tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029Fri, 16 May 2008 23:10:41 +0000http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/index.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)Blogger295125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-7048568954375284128Fri, 16 May 2008 23:02:00 +00002008-05-16T23:10:41.213ZWell, the VAT thing didn't happen, but I just spotted a quick report on the potential of the limits on £500 jackpot machines being raised (yes it's a week old, I've been DIYing this week). I don't really know so much about the make-up of the fruit machines the clubs are allowed, but I know that one of the big complaints from clubs has been the lost revenues from the lower amounts of the big moneyhttp://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/05/more-500-fruit-machines-to-be-allowed.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-466993969091302513Fri, 16 May 2008 11:17:00 +00002008-05-16T23:01:51.178ZThere's been a lot of stories in the press recently of crimes related to Bingo. Brett has been doing a good job in his corner of rounding up a number of related stories, making it the focus of several of his latest posts such as this one and this one too. Brett has also written a great piece on the first of the recent thefts I featured here, and a look at the practice of cash loans to staff, the http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/05/bingo-crime-spree.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-8157029358520394461Thu, 08 May 2008 07:37:00 +00002008-05-08T08:03:41.240ZAn interim trading report from Rank has some good news for the company's future. It's showing improved trading figures. According to the report, trading was down on the same period as last year (prior to the introduction of the smoking ban) as was expected. On like-for-like sales there was a drop of 14%, admissions down 13% and spend per head down %1. The good news is they have seen an http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/05/rank-sees-improved-revenues-and-no-more.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-5202811790165916483Mon, 05 May 2008 13:53:00 +00002008-05-05T22:07:17.631ZSneaking in on Friday, just as everyone else was rushing off to seaside for the Bank Holiday weekend, The Times carried a story about the Government's response to the calls from the Bingo industry to remove the VAT burden on Bingo. The Government have effectively robbed the Bingo industry of it's most cherished and firmly clutched straw, announcing the it would not be removing VAT from Bingo. http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/05/government-say-no-to-removing-vat-on.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-5442724508798985493Fri, 02 May 2008 00:35:00 +00002008-05-02T11:31:32.632ZI can't believe how fast time's going, the 3rd Online Bingo Summit is now less than two months away (17th and 18th June) so if been doing some sorting out this week. My room's booked so I will there to cover things for this site. As part of the build up to the event, I caught up with its organiser from Bullet Business, Ravi Virpal, and asked him a few questions about what to expect and the work http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/05/interview-with-ravi-virpal-organiser-of.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-6132147354254568923Thu, 01 May 2008 08:46:00 +00002008-05-01T09:08:17.923ZThe Bingo Association had its AGM yesterday, and I've seen the first news story to come from it, all be it a short paragraph with little detail. You can read it over at the Times, the crux of it is that the minister responsible for gambling, Gerry Sutcliffe aims in the next couple of weeks to 'publish measures' designed to help the bingo industry. There's no real hint at what these measures couldhttp://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/05/minister-promises-measures-to-help.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-8935429109696694680Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:35:00 +00002008-04-25T15:29:39.747ZJust a quick note to say that the National Bingo Game have added to their site the entry forms and details for entry into this year's competition. If you're a regular Bingo Caller at a club that's a member of the NBGA, and fancy your chances in the competition, you should be able to pick up an application form from your club. If you haven't had one at the club, then download one from the NBGA http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/bingo-caller-of-year-2008-is-go-and.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-5612652922727993811Thu, 24 Apr 2008 09:57:00 +00002008-04-24T10:12:40.602ZI'm not quite sure where to file this one, it could go under 'proof that young males like Bingo' or 'vague Bingo connected news story' or even 'loony laws' but it was so surprising that I thought it was worth a mention. Not only me, but both the Telegraph and the BBC thought it worthy of note. Basically, a man given an ASBO for repeatedly being drunk and disorderly was able to gain an exemption http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/bingo-exemption-for-asbo-man.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-260667841956634115Wed, 23 Apr 2008 10:29:00 +00002008-04-23T12:03:23.309ZEver since the new Gambling Commission regulations on advertising came into force, I've been following the rulings at the Advertising Standard Agency. I follow them as much because I enjoy seeing the sorts of things advertisers get told off with as anything to do with Bingo. Today though a new batch of rulings came down the rss feeds, and I was surprised to see Deluxe Clubs as one of the people http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/deluxe-bingo-gets-slap-on-wrist-for.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-7120649018110784511Mon, 21 Apr 2008 08:34:00 +00002008-04-21T09:58:41.157ZOne of the constant things I've tried to hammer home on this site is the game of Bingo is widely appealing beyond its stereotypical image and perceived target group. It's heartening to see this article in The Herald that to a degree, confirms my assertions.There are a few striking things about the piece on the changing face of Bingo - firstly the figure that over half the people who play the gamehttp://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/bingos-appeal-growing-to-younger.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-4194274909932492312Sun, 20 Apr 2008 21:40:00 +00002008-04-20T21:51:12.853ZJust a snippet, I spotted news from icRenfrewshire earlier of a major fire at a former Bingo hall in Barrhead. I'm not quite sure when the club shut, but according to the report, The Central Bingo and Social Club had opened in 1970s prior to being a cinema built in the 1930s. There are a couple of (not to revealing) photographs here. Every time one of these buildings go, I feel a real pang of http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/another-bingo-hall-lost-to-fire.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-5911085534546634744Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:37:00 +00002008-04-18T10:22:40.094ZI've covered a couple of stories recently about big Bingo prize wins going to court as they've been disputed, with the winner refusing to share with their Bingo partners. Well, another one has just been through the legal system in Chester, and this time the judge made the winner split her £50,000 win three ways.The two sisters Linda Kenny and Doreen Thomas took their sister Edna Sexton to court http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/another-big-bingo-prize-dispute-settled.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-8808401476812524939Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:11:00 +00002008-04-15T12:34:00.483ZJust a quick update on yesterday's post about the closure of the Swindon Mecca Bingo. This Is Wiltshire has a follow up story that the hall's new owneres, the Borough Council will be talking to Mecca Bingo about keeping the hall running for a time. Personally, I think it's clutching at straws for the disappointed members, but the decision to close the hall would have been based on it making http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/swindon-mecca-bingo-closure-update.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-3247165566089290478Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:57:00 +00002008-04-15T12:09:51.217ZBit of a downbeat news story in the Sunderland Echo about Helen Walker, boss of the Yoden Way Buckingham Bingo who was sentenced to 15 months for stealing £31,000 from the club safe. She was also guilty of fraud for £500 cashing vouchers that were intended for customers. It's shocking to see a crime of this magnitude committed by a Bingo hall manager, and I only hope that the loss of money http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/bingo-hall-boss-steals-31000-from-hall.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-3043811744756666041Mon, 14 Apr 2008 13:55:00 +00002008-04-14T14:50:58.751ZJust a quick mention of the news from This Is Wiltshire about the closure of Swindon's Mecca Bingo. The club closed on Saturday, much to the dismay of its members who'd set up a petition to try and save the club. Once again, it's a smaller old style of club that's suffered, the members' loss is tangible, one of them likening it to losing a limb. I've set up a page for the building in the Lost http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/swindons-mecca-bingo-hall-closed.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-3378344214131855320Thu, 10 Apr 2008 08:22:00 +00002008-04-10T09:01:24.266ZThe Yorkshire Evening Post has an interesting little article on research carried out by 888 Ladies. There's a mass of figures about the game's prominence in the Yorkshire area with claims that over 30,000 women are playing online Bingo in Yorkshire, winning £18m a year in the process. Don't get too excited though by the large figure, over a year, that averages out at around £11 per player. One ofhttp://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/yorkshire-ladies-prefer-online-bingo-to.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-8936020294065815302Wed, 02 Apr 2008 12:53:00 +00002008-04-02T14:04:01.341ZOver the last couple of weeks, there's been a number of stories I've seen featured about actual Bingo halls. Here's a quick round up of the news and headlines about those halls. The newest story sees Carlton Bingo selling two of its Scottish clubs. The two clubs are the Station Road Carlton Bingo in Grangemouth, and the Tivoli Bingo Hall at Gorgie Road, Edinburgh. Interestingly, the Tivoli has http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/04/bingo-halls-in-news-sales-conversions.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-4746889893478958239Mon, 31 Mar 2008 22:27:00 +00002008-03-31T22:43:40.071ZAt the rate it's going in TV land, there will soon be as many Bingo TV shows as there are online Bingo sites. If ever you needed proof that Bingo is blossoming in Britain everywhere except at your local hall, then the recent rash of Bingo TV shows is just that proof. The latest addition to the Bingo airwaves is a new satellite based show from the gaming group NetPlayTV - recently featured here http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/03/netplaytv-announce-celebrity-tv-bingo.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-1732543552356153440Tue, 25 Mar 2008 15:29:00 +00002008-04-28T10:00:55.249ZCongratulations must be sent out to Soraya Lowell who's taken the title of the UK's biggest Bingo winner. She won the big National Bingo Game end of the month game on Sunday night, scooping a whopping £1.2million, and beating the previous National Bingo Game winner Christine Bradfield who took away £1.1million back at the end of January. Amazingly, this is the third £1million Bingo win in the http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/03/biggest-uk-bingo-win.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-901291802409896930Sun, 23 Mar 2008 23:09:00 +00002008-03-23T23:32:08.610ZBuckingham Bingo are one of the UK's smaller Bingo chains, with 11 clubs. They were taken over by Alchemy Partners back in 2005, when the marketplace was a lot rosier. The Financial Times has an article on the private equity firms current problems with the Bingo company. Their main creditor has issued them a stark decision in regards to Buckingham Bingo, either inject more capital or write off http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/03/buckingham-bingo-troubles.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-5234645661165652073Wed, 19 Mar 2008 10:52:00 +00002008-03-19T11:26:50.366ZThere's been a few stories around online Bingo this week. First up, Bingo software provider Parlay has rejected the companies who tendered to buy them. They have however struck a close relationship with these companies with an eye to later licensing deals and joint ventures.Elsewhere, Bingos has been bought by NetPlay TV, the people behind Big Box Bingo. As well as the UK site, Bingos also offershttp://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/03/acquisitions-take-overs-and-valuations.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-4570644176481523450Wed, 12 Mar 2008 19:33:00 +00002008-03-12T20:23:13.988ZWell, it was hoped by many in the Bingo industry that Alistair Darling would have addressed VAT on Bingo earnings in today's Budget, following lots of lobbying from the industry and the gaining of support from a number of MPs. It was all for nought though, not only did the Chancellor do nothing to help the industry, it has made matters worse by increasing the rate on Amusement Machine License http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/03/no-let-up-in-budget-for-bingo.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-7533901706571063932Tue, 11 Mar 2008 09:13:00 +00002008-03-11T09:46:12.725ZThe Telegraph carries a story about the latest advert from National Lottery company Camelot. The ad for the new Hot Bingo scratchcard shows an old lady in a mobility cart driving past a derelict looking Bingo parlour that is locked-up and showing a closed sign. In an instant she is transformed into a winner and appears in a jazzed up cart on a beach front. Unsurprisingly, the Bingo Association http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/03/camelot-offends-bingo-association-with.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-3227356782505429651Mon, 10 Mar 2008 10:56:00 +00002008-03-10T11:51:44.567ZWell, it's always nice to see a story that reinforces what I've said here on many occasions, that Bingo is a game men love. Whilst most of the online Bingo world seems hellbent on excluding men from their business, in the real world men in positions of esteem are happy to share their love of the game.Both the stories of interest come from the world of football. First up, Middlesbrough defender http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/03/proof-positive-that-men-love-bingo.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27236029.post-8272217019358161404Fri, 29 Feb 2008 16:09:00 +00002008-02-29T22:32:23.088ZI had an idea to do a new section of the site towards the end of last year, and got around to actually doing it this last week. This new section is called Lost Bingo Halls, and the idea is I will over time add new pages, dedicated to those halls that have closed down or will shortly be closing down. I'm inviting people to contact me with their photographs and stories about halls that have closed,http://playingbingo.co.uk/bingo-news/2008/02/lost-bingo-halls-and-new-bingo-hall.shtmlnoreply@blogger.com (Dio Bach)