The venue for Society meetings has changed and the directions to it given on p. 126 of the July 2017 issue are incorrect. Meetings are held at the Hall of St. Botolph’s Church, Bishopsgate, London EC2M 3TL. The Hall is set in a small garden behind the church, less than 2 minutes’ walk from Liverpool St. mainline and underground stations.
A problem which shows in selfmate form an idea which was exploited many times in directmates by the Warton brothers.
Solution: The position is a complete block. If the bishop is neutralised then 2...b4 mate is forced, hence the set variations 1...Bxc7 2.Rxc7, 1...Rd6 2.Rxd6; 1...Bf6 2.gxf6; 1...Bg7 2.Rxg7; 1...Bh8 2.Rxh8; 1...Bh2 2.Rxh2; 1...Bg3 2.fxg3; 1...Bf4 2.Rxf4 and 1...Bxd4 2.Rxe4. White however has no waiting move, and the line-clearing key 1.Rdh7 abandons the set capture on d6, instead exploiting the newly formed black battery – 1...Bd6 2.Qf7+ Se6. There is a second, less interesting change, with a different rook capturing after 1...Bh8. The other variations remain as set. The Grab Mutate was a favourite theme of the Warton brothers, and many examples in directmate three-movers can be seen in the collection under British Composers.
Any comments or questions on this problem should be addressed to
Michael McDowell using the ‘Contact’ item in the menu on the left.
2015 