Ben died on 12th June 2010 aged 75 years and his funeral took place at Wilford Hill on Tuesday 29th June. The mourners included Mike Barnes, Dorothy Blampied, Steve Foster, Alan Groves, Brian Hayward, Ken Heath, Peter Mercs, Derek Padvis, Simon Parham, Keith Roper and John Swain.
Ben was born in Yorkshire, and after leaving school, worked on fairgrounds, where he met his future wife. They did not consider a fairground lifestyle appropriate for their three children and they decided to settle in Nottingham. Ben and his wife ran a cafe in Netherfield for a number of years before Ben re-trained as a welder, and latterly he worked as a maintenance fitter for Chettles.
Gambit Chess Club was founded in 1967, in the Blue Bell Public House, in the centre of Nottingham. It is not known when Ben first joined the club, but Paul Kemp remembers joining Gambit in 1970 and captaining the first team from the start of the 1971/72 season. Ben was a regular, playing in all 12 matches and scoring nine wins and three draws, by some way the team’s highest scorer. Ben continued to play regularly for the first team in the following season, and (as the club got stronger) more occasionally thereafter.
Alan Groves remembers an occasion when Ben was in the City Hospital where he was being treated by a consultant surgeon who also played for Gambit. Being keen to field their strongest team, the consultant surgeon collected Ben from his hospital bed, took him to the match, and returned him safely back to the hospital ward afterwards!
Ben regularly played in the League for Gambit and in Congresses both locally and further afield including Scarborough, and he also played regularly for the County. His style of play usually involved sharper or tactical positions and he had a strong will to win. Ben was a very polite, reliable, and sociable player, the type of person that is a great credit to any club. Gambit and Notts chess have greatly benefited from his enthusiasm for the game, and he will be remembered with very fond memories.
(Brian Hayward, Secretary Gambit Chess Club)