Cecil Purdy
| Cecil Purdy | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Full name | Cecil John Seddon Purdy |
| Country |
Australia Egypt |
| Born |
27 March 1906 Port Said, Egypt |
| Died | 6 November 1979 (aged 73) Sydney, Australia |
| Title |
International Master (1951) ICCF Grandmaster (1953) |
| ICCF World Champion | 1950–53 |
Cecil John Seddon Purdy (27 March 1906,Port Said, Egypt – 6 November 1979, Sydney, Australia) was an Australian chess International Master (IM), writer, and inaugural World Correspondence Chess champion. Purdy earned the Grandmaster of Correspondence Chess title in 1953. He was also an influential chess magazine writer, editor, and publisher.
As a child he moved with his family from Egypt to New Zealand, then to Tasmania, Australia, before they settled in Sydney when he was 12, where he was educated at Cranbrook School. While in Tasmania one of his classmates was future film star Errol Flynn.
He began his chess career at the age of 16 and soon decided to become a full-time chess writer and player. Initially an over the board (OTB) player, he soon began to mix OTB play with correspondence play. He was four times winner of the Australian Chess Championship, in 1935, 1937, 1949, and 1951. He won the first two Australian Correspondence Chess Championships, in 1938 and 1945. He also won the New Zealand Chess Championship in 1924/25. In Auckland 1952, he drew a hard-fought match with Ortvin Sarapu, at the time by far the best player in New Zealand. They were thus declared Australasian co-champions.
He was married in 1934 to Anne Crakanthorp, the daughter of two-time Australian Chess Champion Spencer Crakanthorp. The marriage produced two children, John (1935–2011) and Diana. John Purdy followed in his father's (and grandfather's) footsteps in winning the Australian Chess Championship in 1955 and 1963. Diana was also a keen chessplayer, and married leading New Zealand player Frank Hutchings in 1960.
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