‘The Queen’s Gambit’ – Hong Kong response muted as Netflix miniseries takes chess world by storm
- The story of a Kentucky orphan girl who becomes a world chess phenomenon has been viewed by 62 million households since October
- ‘We get more inquiries from news people than the public,’ says Hong Kong Chess Federation chief KK Chan
Netflix drama miniseries The Queen’s Gambit has spawned a global surge in the popularity of chess, with daily app downloads up 63 per cent, eBay chess set inquiries rising by 250 per cent and a five-fold increase in new players on chess.com.
In Hong Kong, though, where organised events have been limited by Covid-19 restrictions, the interest has been muted – with more inquiries about the show from the media than the public.
“We’ve had calls about this series,” said KK Chan, president of the Hong Kong Chess Federation (HKCF). “But more from news people than the public or members. They want to know the same thing, if more people are taking up chess because of the series.
“The series is excellent, it has a lot of psychological aspects to it and there are some special chess moves. Many people didn’t realise chess was like this.
“But because of the coronavirus, we’re not open. There are restrictions as to how many people can be in a room and we can’t hold any meetings,” said Chan.
The Queen’s Gambit stars Anya Taylor-Joy as Beth Harmon, who was raised in an orphanage and goes on to become a chess phenomenon in the 1960s. The seven-part drama has been watched by 62 million households around the world since it premiered in October, according to Netflix, becoming the streaming site’s biggest scripted limited series.