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One of the most energetic locations on a weekday evening in the East End's Brick Lane couldn't be a dining spot or a streetwear label temporary shop, it's a chess gathering – or rather a chess and nightlife combination, to be exact.

Knight Club embodies the unlikely fusion between the classic game and the city's dynamic evening entertainment scene. It was founded by a young entrepreneur, in his late twenties, who launched his first chess club in the summer of 2023 at a more intimate bar in Aldgate, not too far from the present location at a popular cafe on Brick Lane.

“I wanted to make chess clubs for people who look like me and those my age,” he said. “Typically, chess is only put in spaces that are dominated by senior individuals, which isn't diverse enough.”

Initially, there were only 8 boards between 16 people. Now, a “good night” at the weekly club event will draw about two hundred eighty attendees.

At first glance, Knight Club seems closer to a DJ event than a traditional chess meeting. Mixed drinks are flowing and tunes is playing, but the chessboards on each table are not just decorative or there as a gimmick: they are all in use and surrounded by a queue of spectators eagerly anticipating for their chance to play.

One regular, 24, has frequented Knight Club often for the last several months. “I had no knowledge of chess prior to I came here, and the first time I ever played, I competed in a game against a expert player. It was a quick win, but it left me fascinated to learn and continue enjoying chess,” she noted.

“The event is about half networking and half participants actually wanting to play chess … It is a nice way to unwind, which avoids visiting a club to meet others my age.”

A Game Reborn: The Ancient Game in the Contemporary Age

Lately, chess has been cemented in the cultural zeitgeist. Its appeal of online chess expanded rapidly during the pandemic, making it one of the most rapidly expanding internet games globally. In popular culture, the streaming series The Queen’s Gambit, as well as Sally Rooney’s recent novel a literary work, have crafted a certain iconography surrounding the game, which has drawn in a new generation of players.

However much of this newfound attraction of the chess night isn't always about the technicalities of the game; rather, it is the ease of social interaction that it enables, by pulling up a seat and engaging with a person who could be a total stranger.

“It's a brilliant clever disguise,” said Jonah Freud, co-founder of Reference Point in the city, a bookstore, library, coffee house and bar, which has organized a well-attended chess club every Wednesday since it began several years back. His objective is to “remove chess from its elite status and make it feel similar to pool in a dive bar”.

“It is a really simple tool to meet people. It kind of takes the weight of the necessity of conversation away from interacting with people. One can do the awkward bit of making an introduction and chatting to someone over a game instead of with no kind of shared activity around it.”

Growing the Network: Chess Nights Outside London

In Birmingham, a similar initiative is a regular chess event taking place at a city cafe, near the city centre. “Our observation was that individuals are seeking places where one can go out, socialise and enjoy a good time outside of visiting a pub or club,” said its creator and coordinator, a young leader, in his early twenties.

Together with his friend a partner, 21, Singh bought game sets, printed flyers and started the chess club in the start of the year, during his last year of college. In less than a year, he reported their event has expanded to attract over 100 young participants to its events.

“Such a venue has a specific reputation associated with it, about it being reserved. Our approach is to move in the opposite direction; it's a convivial get-together with chess as part of it,” he said.

Learning and Engaging: A New Cohort of Players

For many, chess clubs are an entry point to the activity. One participant, in her late twenties, is picking up how to play chess with other attenders of the weekly event at the venue. She became curious in the pastime was sparked after an pleasurable night moving to music and playing chess at one of the club's occasions.

“It's a unique concept, but it works,” she said. “It encourages in-person interactions instead of digital activities. It's a free neutral ground to meet strangers. It is welcoming, you don't need to necessarily be good at chess.”

Kezia jokingly compared the trendiness of chess among young people to the facade of the “performative male”, an effort to simulate braininess while projecting the appearance of “hipness”. Whether the chess craze has cultivated a genuine interest in the sport isn't something she's entirely sure about. “It's a wholesome phenomenon, but it’s very much a trend,” she observed. “Once you compete against people who are truly serious about it, it quickly turns less enjoyable.”

Competitive Gaming and Community

It may seem like a some fun and games for individuals looking to employ a chessboard as a networking tool, but serious players do have their place, albeit off the main party area.

Lucia Ene-Lesikar, in her early twenties, who helps organise the club,explains that more skilled attenders have established a league table. “Participants who are part of the competition will face each other, we'll go to early rounds, semi-finals, and then we'll eventually have a league winner.”

A dedicated player, in his twenties, is a serious competitor and chess teacher. He joined in the league for about a year and participates at the club almost weekly. “This is a welcome alternative to playing intense chess; it provides a sense of belonging,” he said.

“It is interesting to observe how it evolves into increasingly a social activity, because previously the only individuals who played chess were people who rarely go outside; they simply remained home. It is typically only two people competing on a chessboard …

“What I like about this place is that you're not actually facing the digital opponent, you're engaging with real people.”