Julian Hodgson

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Julian Michael Hodgson (born July 25, 1963) is an English International Grandmaster and former British Champion of chess.

He first came to the notice of the chess world for his phenomenal prowess as a junior - he was London under-18 champion at 12 years of age and won the British Boys under-21 title aged just 14.

International Master and Grandmaster titles followed in 1983 and 1988 respectively. Tournament successes included 2nd place at the Lloyds Bank Open of 1986, 1st= at the Geneva Open 1988, 2nd= at Tel Aviv 1988 and 1st at Dos Hermanas 1989.

Hodgson went on to become a fearsome competitor nationally, bagging the title of British Champion on no fewer than four occasions (1991, 1992, 1999, and 2000). By 2000, he was so at home with the event that he even brought with him his own Executive chair, which was wheeled from board to board for maximum comfort. When not actually playing, his live commentary sessions and evening lectures at the British Championships were always well received by amateurs and masters alike.

On the international stage, playing for the English Chess Olympiad team he won the bronze team medal at Novi Sad in 1990, followed by individual silver at Manila in 1992. In 1997 he won the Canadian Open and in 2000, with his Elo rating at 2659, he finished a half point behind the leaders at the World Open. Over several seasons, he played league chess in both the German Bundesliga and British 4NCL.

Aside from more formal achievements, Hodgson's play took on a sharp relentless attacking style and against lesser opponents, this frequently resulted in devastating quick wins, earning him the epithet "Grandmaster of Disaster".

Julian ("Jules") Hodgson's greatest legacy as a chess player may however lie in his resurrection of an almost forgotten opening system. The Trompowski Attack (1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5) had floundered in the doldrums for many years, prior to Hodgson's adoption and development of the opening. In interviews, he reveals that this was born out of laziness and a reluctance to learn established chess opening theory. It soon became his weapon of choice with the white pieces, leading to a surprising popularisation of the system, the spawning of a whole generation of devotees and ironically, a number of theoretical guides, containing a high quota of Hodgson's own games and analysis. Indeed, his expert treatment of the system once prompted fellow grandmaster Joe Gallagher to write that it should be renamed the Hodgson-Trompowski Attack, a view shared by many other masters. A chess journalist once wrote that Hodgson put the 'romp' into Trompowski.

A related, but more obscure version of the system (1.d4 d5 2. Bg5), has been dubbed by some the Hodgson Attack and by others the Pseudo-Trompowski or Queen's Bishop Attack.

Since 2001, Hodgson's play has been very limited, due to his teaching commitments.

As an author of chess books and magazine articles, his writing style conveys the same enthusiasm as his lectures. He is perhaps most renowned for his Attack with Julian Hodgson series of books, Quick Chess Knockouts and the Chess Traveller's Quiz Book.