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Among the most vibrant locations on a Tuesday evening in the East End's Brick Lane couldn't be a dining spot or a streetwear brand pop-up, it is a chess club – or a chess and nightlife combination, precisely speaking.

This unique venue represents the unlikely blend between chess and London's dynamic nightlife culture. It was started by a young entrepreneur, in his late twenties, who launched his initial chess club in the summer of 2023 at a smaller bar in a nearby area, a short distance from the current location at Café 1001 on Brick Lane.

“I wanted to make chess clubs for people who share my background and people my generation,” he explained. “Typically, chess is only placed in environments that are dominated by older people, which is not inclusive sufficiently.”

On the first night, there were just 8 boards between sixteen people. Today, a “good night” at the weekly club event will attract about two hundred eighty people.

Upon arrival, Knight Club feels more like a DJ event than a traditional chess meeting. Cocktails are being served and music is playing, but the chessboards on each table aren't just ornamental or there as a gimmick: they are all occupied and encircled by a queue of onlookers waiting for their chance to play.

Jimmy Ifenayi, in her mid-twenties, has frequented the club regularly for the last four months. “I had little understanding of chess prior to I came here, and the initial occasion I ever played, I played a game with a expert player. That was a quick victory, but it left me fascinated to learn and keep playing chess,” she said.

“This gathering is about half social and half participants genuinely wanting to engage in chess … It is a nice way to decompress, which doesn't involve going to a club to see others my age.”

An Activity Revitalized: The Ancient Game in the Contemporary Era

In recent years, chess has been firmly established in the societal spirit of the times. Its appeal of digital chess proliferated throughout the pandemic, establishing it as one of the most rapidly expanding internet pastimes globally. In popular culture, the Netflix series a hit show, as well as Sally Rooney’s latest novel Intermezzo, have crafted a distinct iconography surrounding the game, which has attracted a new wave of players.

But a great deal of this recent attraction of the chess night is not always about the technicalities of the play; rather, it is the ease of connecting with others that it enables, by pulling up a seat and engaging with a person who could be a total unknown individual.

“It's a great Trojan horse,” remarked Jonah Freud, founder of Reference Point in the city, a bookstore, reading room, coffee house and bar, which has organized a well-attended chess club every Wednesday since it opened four years ago. Freud’s aim is to “remove chess off a pedestal and transform it into similar to billiards in a casual pub”.

“It's a very easy tool to meet people. It kind of takes the pressure of the need of conversation from socializing with people. One can do the awkward part of making an introduction and chatting to someone over a game rather than with no kind of shared activity around it.”

Expanding the Community: Social Gatherings Outside the Capital

Elsewhere in the UK, Chesscafé is a regular chess event held at a city cafe, just outside the downtown area. “We found that people are seeking places where you can go out, socialise and enjoy a fun evening beyond going to a pub or nightclub,” said its creator and organiser, Karan Singh, in his early twenties.

Alongside his associate Abdirahim Haji, also young, Singh bought game sets, printed promotional materials and began the chess club in January, during his last year of college. In less than a year, he reported their event has expanded to attract more than 100 young participants to its events.

“A chess club has a specific connotation to it, about it seeming reserved. Our approach is to move in the contrary direction; it's a social get-together with chess as part of it,” he said.

Learning and Playing: A New Generation of Chess Enthusiasts

Among numerous attendees, chess clubs are an entry point to the activity. Zoë Kezia, 27, is picking up how to participate in chess with fellow visitors of the weekly event at the venue. Her interest in the game was piqued after an enjoyable evening dancing and engaging in chess at one of the club's occasions.

“It is a strange concept, but it functions well,” she commented. “It promotes face-to-face exchanges rather than digital activities. It's a free third space to encounter new people. It is welcoming, one doesn't need to necessarily be skilled at chess.”

She jokingly likened the popularity of chess among young people to the superficial image of the “performative male”, an attempt to feign intellectualism while projecting the appearance of “coolness”. Whether the chess trend has fostered a authentic passion in the sport is not something she's quite convinced by. “It's a positive trend, but it’s largely a trend,” she observed. “When you compete against opponents who are truly dedicated about it, it quickly becomes less fun.”

Serious Gaming and Togetherness

It might all be a bit of fun and games for individuals aiming to use a game set as a social vehicle, but competitive participants certainly have their role, albeit off the main party area.

Lucia Ene-Lesikar, in her early twenties, who helps running the club,says that more skilled players have formed a competitive ranking. “Participants who are in the league will face each other, we will go to quarter-finals, advanced stages, and then we'll eventually have a champion.”

Ryames Chan, in his twenties, is a serious competitor and chess instructor. He joined in the league for about a year and plays at the club nearly weekly. “This is a nice alternative to engaging in serious chess; it provides a sense of community,” he expressed.

“It's interesting to see how it evolves into more of a social activity, because previously the only individuals who engaged in chess were people who rarely socialize; they just stayed home. It's usually only a pair competing on a game board …

“What I like about here is that you're not actually playing against the digital opponent, you're engaging with live opponents.”