Smart bear
An amazing, chess-loving pet.

NIC’s Café
Conor McGregor, another boxer that loves our game, and scantily-clad ladies (playing chess) that got a Tory MP in trouble.

Your Move
The World Champion’s manners. And a letter from Prague by David Navara.

The strongest tournament ever
How high does Altibox Norway Chess 2017 reach on the list?

Fair & Square
Does Madeleine Albright agree that international relations is like a game of chess?

Clash of the Titans
Norway Chess celebrated five years of top-flight chess in Stavanger with a stunning line-up replete with today’s stars. Levon Aronian stole the World Champion’s limelight when he defeated him in a game for the ages to claim one of his finest victories.

Celeb64: Heath Ledger

Interview: Levon Aronian
A lively, at times philosophical talk about Magnus, Tal, Bruckner, Yerevan, San Sebastian and the other good things in life.

Judit Polgar’s column
On Peter Leko, a most reliable force on the first board of the Hungarian team.

Deep thinking?
Jonathan Rowson wrote an enthralling review of Garry Kasparov’s masterful new book on his matches against the computer and the future of AI.

Grand Chess Tour de France
Magnus Carlsen won the first leg of the GCT, but the World Champion needed a tiebreak after local hero Maxime Vachier-Lagrave went on the rampage in the blitz.

Maximize Your Tactics
Find the right moves.

Short Stories
Nigel Short visited the Cayman Islands, where a fine chess seed seems to have fallen on fertile soil.

Magnus reloaded
Hot on the heels of his Paris triumph, the World Champion also claimed the Your Next Move leg of the GCT in Leuven.

SOS: the Simple Scotch
An effective weapon against a venerable opening.

China wins World Teams
Without losing a single game, China defended their title in Khanty-Mansiysk. A report by the one and only Adhiban Baskaran.

Chess Pattern Recognition
Silently sacking the exchange.

Sadler on Books
'What makes a really good book?’

Matlakov European Champion
Jan Timman takes a look at the top-finishers in Minsk.

Just Checking
What is Vidit Gujrathi’s greatest fear?