Queen’s Gambit is taking the chess world by storm.

In a case of art influences life, sales of chess boards have skyrocketed thanks to the Netflix limited series. 

The series, set in the 1950s, trails the rise of a young orphan, Beth Harmon (Anya Taylor-Joy), who finds chess to be an outlet, leading her to become a female prodigy. 

Spin Master, a Toronto-based toy merchant, said that chess sales have increased by “triple digits” since the show’s premiere on October 23. 

Goliath Games has also noted a surge of more than 1,000 percent, NPR notes. 

“Our October sales for chess were up 178% over the same period last year,” Mary Higbe, director of marketing at Goliath Games, said. “That’s a big increase. But something else unexpected happened at the end of the month. Now, she says, “our chess sales are up 1,048%.”

EBay has made similar findings, reporting a 215 percent spike in sales of chess sets. 

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The New York Times found that wooden sets have trumped plastic sets. 

Even before the series debuted, interest in chess sets was spiking due to COVID.

Will this make finding a Christmas present harder?

Toy analyst Gerrick Johnnson told NPR: “Good luck finding a chess set this holiday!”

The popularity also extends to groups such as the US Chess Federation, which revealed that membership also jumped for the first time since the onset of the pandemic. 

The one thing that has been keeping us all sane through what feels like a never-ending pandemic? TV shows!

Especially now as the winter months creep in and it becomes darker earlier than every, we’re turning to streaming services to find some comfort. 

If you’re a TV show lover, like myself, you’re probably subscribed to several services because you watch an array of shows and the costs ADD UP! 

Well, how would you like it if all of those streaming services were free in December? That means all the Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, and more for free!

Beautyrest, the ultimate brand in luxury mattresses, wants to cover streaming subscriptions during the month for 100 lucky people. 10 of those lucky people will even snag a Beautyrest mattress so that they can catch some R&R this winter (while watching shows, of course).

How can you enter the contest?

Now through December 5, send an email to BeautyrestUpgrade@icfnext.com with one sentence on why you deserve an upgrade for a chance to win.

Beautyrest will choose 100 winners through a random drawing on or around Monday, Dec. 7. If you’re a winner, you’ll be notified via email. You’ll need to reply within 48 hours to the email, so make sure you check your inbox! 

Visit Beautyrest.com/FirstClassUpgrade for full rules and additional information on how you can score the ultimate binge-watching experience in bed. 

We already know Stranger Things Season 4 is going to be the scariest to date — that’s what Joe Keery (Steve Harrington told us months back!), but this takes the scare-factor to a whole new level.

Why? Because Freddy Krueger is headed to Hawkins to haunt your nightmares!

Horror icon Robert Englund is joining the Netflix series in a recurring role, according to TV Line. He’ll be playing a convicted murderer. He will play Victor Creel, “a disturbed and intimidating man who is imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital for a gruesome murder in the 1950s.”

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Englund isn’t the only new face that we’ll be seeing. The series, which is filming in Georgia after a long COVID-19 production delay, is adding seven new series regulars. 

Here’s the breakdown of each character. 

Jamie Campbell Bower of Twilight joins as Peter Ballard, a caring man working at the psychiatric hospital who is tired of all the brutality he witnesses.

Eduardo Franco from American Vandal is Jonathan’s new bestie, a stoner and pizza delivery driver.

Joseph Quinn from Howard’s End is Eddie Munson, an 80’s metalhead who runs The Hellfire Club, Hawkins High’s official D&D club. Obviously, this means he’ll find himself right in the middle of the mystery.

Sherman Augustus from Into the Badlands is Lt. Colonel Sullivan, a man who believes he can stop the evil in Hawkins once and for all. 

Mason Dye from Bosch is a handsome and rich sports star dating the most popular girl in school. But the evil brewing in town begins to unravel his perfect life. 

Nikola Djuricko from Legends is Yuri, a Russian smuggler. 

Tom Wlaschiha from Game of Thrones is a Dmitri, a Russian prison guard who befriends our favorite Sheriff. 

While the cast sounds promising, let’s hope this doesn’t mean less screen time for our faves like Eleven, Will, and Hopper (who yes, is alive, but not well somewhere in Russia).