House of Lords visit

History was made last week when 16 pupils from Pembury School, Tunbridge Wells, visited the Houses of Parliament to play a game of Minibridge with peers from the All Party Parliamentary Group for the Development of Bridge. The children were treated to orange squash and chocolate biscuits by the Lord Speaker of the House of Lords, Baroness Hayman and then to a grand tour of the Houses of Parliament conducted by Lord Skelmersdale.

This was followed by a Minibridge match in the River Room which the Lord Speaker had graciously made available for the event. The players representing the All Party Parliamentary Group were Lord Baker of Dorking, Lord Brougham and Vaux, Baroness Gardner of Parkes, Lord Hamilton of Epsom, Lord Harrison of Chester, Baroness Howe of Idlicote, Lord Skelmersdale, Baroness Henig of Lancaster and her husband Jack. After 8 boards of Minibridge had been played, it was announced by the Tournament Director John Pain, that the pupils had won the day.

The EBU extend their heartfelt thanks to Baroness Henig, Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group for organising this event. We would also like to thank the teachers, Cindy Cole, Hilary White and Head Teacher Jane Gardner and all the pupils from Pembury School for demonstrating how Minibridge is a great way of learning maths and logic whilst having fun.

• Photos from the visit
• About Minibridge

Max Bavin

Our Chief Tournament Director, Max Bavin, holds the same position with the World Bridge Federation. Max now wants to slightly reduce his commitments and move from five days a week with the EBU to four.

Max fulfils two quite different roles with the EBU - those of Chief Tournament Director and Chief Tournament Manager. The second of these involving:

• managing all EBU Competitions
• having overall responsibility for the regulation of P2P, Licensing and Masterpoints
• advising and supporting the Tournament Committee
• advising and supporting the Selection Committee

This requires significantly more time than the first. Accordingly we are very pleased to announce that from 1 April 2011, Gordon Rainsford will be joining the EBU on a 1-day a week basis as Assistant Chief Tournament Director. Max will, for the time being, formally retain the position of Chief Tournament Director and Gordon will report to him.

Barry Capal
General Manager

Minibridge initiative

As the Christmas Term starts, the EBU are looking for more primary schools who would like to be involved in our Minibridge initiative: Minibridge 5 to 9. Minibridge has been proven to help children in their Maths, English and much more.

Minibridge 5 to 9 is aimed at children in years 5 to 9 and sometimes below (i.e. those aged from 9 to 13 years, but also age 7-8). The beauty of the game is that it can be taught by teachers who are non-bridge experts (and in many instances are new to the game themselves) following some in-service training and by using the easy-to-use instructional CD provided.

The EBU has a funded scheme (at no cost to the schools) to teach Primary School teachers the game.

Further information:

See introduction

Funding arrangements

Educational implications

If you would be interested in hosting an event at your primary school, please contact Matt Betts here.

Brighton Focus 2010

If you are in Brighton this year, please note that contributions to Brighton Focus are always welcome, and we have a contribution form available in the Durham Room for any interesting hands. We also welcome any letters or comments to the team. Simply put them in the colourful contribution box in the Durham Room. Alternatively, you can email us at: BrightonFocus@ebu.co.uk

Thanks
Matt

Brighton Focus Advertising

We are looking for companies, bridge clubs, etc, who would like to advertise in Brighton Focus. For more information, please email us ASAP.

Updated Master Point Information

Since the introduction of Pay To Play it's become apparent that we needed an overhaul of the Check Points Online web page which has been used for several years. It couldn't cope with the new information and was in need of a cosmetic make-over. So today we're launching an update which you should find the next time you log on to your personal members area.

A new tab is now available called 'Master Points'. If you select it you'll find a list of all the master points that have been credited to your account. Rather than one long list stretching back years, it breaks down into Master Point Year. On the default page you'll see all the 2010 points and to select other years you just click on the year in the menu above.

To see the date when an entry was credited, hover your mouse over the line and it will pop up with this information.

Finally, note that points credited under the P2P system will be credited monthly and amalgamated by club. The entry now tells you which club and which month it was for.

This new feature is available now and the existing page will be retired. If you notice any problems or have any suggestions, leave a comment or contact us.

P2P Club Help

We've put together a help page and some tutorial videos for club administrators who are looking for a bit of help in using our online Club Management System. As time goes by we'll add common questions to this page and hope it will provide a useful resource.

• P2P Club Help

Eileen Retires

Eileen Maunder will be leaving the EBU after over 36 years of service on 31 March 2010. We asked her a few questions:

1. What have your roles been at the EBU? I have worked at the EBU for 36 years and 8 months. I was originally ‘head-hunted’ for the job of Membership Secretary in 1972 but turned it down. A year later I came as a temp for a month while I looked for another job, was again offered the job, which I don’t ever remember accepting, but have been here ever since. Although it is the same job it has changed so much over the years so it has not been boring. Back in 1973 all the records were kept on index cards - some even filed in shoe boxes under the stairs. It now seems hard to believe there was always excitement when the one phone rang occasionally! We had out first computer system in 1981 and things have just progressed from there. In 1973 the annual subscription was 25p, for the 2009/10 year it was £18, the same amount I was paid per week in 1973! I was employed as the Membership Secretary and to be in charge of the office when Anne and Stuart Staveley were away. Additionally over the years I have been involved with Master Points, hand dealing, making up boards, washing table cloths and in the early days of the computer being responsible for daily/weekly back-ups etc. In 1984 I got involved with our National Events as a computer scoring operator, which I enjoyed for 25 years until the arrival of Bridgemates.
2. Do you play bridge? No I do not play Bridge - having started working at bridge events I thought I ought to learn something about the game, so I did have a some lessons, played a few times before deciding it was not for me. The high point of my bridge career was winning 1 Green Point at Portsmouth Guildhall in 1987. The fact that I don’t play bridge has not really affected my work as it has been purely administration.
3. What do you do outside the EBU? I am a Church Warden and Lay Chairman of the P.C.C. which keeps me busy. This may sound grand but it really means I have the privilege of putting out the wheelie bin and sweeping the path! I have organised the odd Safari Supper, Barn Dance, Beetle Drive etc., besides making sure each week we have readers and coffee makers for Sunday morning. I belong to the W.I. and have been the Treasurer for many years also I am a Trustee of both a local Charity and the Village Hall. My life revolves around the village - I know the kitchens in the Village Hall and Church very well!
4. What are you going to do once you retire? I have not yet made any great plans for retirement, I intend to spend some time relaxing and catching up with things like decorating my cottage and spending more time in the garden but eventually would like to do some kind voluntary work.
5. What will you miss about the EBU? The thing I will miss most about the EBU is the people – colleagues past and present, all the county membership secretaries that I have
   worked with over the years, the T.D.’s that I have worked with at events and all the members I have got to know. Thank you all for your friendship – I will really miss you.

Staff Bowling

For Colin's last day, we all went to the local bowling alley at lunch and had a couple of games of bowling. It may have been for Colin's retirement but that doesn't mean we were going to let him win!

We drew lots for teams and the rivalry was high even before we left the office. This is how the players lined up:

Team 1: Colin G, Clare, Barry and Michael
Team 2: Colin P, Lisa, Ian and Gail
Team 3: Karen, Kay, Sue, Eileen and Peter

Team 2 looked the strongest on paper - featuring Ian Mitchell, the winner of the last staff bowling outing - but would Team 3's extra player prove to be too big an advantage?

The first game started poorly for a certain webmaster as Michael sent two balls straight down the gutter. In fact, all of the pre-match favourites - Barry, Colin P and Ian - were having a tough time and had to sit back and watch as Gail stormed to a first-half lead with a score of 130. She had a lead of 11 points over Colin but would that be enough?

Colin's response was impressive as he started off game two with three strikes in a row - a turkey in pro-bowler parlance. Barry was also firing as he knocked off a couple of strikes. Gail was less spectacular but was very consistent and kept the spares coming to stay in touch.

Colin's great start petered out a little towards the end but his final score of 153 would be very tough to beat. Barry needed 166 to overtake him but could only manage 135. Gail needed 143: she got the much needed strike in the 9th frame and followed it up with a spare to tie game two on 153. With the advantage from game one, Gail had won!

Pos		Game One	Game Two	Total
1	Gail	130	153	283
2	Colin P	119	153	272
3	Barry	107	135	242
4	Karen	104	113	217
=	Michael	99	118	217
6	Ian	108	101	209
7	Lisa	72	122	194
8	Colin G	92	90	182
9	Clare	72	107	179
10	Sue	77	94	171
11	Peter	101	69	170
12	Kay	59	108	167
13	Eileen	51	66	117

In the team stakes, Team 2 were victorious with 858 points, 16 ahead of Team 3.

Colin Retires

Today Colin Porch is leaving the EBU after over 15 years of service. We asked him a few questions:

1. What have you done at the EBU? Your various jobs, etc! Before coming to work full time at the EBU, I ran the "beginners" events at the Brighton meeting each weekend. I was also heavily involved in writing a computer program for "Current Assignment" Swiss Pairs which was used for the "Great Northern" event for many years. My first job as a full time employee was as Bridge Shop Manager. After some stressful years in that job, I moved on to the Master Points department in 2001.
2. How long have you worked at the EBU? I joined the full time staff in May 1994.
3. Any funny stories of your time here? During the first of my "Beginner's Weekends" at the Brighton meeting, a few expected players had failed to arrive by the appointed time, and my assistant went off to see if she could find them. We were not in the most accessible part of the Grand Hotel, and it was quite likely that they had gone astray. She eventually found a gentleman who appeared to be lost, and enquired if he was, in fact, looking for the beginner's event. Upon being told that he was, and sensing a certain nervousness, she attempted to put him at his ease and assured him that he would enjoy the experience. I was suitably embarrassed when she brought him in, and asked where he should sit. It was actually Gerard Faulkner, the then EBU Chairman, who had simply wanted to see the beginners settled in and enjoying themselves, although, bless him, he laughed along with everybody else.
4. Do you play bridge? Whilst not the total addict that I used to be, I still play regularly, and thoroughly enjoy it.
5. What do you do outside the EBU? I play golf (badly) and have just accepted the vice-captaincy of my local club. I still keep my hand in writing computer programs, usually on behalf of the same golf club to score events like their Charity Day, etc.
6. What are you going to do once you retire? Former colleagues have pressed me to complete a computer game that I started nearly 20 years ago, and, if I can still remember how to use the equipment, (currently gathering dust in the attic) I shall give that a go.
7. How would you encourage more people to take up bridge?
   It has always been a mystery to me why those who take up bridge don’t make the effort to become really good players. Most are quite happy with whatever standard they happen to be, and display little interest in improving themselves. Trying to explain the "buzz" they would get if they planned, and executed, a double squeeze seems to fall on deaf ears. I have always equated Bridge with Chess. If you like Chess then you will like Bridge. Both are easy games to play, but both are extremely difficult to play WELL.
8. What are your other hobbies/interests? I am a self-taught organist, and can spend hours at a time playing. Luckily, I can use ear-phones so the neighbours don’t tend to complain. I usually start practicing Christmas Carols about September of each year. I enjoy reading, (thrillers mostly) and Agatha Christie and Desmond Bagley are among my favourite authors. I tackle the Times Crossword and Sudoku every day, play Bridge usually twice a week and represent the County against other counties.
9. What is your favourite CD/music/band of the moment? I’m afraid that my music tastes are fixed in the 60s and 70s. Today’s music leaves me cold. Favourites include The Hollies, Abba, Simon and Garfunkle and Queen.
10. What are your favourite films? Top place has to go to The Sting with Capricorn One close behind. I enjoyed the Indiana Jones movies, but don’t feel the urge to keep watching them.
11. What are you reading? The Money Changers by Arthur Hailey. I’ve read it several times before, but I do tend to re-read books that I like.