar Chess Festival, we finally have a sole leader in Russian GM Vladislav Artemiev, who took down Hikaru Nakamura on Monday. | Pictured: David Navara looks a bit desperate searching for a move during the annual "Battle of the Sexes" — which the women won — but in the tournament, he's in second place. | Photo: Gibraltar Chess Festival / Niki Riga

1/28/2019 – One of the most popular side-events of the Gibraltar Chess Festival is the evening "masterclass", in which top stars are invited to give a moderated lecture from the live webcast studio. It's a relaxed atmosphere and a lot of fun, but also instructive. This year's guests have been Hikaru Nakamura, Sarasadat Khademalsharieh and — on Monday evening — Indian GM Adhiban Baskaran.

1/25/2019 – The Iranian IM Sarasadat Khademalsharieh is the player of the hour at the Gibraltar Chess Festival. She defeated GM Alexander Donchenko in Round 3 and was one of the five leaders with a perfect score. The dream start for Nigerian expert Kolade Onabogun, who beat two GMs, came to an end in Round 3, as he lost to Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. We take a brief look at these two outsiders. | Photo: John Saunders

1/24/2019 – Most of the favourites were successful in Tuesday's opening round. Hikaru Nakamura, however, was nicked for a draw with black against his opponent's London system. Yu Yangyi was the only other player among the top twenty in the field not to score a full point and his draw came with the white pieces. After two rounds Wesley So (pictured) is the top player with a perfect score. | Photo: John Saunders

1/22/2019 – The Gibraltar International Chess Festival 2019 kicks off Tuesday at Hotel Caleta on the East coast of Gibraltar. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave leads the starting list along side Top 20 players Levon Aronian, Wesley So, Yu Yangyi and Hikaru Nakamura. Women's World Champion Ju Wenjun is the top female player in the field. | Photo: John Saunders