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One of the most vibrant locations on a weekday evening in the East End's famous street isn't a dining spot or a urban fashion label pop-up, it's a chess club – or a chess and nightlife hybrid, precisely speaking.

Knight Club embodies the unlikely fusion between chess and the city's dynamic evening entertainment scene. It was started by a young entrepreneur, in his late twenties, who began his initial chess club in August 2023 at a smaller bar in Aldgate, a short distance from the current location at Café 1001 on Brick Lane.

“I wanted to create chess clubs for people who share my background and those my generation,” he explained. “Usually, chess is only placed in spaces that are full of older people, which isn't diverse sufficiently.”

Initially, there were only eight boards between 16 people. Now, a “good night” at the regular club event will draw approximately two hundred eighty attendees.

At first glance, the venue feels more like a DJ event than a chess club. Mixed drinks are flowing and tunes is playing, but the game boards on each table are not just decorative or there as a gimmick: they are all in use and surrounded by a line of spectators eagerly anticipating for their chance to play.

One regular, 24, has frequented the club regularly for the past four months. “I possessed little understanding of chess prior to I came here, and the first time I ever played, I competed in a game with a expert player. That was a swift win, but it made me fascinated to study and continue enjoying chess,” she said.

“This gathering is about half social and 50% people actually wishing to play chess … It is a nice way to decompress, which doesn't involve visiting a club to meet others my generation.”

A Game Revitalized: Chess in the Modern Era

In recent years, chess has been cemented in the societal zeitgeist. Its appeal of online chess expanded rapidly throughout the pandemic, establishing it as one of the fastest-growing internet games in the world. In popular culture, the Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit, as well as the author's latest novel Intermezzo, have created a distinct imagery surrounding the game, which has attracted a fresh wave of enthusiasts.

However a great deal of this recent appeal of the chess club is not necessarily about the intricacies of the game; instead, it is the simplicity of social interaction that it facilitates, by taking a seat and engaging with someone who may be a complete stranger.

“It is a great clever disguise,” said one organizer, founder of Reference Point in the city, a bookstore, library, coffee house and bar, which has hosted a popular chess club weekly since it opened several years back. His aim is to “take chess from its elite status and make it feel similar to pool in a dive bar”.

“It is a really simple vehicle to meet people. It somewhat removes the pressure of the need of conversation from socializing with people. You can do the awkward bit of making an introduction and chatting to someone over a game rather than with no kind of context involved.”

Growing the Network: Social Gatherings Outside London

In Birmingham, a similar initiative is a recurring chess night taking place at a city cafe, just outside the city centre. “We found that people are looking for places where you can go out, interact and enjoy a good time beyond visiting a bar or club,” said its creator and organiser, a young leader, 21.

Together with his friend a partner, also young, he bought game sets, created promotional materials and began the chess club in January, during his final year of college. Within months, he reported Chesscafé has expanded to draw over one hundred youthful participants to its gatherings.

“A chess club has a particular reputation associated with it, about it being reserved. We really try to move in the contrary way; it is a convivial get-together with chess involved,” he emphasized.

Discovering and Engaging: A New Generation of Chess Enthusiasts

Among numerous attendees, chess clubs are an entry point to the activity. Zoë Kezia, in her late twenties, is picking up how to participate in chess with fellow attenders of the weekly event at Reference Point. She became curious in the pastime was sparked after an enjoyable night dancing and engaging in chess at one of the club's occasions.

“It is a unique idea, but it functions well,” she commented. “It promotes in-person interactions rather than screen-based activities. It is a free neutral ground to encounter strangers. It is inviting, one doesn't have to necessarily be good at chess.”

Kezia humorously likened the popularity of chess among young people to the facade of the “performative male”, an effort to feign intellectualism while projecting the veneer of “coolness”. Whether the chess craze has cultivated a authentic passion in the game is not something she is entirely convinced by. “It's a wholesome trend, but it’s very much a trend,” she observed. “Once you're playing against opponents who are really serious about it, it rapidly becomes less fun.”

Serious Gaming and Community

It may all be a some fun and games for those aiming to employ a chessboard as a networking tool, but serious participants do have their role, albeit off the dancefloor.

Another organizer, 22, who assists in organise Knight Club,explains that more skilled attenders have established a competitive ranking. “Participants who are in the league will face one another, we'll go to quarter-finals, semi-finals, and then we will eventually have a champion.”

A dedicated player, in his twenties, is a competitive player and chess instructor. He has been in the league for about a twelve months and plays at the club nearly every week. “This offers a nice alternative to playing intense chess; it gives a feeling of community,” he expressed.

“It is interesting to observe how it becomes more of a social activity, because previously the sole people who played chess were those who rarely go outside; they just remained home. It is typically just a pair playing on a chessboard …

“What appeals to me about this place is that one isn't really playing against the digital opponent, you're facing real people.”