Frobisher, Frederick

In another era, Frederick Frobisher would perhaps have been recognised as one of the all-time greats. However, he was unfortunate enough to begin his career only shortly before Tibor Hugo and Sydney Hall reached their prime, and inevitably suffered in comparison: and then, barely a few years later, the (then) young Mrs Trellis arrived on the scene, which she has mostly dominated ever since.

Frobisher suffered, too, from his unfortunate name: since Ernest Gower had invented the pseudonym of 'fFrederick fFrobisher' for his more frivolous articles in MC journals, he was unfortunately seldom taken seriously as a theorist himself (especially as he himself steadfastly refused to publish under a different name). Ironically, it was he who first realised that the 'fFrobisher fFlourish' actually had a practical application at championship level, and from then on the confFusion was inevitable. His first and only World Championship win came in 1938, the year after Hugo's retirement, and the fact that people still refused to take him seriously can only have shortened his life as he turned to drink, perhaps as a way of escaping the ever-present mockery. He died in 1948, a penniless alcoholic.

[JLE]

---

Categories: A to Z, Famous Players