Online Bingo in the Media Glare

Since the changes in the law relating to the way gaming companies could advertise their wares on the TV, we have seen more and more online bingo sites go down this route and this has definitely put online bingo in the media glare. As we know TV advertising has the ability to reach millions of viewers around the world in a very short space of time and online bingo TV ads certainly seemed to have captured the imagination of the public because despite the economic downturn we have seen this year, online bingo has still been on the rise.

It is not just online bingo TV adverts, which have been hitting our screens either as a couple of online bingo sites have also gone down the TV sponsorship route throughout 2008. Wink Bingo have been sponsoring “All Star Family Fortunes” that is hosted by Vernon Kay and ITV2 daytime TV. These sponsorship deals are due to draw to a close today (31st December 2008)so it will be interesting to see which way Wink Bingo head in relation to advertising their online bingo site on the TV next year.

Foxy Bingo were the first online bingo site to delve into the TV sponsorship field after they took up sponsoring the Jeremy Kyle show after their current backers (Learn Direct) pulled out this TV deal, citing that they felt it was not appropriate for them to continue to be associated with the programme. Think Bingo also comes from the same hat as Foxy Bingo and for a time the Cashcade group switched their advertising sponsorship deal to Think Bingo, this however did not have the same impact as the Fox and this ad campaign was quickly switched back again.

Ladbrokes Bingo and 888 Ladies Bingo both run some real fun online play bingo TV adverts last year and these have certainly got their online bingo sites into the public domain in more ways than one. Ladbrokes Bingo took over the streets of Liverpool for their three day as shoot, where huge giant like zorb bingo balls went rolling past historic landmarks. It was tongue in cheek all the way with 888 Ladies Bingo from the very first moment they launched onto the internet with Vic Reeves as the face of their bingo site and TV ad campaign.

We have seen a fair few online bingo TV adverts come under the scrutiny of the ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) during 2008, where Paddy Power Bingo, William Hill Bingo and Wink Bingo, all see one of their TV ad’s banned for different reasons. A Foxy Bingo advert also came before the ASA, but they ruled that there was no case to answer and the TV ad was remained on TV for public viewing.


Written by Hollie
Wednesday, 31 December 2008
http://www.unluckyforsome.co.uk/online-bingo-news/online-bingo-in-the-media-glare-1474.hthttp://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=1726730394563590995#ml

A Quick Little Bingo Program

A reader recently asked for help programming a bingo game.

"It's for a old people's house ... they're still doing things in the old fashioned way, picking the numbers by hand from a bag. At the end of this year, they won a computer and asked me if I could do something to make easer for them to play live bingo."

How could I say no? But the reader also needed the program in VB 6! To write the code, I went back that that VB 6 standard (which is not a part of .NET) "control arrays" to display the numbers. Just to see how it would handle it, I ran it through the VB.NET upgrade wizard too. It had no trouble and used the Microsoft.VisualBasic.Compatibility.VB6 namespace to simulate the array.

I haven't done any VB 6 programming in a while and this was a real blast from the past for me that helped me appreciate what .NET has done! I lost a lot of coding once because I accidentally coded an infinite loop and had to cancel the VB 6 process before the project was saved. And the control array turned out to be a disadvantage in the final analysis because it was a lot of trouble to set up in the form.

If any of you are still using VB 6 ... get over it!

News Sources:-
Tuesday December 30, 2008
http://visualbasic.about.com/b/2008/12/30/a-quick-little-bingo-program.htm

Svenka Spel Continues To Monopolise Swedish Online Bingo

Last week, the Swedish National Gambling Consultation released a report in which it recommended that the Swedish Government should extend their monopoly on online gaming, including online poker, online casino games, and online bingo. The report comes in the wake of several complaints to the EU Court of Justice that the gambling monopoly enjoyed by Svenka Spel - the government-owned online gaming provider – is illegal under the rules of the EU's free competition rules.

The rules in question are intended to allowed all companies free access to all markets within the EU. Because the EU is made up of so many sovereign countries, the rules allow for certain practises – such as gambling – to be banned within an EU member country, but not where such banning is simply to protect local businesses from competition.

For example, as the UK is an EU member, then an online bingo company such as Wink Bingo or 888Ladies should be allowed to accept players from Sweden, but this law makes it illegal for them to do so.

The recommendations of the report go even further, though. They suggest using IP blocking within Sweden to prevent Swedish citizens from accessing international gambling bingo sites. They also want to implement a Swedish version of the USA's UIGEA legislation, which makes it an offence for banks to process financial transactions between players and online gaming sites.

Alongside this, they also suggest loosening areas of their gambling legislation to allow international bingo sites gaming companies access to Swedish markets by doing away with the state monopoly on sports betting by 2011, but with the exception of betting on horse racing, which will remain under the control of the state. On the surface, this makes it appear that Sweden is beginning to comply with EU free trade rules while in fact it is increasing the scope of their monopoly.

At least, this is how most international gaming companies are viewing the report. Last week, representatives from Bettson, Expect, Unibet and Ladbrokes called a press conference in Stockholm where they made their opinions on the report clear: they accused the Swedish government of trying to protect its illegal monopoly.

In addition, Ladbrokes released a statement on their website that roundly condemned the proposals.

News Sources:-
December 30, 2008
http://bingostreet.com/news-20081230/svenka-spel-continues-to-monopolise-swedish-online-bingo

Free Paddy Power Bingo Every Day for Two Weeks

If you have had your fill of Turkey and Stuffing over the next couple of weeks and feel like working it off with a few games of online bingo! Then we can tell you that Paddy Power Bingo have just gone into two weeks of free daily online bingo to play at their bingo site and these free bingo games are sure to burn a few Christmas dinner calories of for you, well off your fingers at least! Paddy Power Bingo are on the way (up, up, up) in the estimations of online bingo players, as they have gone all out to make a great online bingo site to play live bingo at, that really does have some good bingo offers going on!

If you hadn’t heard the news that Paddy Power Bingo will be running two whole weeks of free online bingo at their bingo sites before now, then you are in luck if you love being in with the chance of winning real cash prizes without it costing you any of your own money to win them. When online bingo first launched on the net back in 1996, the only free online bingo you would have been likely to get then would have been through free no deposit required sign up bingo bonuses, but now you can play for real cash prizes and take part in real online bingo for “nothing” and be able to withdraw any free bingo wins that you may get back to your account, as long as the free bingo sites wagering requirements have been met.

Free online bingo will be playing on the hour, every day at Paddy Power Bingo between 10am to 2pm, right up until 4th January and to take part all you need to do is log onto their bingo site and grab your free bingo tickets. Paddy Power Bingo have also added a little bit extra excitement with their free bingo offers by introducing a brand new play bingo promotion called “Loyalty Lock In”.

So what does Loyalty Lock in Mean? Well most of you would have probably heard about lock ins in pubs and I suppose the loyalty lock in does resemble this activity in a way, as Paddy Power Bingo will basically be locking in all players that reach level 3 of their loyalty system or above in for (Exclusive Free online Bingo). If you are a player at Paddy Power Bingo and you have not yet made it to level 3, then you still have until 2nd January to achieve this and be invited to join their free online bingo lock in!

News Sources:-
http://www.unluckyforsome.co.uk/online-bingo-news/free-paddy-power-bingo-every-day-for-two-weeks-1457.html
Written by Hollie
Tuesday, 23 December 2008

Google Says Online Bingo To Rival Poker

Internet bingo now popular across a wide demographic.

The giant search engine Google has claimed that its research has shown a rising popularity in Internet bingo across every age group and gender and is online poker's most powerful rival yet.

A statement from the search engine revealed that bingo has rapidly caught up and is now engaged in a race to decide which game is the most dominant.

”Due to the presence of so many online bingo operators, competition is becoming more and more intense forcing bingo sites to offer more and more benefits, bingo download bonuses and added benefits to ensure loyalty and traffic,” the Google statement claimed.

”Although bingo has been considered to be a female game in the past, the taboo has diminished as more and more male players are traced in the chat rooms of online bingo halls. The wide offerings, the social community nature of the game and the quality of the service are the main reasons of the increasing popularity.”

Google points out that another advantage held by bingo sites is that the variants of the game are easy and straightforward to play. Unlike poker, online bingo players do not need to wager large amounts of money as bingo cards are generally affordable.

The online game can be played while browsing the Internet with attention not mandatory, unlike poker. In the modern game, play live bingo is almost automatic, as players are not expected to call out bingo when they’ve won. The main requirement is to purchase cards on time before a session begins.

News Sources:-
Published: Wednesday, December 24, 2008
http://www.online-casinos.com/news/news8236.asp

Bloke Bingo launches

A new bingo sites aimed at the male online bingo player has launched - called Bloke Bingo.

The site will offer players particularly masculine prizes, including gaming consoles like XBoxs, Wiis and DVDs.

The site is designed to appeal to men and are currently offering play live bingo players the chance to look after a Team Fortress 2 server in return for promoting the bingo site. Here at Bingo News we have no clue what that means but apparently it is something to do with online gaming. Clans and gaming communities (which are predominately male) would be very excited to get involved.

Site founder Danny Pearson said: “There are a huge number of bingo sites targeting the female market but there are lots of male players out there and there’s no site looking after them. Let’s face it, men are different from women and they don’t want to win spa weekends or the latest rom com.”

“Our estimates show that about 25% of all online bingo players are male but all the main bingo sites are designed in girly colours and assume that pretty much every player is a woman. We think that there are a lot of players out there who would like a site that better reflects their own needs.”

Bloke Bingo runs on the same bingo download software as Crown Bingo, Sky Bingo, Bet 365 Bingo, Ladbrokes Bingo, Mecca Bingo and William Hill Bingo. Players can deposit using debit and credit cards, UKash, Neteller, Paysafe and Moneybookers.

News Sources:-
Posted by Mike on 23 December 2008
http://www.bingonews.com/1323/bloke-bingo-launches/?lang=all

Free Bingo Bonus Days at Think Bingo

The Christmas cheer just keeps on going at Think Bingo this festive season as they have just released news of two 100% bingo bonus days for their lucky bingo players. Think Bingo normally offer all players at their bingo site a 50% bingo bonus on all deposits made here, but on both Christmas Eve and New Years Eve a huge 100% deposit can be had all day long. This fab promo will increase your online bingo play no end, so if you are going to be playing bingo online on either of these dates, then this great offer might be one to take Think Bingo up on.

A lot of bingo sites on the net offer you online bingo bonuses on deposits that you make at their respective bingo sites, but what is good about the deposit bonus offers at Think Bingo is that they are consistent on all deposit made. There is no loyalty level to ascertain and no amount of playing online bingo to get to a certain deposit level, all players are treated equally here where deposit bonuses are concerned, no matter if they have been playing with free bingo download them for a year or only joined their bingo site last week.

The only exception to this rule at Think Bingo is on a Monday where their VIP players can expect to receive a 70% deposit bingo bonus all day long, but the 50% bonus offered to all players never waivers. The first deposit bonus offered to you by an online bingo site is usually the biggest bonus you are likely to receive and at Think Bingo all new players will be given a 100% bonus on the first deposit that they make at their site up to the value of £100.

This gives you double the amount of online bingo fun for your money and it should also enable you to take a good look around their bingo site and as you do need to deposit first to play at Think Bingo you are not restricted from playing any of the games that they have to offer, all be this play live bingo or the many slot and instant games you will find to play. This can be a huge downfall when taking bingo sites up on free bingo no deposit required bonuses when you first sign up with them as I have come across many a site that either only allows you to play in certain rooms until you have funded your account and you are also unable to play any of the other games offered at their bingo site.

I hasten to add that this is not the case with all bingo sites on the net, so it is always worthwhile taking a look at their T&C’s relating to any bingo bonus offered before registering with them.

News Sources:- Unluckyforsome
Thursday, 18 December 2008

Wink Bingo lost password and telephone support

If you have forgotten or lost your password at Wink Bingo you may get it back by contacting their customer support team.

You can contact them by filling in an online bingo sites form and they promise to answer all queries within 24 hours.

Or you can telephone their customer support line on 0800 783 WINK (9465). Lines are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

There is also the option to use their live chat on the Wink Bingo website.

News Sources:-
Posted by Lisa on 19 December 2008
http://www.bingonews.com/1257/wink-bingo-lost-password-and-telephone-support/?lang=all

Christmas Wishes from Gala Bingo

It looks like Gala Bingo will be making the wishes of lots of their online bingo players come true this Christmas as their brilliant “Christmas Wishes” online bingo promotion is now in full swing at their bingo sites online. Gala Bingo will be giving away some amazing prizes every single day up until Christmas Eve and players can simply log onto Gala Bingo each day during this event to see just what they have in store for them to be in with a chance of winning next and what time these prize bingo games will be taking place.

We have already seen their lucky online bingo players win five luxury Christmas hampers yesterday alone from stakes of just 25p, but you will need to log onto Gala Bingo online today to see just what they have up for grabs, plus what times these Christmas Wishes bingo games will be playing and you can do this every day for the next couple of weeks, so it will be your choice as to whether you would like to play for the Christmas wish prize on offer from simply revealing what it is every day.

Other wishes that will come true for some of the Gala Bingo players during this great Xmas special will include them winning £250 worth of Sainsbury’s vouchers and these are sure to go a long way in helping with that Christmas grocery shop, they will get to go and watch the X Factor contestants live on tour next year, plus win a whooping £5,000 in cash.

This is another huge Christmas promotion to come out of Gala Bingo and let’s not forget that one of their play live bingo games players will become a Nectar Millionaire in just a few weeks time now. You will get one entry into the Nectar Millionaire prize draw for each day that you play at their bingo site up until and including 24th December, one very lucky player when then be drawn out at random from all entrants to win a spectacular one million Nectar Prize points. If you are familiar with how Nectar works, then you will know that you can do some serious shopping on one Million Nectar points, which basically means the winner of this great prize from Gala Bingo will be shopping to they drop!

News Sources:- Unlucky For Some
Written by Hollie
Friday, 12 December 2008

Win a Luxury New Year’s Eve break at Kiss My Bingo

Online bingo operator Kiss My Bingo is offering its players the chance to take away the usual stresses and strains of where to go and what to do this New Year’s Eve by providing them with the opportunity win a perfect New Year’s Eve on them by online bingo game sites.

The prize is an all expenses paid stay at the luxury Rookery Hall Hotel and Spa in Cheshire. This beautiful grade II listed hotel is set in more than 38 acres of wooded parkland and landscaped gardens. The on bingo sites spa incorporates an exclusive health club, offering its visitors the opportunity to relax and unwind. This Georgian house hotel also boasts a fine dining restaurant which has been awarded two AA rosettes for its delectable dishes.

The lucky winner of this prize will arrive at Rookery Hall during the afternoon of 31st December, with a few hours to relax before the evening’s festivities begin.

Champagne and canapés will be served at 7pm by the hotel’s award-winning chef and his dedicated team, followed by a lavish six-course meal.

Later on, entertainment for the New Year’s Eve ball will be provided by a live band and DJ, so the winner of the prize can dance the night away and kiss goodbye to 2008 in style.

On New Year’s morning, after waking in a luxurious hotel room, the winner will be able to enjoy a sumptuous mid-morning brunch, before heading home.

Entry into this competition at Kiss My Bingo is simple. Players must call bingo on the 'R' or 'H' pattern in the 75 ball play live bingo room before 18th December. The winner will be chosen in a random prize draw on 19th December.

News Sources:-
Posted 12th December 2008
http://bingo.gamble.co.uk/news/win-a-luxury-new-years-eve-break-at-kiss-my-bingo.asp

Bingo Scotland's Christmas Party

Since they were acquired by the highly acclaimed Cashcade Group, the Think Bingo online bingo sites have gone from strength to strength in the online bingo download marketplace. The sites were all given a facelift and it has to be said, a new lease of life.

Scotland's arm of the Think Bingo group, Bingo Scotland, is once again host to a mammoth online bingo party, this time for the festive season. Like all previous online bingo parties at Bingo Scotland, there will be a vast array of excellent prizes on offer, including goodies such as luxury hampers and bottles of champagne.

The Bingo Scotland online Christmas party is set to take place in all of their bingo rooms on Thursday 18th December from 8pm onwards.

There will be one of Bingo Scotland's trademark online raffles with a host of spectacular Christmas prezzies as part of the celebrations. Online bingo players can apply for a raffle ticket before the party begins at bingoscotland.com using the competitions tab and then following the simple instructions.

Winning raffle tickets will be chosen at random every five minutes between 8pm and 10pm, totalling 24 great prizes throughout their various play bingo rooms over a two hour period.

To claim their prizes in the raffle, winning players must be in chat and playing at least one current online bingo ticket when the raffle is drawn.

News Sources:-
posted 11th December 2008
http://bingo.gamble.co.uk/news/bingo-scotlands-christmas-party.asp

Bingo helps pay off church mortgage

DANBURY -- It would be an exaggeration to call St. Nicholas Byzantine Catholic Church the church that bingo built.

But thanks in part to the twice-weekly games the church has held for nearly 15 years, parishioners on Sunday were able to celebrate the final payment on the mortgage that funded construction of Pembroke Road church, which opened in 1996.

"We're going to burn the mortgage in the spring, said the Rev. Michael G. Popson, the church pastor. "A lot of work and sacrifice by the parish went into this."

At the close of the weekly 9 a.m. Mass on Sunday, bingo sites coordinators Stephen Sedlak and Stephany Fanning presented the pastor with a check for $6,410. It represented the last payment on the $860,000 mortgage obtained from the church Diocese after the parish outgrew the old church on Roberts Avenue and purchased land for the current building in 1993.

"That's over 1,300 bingo sessions in 15 years," said Sedlak, the caller for the Friday and Saturday night games.

Timing of the check presentation couldn't have been more appropriate. It came on the same day that the parish celebrated the annual Feast of St. Nicholas, the patron saint for whom he church, founded in 1923 by a small group of Eastern European immigrants, is named.

The games usually draw about 70 free bingo devotees from across the area, down a bit from the "bingo heydays" of the 1990s when more than 100 people attended, Fanning said.

"It has been a struggle to keep
it alive, but a lot of the credit has to go to Steve," Fanning said of her co-coordinator.

"It's my hobby. I don't mind it," said Sedlak.

St. Nicholas serves more than 130 families, some of whom come from as far away as White Plains, N.Y. and Meriden to attend the weekly services.

Popson, who has been pastor of the church for 16 years, said two major fund raising drives and proceeds from selling the old church property to the state, which used the land to expand Western Connecticut State University, also helped pay for the new church.

"His accomplishment couldn't have come at a better time. We're very luck," he said.

The end of the mortgage payments won't spell the end of play live bingo at St. Nicholas.

"It's not going to end. We still have to maintain the church," Sedlak said.

News Sources:-
By John Pirro
Staff Writer
Updated: 12/08/2008 12:12:52 AM EST
http://www.newstimes.com/ci_11164714

Only the best Christmas Promotions and Prizes!

Christmas is nearly here and we are getting excited! Hundreds of online bingo sites all over the UK are gearing up for a crazy run up to the most anticipated day of the year and boy oh boy are they celebrating!

Whether it's festive guaranteed jackpots, daily prizes or monthly draws you're after, there plenty going on!

Here's a look at some of the best:

Gala Bingo advent calender promotion:

5 lucky winners will have the chance to win 5 huge Xmas Hampers

How to win: Play today in: Country Club, 20:08/21:08/21:38 OR play in: Sharon Club At: 20:36/21:54 Ticket Price only 25p!

A new prize will be given away everyday leading up to the 25th so don't miss out of fantastic festive offer!
Sun Bingo's 'Santa Double Bubble'

Santa has obviously drunk to much Sherry and as a result is seeing double! Win on a full house in (Bargin Bingo room) on 11, 22, 33, 44, 55, 66, 77 or 88 and you're winning will be doubled!

Take part in the same game in the UK bingo 90 room from 6pm to 12am every night, from Monday December 1 to Friday December 5 and hopefully you will be seeing double as well!

Crown Bingo Xmas Advent Calendar

This easy to Follow promotion for Crown Bingo players will see a fantastic prize given away every day until the 25th. Simply go to the Crown Bingo homepage and scratch the daily card to find out what the prize will be!

Then enter your user name and email to enter the daily draw and to play live bingo games! Crown will then contact you when they reveal the winner! Yes I know, it really is that easy!

News Sources:-
3rd December, 2008, By Jamie
http://www.onlinebingoalerts.com/news/bingo-news/Only-the-best-Christmas-Promotions-and-Prizes3826.html

Have a Merry Christmas with Mecca Bingo

It looks like Mecca Bingo will be taking over Christmas this year as they have gone all out to make sure that their online free bingo players have a very merry Christmas time by putting on a “12 days of Christmas” extravaganza for them to enjoy. This festive spectacular will be taking place between today and 12th December at Mecca Bingo and to get you in the Christmas spirit they will be kicking things off with free online bingo, penny bingo and buy one and get two bingo cards free games!

Your online bingo play over at Mecca Bingo looks like it is going to be lots of fun over the next week or so and some great never seen before online bingo promotions will also be hitting their bingo sites at some point throughout this month. If you love you side and slot games as well as your online bingo, then fear not as you will not be left out in the dark, as Mecca Bingo have got something for everyone at their online bingo site no matter what their preference of play is.

Whilst we are on the subject of slot games today 3rd December brings you (slot back loss day) to take part in at Mecca Bingo, which means you can spin those slot reels all day long and get up to a £5 bonus back if lady luck is not being particularly nice today.

Free online bingo will be taking place at Mecca Bingo on Thursday 4th December and the place to be to grab your free online bingo game will be their dancing queen and legs eleven bingo rooms between the hours of 10am and 10pm. Next up Mecca Bingo have got a random free cash giveaway taking place this Friday and you may all want to log onto your Mecca Bingo accounts on this day because you might just find a little surprise waiting there for you!

On Sunday 7th December you can take Mecca Bingo up on a great £10 cash match bonus on a deposit of £10 at their online bingo site and this will give you £20 worth of play live bingo games with them for your tenner. Penny bingo will be landing here on 9th December, so for you cheap as chips online bingo games, the place to go will be their “key to the door” bingo room between 9am in the morning right up to midnight!

On the 12th Day Of Christmas Mecca Bingo brought to me...... 50 x £1,000 mini Mecca monster games to take part in! Yes, those mini monsters will be running riot at Mecca Bingo on 12th of December, which means you could take part in 5 hours worth of back to back guaranteed £1,000 jackpot bingo games and this equates to them dishing out £50,000 worth of guaranteed cash prizes within just five hours of online bingo play. You will catch those mini monsters taking place from 6pm on the night in the Two Little Ducks, Key to the Door, Dancing Queen and Legs 11 bingo rooms!

This is still only half the story of what will be taking place at Mecca Bingo throughout December, so stay tuned to see just what else they will be lining up for you this month of joy and celebrations!

News Sources:- Unluckyforsome
Written by Hollie
Wednesday, 03 December 2008

Uncertain Future for Lucky Lossie Bingo Club

The Baker Street Bingo hall that was aptly dubbed “Lucky Lossie” after their bingo players kept on winning some great cash prizes as well as some luxury goodies that included holidays and even a brand new car, now faces an uncertain future after plans were submitted to Moray Council to demolish the bingo club and build houses in its place. This bingo sites news has not gone down well with their regular bingo players as it is the last remaining independent bingo club to operate in the Quayside, Lossiemouth area in Scotland.

It is thought that this move by the owners of Lucky Lossie Bingo was taken due to her perilous state of the land based bingo industry. Bingo Boss James Allen had this to say, "The industry is in a bad way. Other UK bingo clubs in other areas have been turned into flats or pub chains. Numbers are down everywhere and you can tell by playing the National Game. It used to have a £200,000 star prize on a Sunday night, now it is £25,000. When I started linking up with other halls, there were 50. Now there are 27, so the situation is the same everywhere."

Mr Allen also went on to say, "If I get planning permission in place, then it is an option, but I have no plans to close the bingo meantime. I would be disappointed to see it end, as the regulars are really good and have been the top fundraisers it the UK for the past seven years. Macduff and Nairn have closed down so we are the only independent left in the North. Companies like Gala and Mecca are shutting halls as well. Flats and houses in Lossie seem to go well and old buildings being made into flats has tidied up the area. I want to have something in place because of the way things are going. If I get planning permission, it is always something to fall back on. It keeps options open."

According to James Allen, he does not have any immediate plans to close the Baker Bingo club, but with plans already being submitted to the local council, this play live bingo club faces a very uncertain future indeed. This is yet another example of the plight of land based bingo clubs throughout the UK and with Gala Bingo pulling out of the National Bingo game it was bound to have a knock on effect with the National Bingo Game and by the looks of things it has been more hard hitting than first anticipated.

News Sources:- Unluckyforsome
Written by Hollie
Wednesday, 03 December 2008

Bingo Halls vs Bingo Online

So, online bingo has taken the UK by storm in recent years but what's really better. Playing online or visiting the local hall? Well here are the advantages and disadvantages of both:

Advantages of visiting a local hall:

* The atmosphere. OK so you can't smoke in bingo halls but that hasn't ruined the atmosphere and its a great way to get out of the house, meet mates and have a drink or few!
* The national jackpots are huge! You can literally win millions play live bingo at halls where as online the jackpots tend to be slightly less.
* The food a drink! You can be waited upon at many bingo halls with a nice hearty meal and some glasses of wine, perfect way to spend an evening!
* You're supporting the local community.

Disadvantages of going to you're local hall:

* Traveling. If you don't live near a city center then it is likely to cost you money to travel to you're local hall.
* It's freezing outside. No one wants to leave the house when its this cold! So maybe it's worth staying in a playing online!
* Bingo halls are shutting down. Their may not be many left to visit as they are all shutting down!

Advantages of online:

* You don't have to leave you're home! Hell you can even play bingo in bed if you've got a laptop!
* It can be cheaper as there's no need to spend money on travel and you won't spend more money on food or drinks.
* The sign up bonuses and promotions are unbeatable. Online site throw free money at you!
* The chat rooms! Met crazy random bingo players in the online chat rooms!
* Play any where anytime! Yo can play when you wake up, have lunch or go to bed!

Disadvantages:

* You need the internet. Surfing the web is great fun so if you don't have broadband get it!
* Some sites are dodgy. Some sites can be difficult to win on but stick to the main ones and you should be fine!
* You can't see or feel the money when you win! It goes straight into your account.
* There's too many sites. Deciding where to play bingo is difficult, there's too many sites!

News Sources:-
By Jamie
25th November, 2008
http://www.onlinebingoalerts.com/news/bingo-news/Bingo-Halls-vs-Bingo-Online3788.html

Bingo Manager to Cafe Owner

Julian Cottrell, former manager of the Beacon Bingo Club has now turned his hand to Cafe Owner after opening his own cafe in Fish Street, Northampton last week. The former bingo boss ran the Beacon bingo club in St James, for about 6 years and you could say that he also made history in South Africa because it was reported that he was the first ever bingo caller to call out bingo numbers in South Africa, where he worked at the time back in 1998.

With so many land based bingo clubs closing their doors for the last time over the past few years it is no wonder that bingo sites staff, even at the highest level are turning to a completely different industry to further their careers. The high street is said to be taking a bit of a bashing with our economy as it is at the moment and we are even seeing lots of them reduce their prices and put on sales now before Christmas is even here to try and entice the consumer to shop with them and who would have ever thought that an household name like “Woolworths” would be in the brink of going under.

It is definitely not just the land based bingo industry that has been taking a bit of a battering, as all sorts of sectors are now finding it very tough indeed and it was also said last week that an estimated 35 pubs are currently being closed down every single week in the UK. Whilst the land based industry still seems to be in steady decline the play bingo online industry on the other hand still seems to be growing and growing with each month that passes and we have just seen figures released that over the past six months online bingo players have increased by a massive 80%.

As well as serving food and drink Mr Cottrell has put another angle on his cafe business as he will be stocking his cafe with a wide range on newspapers from a number of different countries. Mr Cottrell said, "I know a lot of people like to read a newspaper at their leisure while having a drink in a cafe so the idea really came from there. Northampton has a very diverse population which I wanted to reflect in the type of newspapers we have in. Hopefully we will attract all different sorts of people."

Mr Cottrell has come up with a very apt name for his business “News Cafe” and it was opened by local Mayor Brian Markham in Northampton just a few days ago.

News Sources:-
http://www.unluckyforsome.co.uk/bingo-news/bingo-manager-to-cafe-owner-1395.html
Written by Hollie
Monday, 01 December 2008

Win Christmas on Foxy Bingo

It looks like the world of online bingo is going to be rocking this festive season as we start to get an insight of just what bingo sites on the net have lined up for their players to take part in. Foxy Bingo never shy away from an event in our calendars and Christmas with Foxy Bingo was always going to be special, so just what does the Fox have lined up for you? Well we can tell you that one very lucky bingo sites player over at Foxy Bingo is going to win Christmas on them and five runners up will be in for some real tasty treats!

The lucky winner of the Christmas prize draw promotion will get to hit the high street on Foxy Bingo and they will also be paying a visit to their home to deliver a Christmas dinner that is bound to make your mouth water as it will include the finest Christmas turkey, roast beef and all the trimmings that you would expect to have on Christmas day. That is not all either as they will be bringing gifts a plenty for the lucky winner and their family to enjoy. Just take a look at what this full Christmas prize package will include –

1. All your food for Christmas lunch
2. 1 x Bottle of Moet Champagne
3. 1 x Bottle of Single Malt Glenfiddich Whiskey
4. 1 x Bottle of T Solero Reserva Fino Sherry
5. £250 Vouchers for Woolworths
6. £250 Vouchers for Debenhams
7. £250 for Marks and Spencer
8. Daewoo 22" Widescreen LCD TV With Built In DVD Player and Freeview
9. A Nintendo Wii with Games pack
10. The Complete Only Fools and Horses Box Set

Foxy Bingo will also pay £150 towards the cost of Christmas food and drink, which will be chosen by the prize draw winner.

Now if that is not a great prize line up then I don’t know what is and now here is the important part of just how you could get yourself into this great Christmas prize draw at Foxy Bingo. You need to play live bingo at their bingo site at any time between now and Sunday 7th December and keep a look out for the (Santa Hat) pattern that will be playing at random in all of their 75 ball bingo rooms. Every time you win bingo on this pattern it will give you one entry into Christmas prize draw to win all the goodies that you see listed above. There are also five runners up prizes on this one and they will all win a Christmas Hamper that is just going to be packed full of goodies form them to enjoy.

The lucky bingo winners will be announced on Monday 8th December at their bingo sites and they are all sure to have a very Foxy Christmas this year!

News Sources:- Unlucky For Some
Written by Hollie
Monday, 01 December 2008

Bingo Bash for Centaury Old Amelia

Amelia turned 100 years old on 5th November and she celebrated this milestone in her life by holding a big birthday bash at her local British Legion Club in Rumney, Cardiff, where she still play bingo at least once a week. It was reported that more than 150 people attended her big birthday event to congratulate the lady, but due to an error when her father registered her date of birth with the registry office when she was born, Amelia was still waiting from her card from the Queen as her dad put her date of birth down as 15th November instead of 5th November.

Her daughter Violet said: “It was a fantastic night. She is really well known and liked, and you could see that from the amount of people that came to the party. My mother plays bingo in the club every week and at the Castle Bingo club as well. They got her a big card and a cake. We lost count of the cards and presents by the end of the night because there were so many. She is a wonderful mother and we all think the world of her. You only have to speak to her to realise how sharp she still is and it’s a great landmark to reach 100 years old.”

When Amelia was born back on 5th November 1908, it was quite normal for married couples to have large families and Amelia herself was one of 10 children, in today’s age a family that has anything over three children seems to make people look twice, but happily that was not the case back then. Amelia married Charles Turner and they themselves went on to have three daughters, Doreen, Joyce and Violet and the plucky lady currently resides with her daughter Violet and husband Peter in Llanrumney.

It has been thought for some time that the game of bingo can help to keep the mind active and alert and if Amelia is anything to go by with her weekly games of bingo that she still plays play live bingo games in bingo sites, she is another case that helps to support this fact. Bingo is also one of the most social forms leisure gaming activities in the world to partake in, as it really can help to bring whole communities together and it is now played by the young and old alike.

News Sources:-
Written by Rob
Monday, 17 November 2008
http://www.unluckyforsome.co.uk/bingo-news/bingo-bash-for-centaury-old-amelia-1352.html

No Bingo News from National Bingo Game

Since Gala Bingo withdrew from the National Bingo game on 31 August 2008, the National Bingo Game has ceased to post bingo sites news on their web site. The National Bingo Game have become somewhat of a bingo initiation in the UK and it revolutionised the way bingo was played in Britain from the very first moment it hit our land based bingo halls back in June 1986. This was no easy task either bringing the National Bingo game to millions of bingo players throughout the UK bingo as it had to pass Parliamentary legislation and a new Bingo Game Act, before it could be played in bingo clubs up and down the country.

Bingo clubs first became established in the 1960’s in Britain, but it was not until the 80,s that play bingo brought players the chance to win life changing amounts of cash and this was largely due to the National Bingo Game and the way that it could link lots of different bingo clubs together to take part in just the one bingo game.

Gala Bingo took the decision to withdraw from the National Bingo game earlier this year and they have also since withdrawn from the Bingo Association, which is a valuable voice for the free bingo industry as a whole. The new high 5 jackpot game was the reason behind these recent changes that have taken place at Gala Bingo and according to reports it has proved to be a big success with Gala Bingo Players.

Mecca Bingo and other land based bingo halls like Castle Bingo, Top Ten Bingo etc, still continue to run the National Bingo Game in their respective bingo halls, but unfortunately you cannot now participate in this game at any Gala Bingo Club. No bingo news at all has been forthcoming for the National Bingo Game since the end of August 2008, which begs the question, just why is this so? Either there have been no big winners of the National Bingo Game since August this year, but I find that very hard to believe or Gala Bingo had some sort of hand in brining bingo news to their online web site. To play bingo online you have to bingo download software. Maybe neither of the latter are true, but it would be good to see the National Bingo Game once more keep bingo players throughout the UK up to date with what has been happening in our bingo halls with respect of this great bingo game.

News Sources:-
Written by Hollie
Tuesday, 11 November 2008
http://www.unluckyforsome.co.uk/bingo-news/no-bingo-news-from-national-bingo-game-1337.html