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Brett Hyrjak - Image Courtesy of the NBGAWelcome! You've found your way to Brett Hyrjak's corner of Playing Bingo. Get yourself comfy and pull up a web page - share a few minutes with the Bingo Caller Of The Year 2006 and GalaTV caller.

Brett will be dropping by monthly with his own personal column, exclusive to Playing Bingo. Brett will be writing about his experiences as a Bingo caller and an ambassador for the game. Funny experiences, calling tips and lots of Bingo related anecdotes are expected!

If you'd like to find out more about Brett and his background and how he prepared for the 2006 Bingo Caller Of The Year competition, you can read a full interview with him in the Playing Bingo Articles And Interviews section. Subscribe (Atom) to Brett's Corner.

Tuesday, 13 May 2008

NOT AGAIN!!!!!!!!!

here we go again. It looks like my recent couple of posts are still ringing true check this story out about the bingo employee who stole £16,000!!!!!!!!

The manager was done as well!!!!!!!!!!

It reminds me of the time when I was first working in bingo and I put my pinny on to give out some change at the start of the session and found £5 in one of the pockets............"keep it" said the cashier that was with me at the time "the bosses will never know!"
"I can't do that" I said. I handed it in to the manager and carried on with my change-giving with a clear conscience. The cashier left not long afterwards after rumours of money going missing!!!!!!!

Even if its only a few quid, its not worth risking your job (not to mention your freedom) for.

(oh and by the way the picture is me visiting my local club in Bristol waiting for one number to win £10,000 on the link game...............DAMN the caller.............DAMN him to hell!!!!!!)

Posted by Brett at 01:11 | Add your comments [0] | Links |

Wednesday, 7 May 2008

more tales of stealing.....in the press recently.

with regards to the recent post about illegal activities in the clubs, two contrasting stories caught my eye today. Firstly the tale of a lady who stole from her dead bingo partners account goes to show how low some people can go. And the award for 'serves you right!' goes to the robbers of a bingo club in sunderland recently who whilst making a getaway and torching there car managed to set fire to themselves in the process!!!!! shouldn't take long to catch them then.......there the ones smouldering in the police line up!!!!!!!!!

Posted by Brett at 00:45 | Add your comments [0] | Links |

Tuesday, 29 April 2008

Steal or no Steal!

The story about the bingo manager who got sent to jail for stealing £31,000 from her employers does not surprise me. Although I never saw anything on a huge scale like this, I have seen instances of money being 'borrowed' from the staff in clubs that I have worked at. When you are working in an industry where the majority of people are overworked, underpaid and living on a shoestring budget, any chance to keep yourself ticking over until the next pay packet is appreciated.

When I first started out in bingo, I was working for a small independent company which paid there staff in cash every Thursday. Now I know what I am like with cash, so I had to make a concerted effort to go straight to the bank and put it into my account before I found the nearest pub (and subsequent fruit machine) otherwise come Friday I would be skint! However not all my work colleagues would be the same and Thursday/Friday/Saturday would be a popular time for socialising and spending, before the inevitable hangover on the Sunday and the realisation that they would have to borrow from the club to pay for the essentials (rent, bills etc) My first club were very good with this and after a chat with the manager you were usually given a few quid which would be taken straight out of your pay packet come the following wage day. The problem is for some of the staff this became a vicious circle of borrowing money/paying it back. I had one friend who, come pay day on the Thursday would come round to everyone he had borrowed money off; the club, staff and even in some instances the customers and pay them back what he owed, only to find out he didn't have enough left over to cover himself for the rest of the week. So the next day he would be back to borrow a tenner here and a tenner there until the next Thursday!!!! I don't think I ever saw him with a full pay packet in his hand in the 2 and a half years I worked there.

The other problem you have is when the staff decide to make up the difference in illegal ways. Stealing is an unfortunate truth in any job that involves cash and underpaid staff with the right opportunity, and bingo is no different. My first job in the club was as a change giver-we only dealt in 10ps but at the end of a busy night my pinny would have about £500 in notes in it!!!!! When I moved up to giving the prizes away on party bingo on busy nights i would start off with £2,500 in my hand. There was not a lot to stop me from just walking out of the building and getting on the first train out of town! And a couple of times other staff did just that!!!! Also I had to come face to face with a supervisor once when my float which was correct when I counted it at the end of the session, mysteriously was £15 down five minutes after I handed it to them to check. After a few 'careful words' the money was surprisingly found before senior management became involved!

The staff that used to disgust me though were the ones that actually took money from the customers, especially the vunerable ones: things like giving £9 in change to a customer who gave them £10, short-changing people at the diner and bar a few pence here and there. This sort of staff were the lowest of the low and they made me sick. It's one thing to steal from the club; but to steal from a poor old-age pensioner who can't remember whether they gave you a £10 or £20 pound note is despicable!

Fortunately this sort of crime is becoming rarer and rarer as bigger clubs use CCTV to not only protect the staff and customers, but also the huge amount of money on the premises as well.
In my experience at these modern clubs any sort of illegal activity is dealt with swiftly and efficiently, and in the case of money being legitimately borrowed it is all strictly monitored and policied so both parties are protected.

7 years ago when i started in bingo i was on £2.75 an hour as a 25 year old!!!!!!!!!!! No wonder all this sort of borrowing was going on, especially in the small clubs. But one good thing the goverment has done for the industry in the last few years is to introduce the minimum wage scheme (currently £5.52 an hour). Small compensation I know for the rest of the burdens they have given the industry, but it does mean that IOU's in bingo safes are slowly becoming a thing of the past.

And to end with something my dad used to say to me 'if you can't afford to buy it then you can't have it' Wise words Dad!

Posted by Brett at 01:03 | Add your comments [0] | Links |

Tuesday, 22 April 2008

Regional finals: well done Andrew

Well Gala's (thats Gala's.......not the NBGA!!!!!) caller of the year regional finals have been completed and a big well done to one of my former relief callers, Andrew who scooped the prize for the south-east region. There are 11 regions in the Gala company so Andrew will be faced with 10 other regional finalists in the grand final at the end of June in Birmingham.

It would be arrogant of me to say that I taught him everything he knows.....................




.........................but seriously! I always knew that the guy had something to offer the bingo world. He has a friendly and welcoming personality on stage which the customers seem to adore: the only thing he has lacked in the past is the confidence to take the next step..............Well, Andrew you took that step and you blasted the rest of the competition out of the water!!!!!!!! Good luck with the final and I will do my upmost to be there. Just remember everything you learnt off me!!!

If anyone knows the results in the other regional finals then please let me know. I do know that my part-time Gala TV colleague Peter Carlisle from Liverpool did not make it through to the final but any other information will be appreciated. As soon as I know, you guys will know!!!!!!

Posted by Brett at 04:24 | Add your comments [2] | Links |

Saturday, 19 April 2008

Big Wins.........Keep or Share?

I never share with family and friends when I play bingo. Now you may say that is a selfish and 'scrooge-like' attitude but I do not want to get into the situation that some people do when they win big! The recent news this week of Sisters going to court to get a share of a £50,000 jackpot cements my belief. The whole story was in the national press today (mirror) and it is just a sorry state of affairs that a whole family is torn apart due to a big win at the bingo. For every story you hear about close friends sharing a million, you hear other tales of friends and loved ones taking each other to court over a few grand.

The national lottery had the same sort of press when it began; before it created contracts and the suchlike to counteract any such disputes over big wins.

So follow the example of this website and print off the prize share agreement form, get your bingo pals to sign it and save yourself the lawyers fees the next time you win big at bingo!!!!!!

Posted by Brett at 20:44 | Add your comments [0] | Links |

Friday, 11 April 2008

Back to Bingo!!!!

Didn't win on the national the other day: all of my bets fell or pulled up.........damn it!!!!!!!! but I have had a few days off and managed to go back home to Bognor Regis and had a Sunday night session at the local club there. It's the first time I've been in a hall this year and it was nostalgic to be back!!! Spoke to couple of old friends and told them what I was up to. Most of them haven't got Sky so they think I have left the industry! The caller was rubbish though and I only had one sweat on all night! the fruit machine was a lot friendlier though and after a couple of quid in I was £40 up so all in all excellent!!!

Back in Bristol now working again, I haven't gotten around to visiting any clubs here yet (apart from Gala Fishponds which I am still employed with) but I'm going to make an effort in the near future...........any suggestions would be appreciated

Labels:

Posted by Brett at 20:01 | Add your comments [0] | Links |

Saturday, 5 April 2008

Grand national day!!!

The Grand national today reminds me of my early days working in an independent bingo club. We would always do a sweep stake with the staff and some of our regulars-it was always good because the race would be between the afternoon and evening sessions so we would all crowd round the TV during our break to watch it!!!!
I never managed to pick the winner in the sweepstake but I do remember dashing off round the corner from the bingo to the local bookies to put £1 each-way on Red Marauder a few years ago and it romped home at 66-1. I had to wait until after the evening calling session shift before I could go off to the pub to enjoy the winnings!!!!!!

If you have had a flutter today then good luck!!!!!!

Posted by Brett at 16:03 | Add your comments [2] | Links |

Tuesday, 1 April 2008

NBGA or GALA:which caller of the year comp to enter?

For the last couple of weeks I have been on facebook having a right conflab about the bingo caller of the year comp. This all stems from my disappointment that there were hardly any Gala entrants in the NBGA version of caller of the year last year.


The consensus seems to be that my calling companions at Gala would rather enter the internal Gala caller of the year competition; the regional finals of which are being held at the end of April, than to even consider the NBGA version (which starts its preliminary rounds this month)


'Why is this??I hear you cry!'


Well, if you become NBGA caller of the year you have technically beaten over 600 other callers in clubs up and down the land whereas the Gala comp proves your the top caller out of 160ish clubs!

The gala comp offers £200 for the regional title and £500 as the national prize. The NBGA gives £250 to the regional winner and £500 plus an all expenses trip to America for you and your partner for being the ultimate champ! Looking at in black and white and it seems to me like the NBGA one rocks in terms of prizes and prestige!

But look a bit deeper and you find out why the Gala comp is preferred by the majority of Gala callers.

Gala prides themselves on having a pool of professional callers. They even have a calling school and a rising scale of calling qualifications from green card (qualified) to specialist and then to training caller (the top level) The Gala caller of the year competiton is basically a celebration of this. You are judged purely on your calling abilities, your appearance and your professionalism. This is what attracts the Gala callers!

The NBGA in comparison is looking for more than just a caller. Its an ambassador for the bingo industry that they want. You are judged via a interview which assesses your bingo knowledge/and how you would deal with the media, and you have to 'entertain' the crowd for 3 minutes before you are also assessed on your calling abilities.

I can understand that in terms of difficulty the Gala one is the easiest comp to go for as all you have to do is do what you do every day in club whereas the NBGA one wants you to know your legislation and see you dance/sing/do magic (whatever!) This seems to be the major stumbling block for my Gala colleagues:


'i don't sing/dance/entertain at work so why should I for the NBGA comp? The gala one doesn't do that!'
is what I am hearing constantly.

The thing is this is a misinterpretation of the rules of the NBGA. You are required to 'entertain' the crowd for 3 minutes but there is absolutely no mention of singing/telling jokes or otherwise! All you have to do is to engage the players: and that is what you should be doing every time you go up on stage anyway! The entertainment section equates to less than 10% of the total marks (a paltry amount: you get marked more on your general appearance-around 20%) and I know from a judges perspective that all they are looking for is someone who can get a rapport with the crowd without going over the allotted time whether it be by singing or by telling a story; this guarantees you at least 7out of 10 marks in my opinion.

Out of the two competitions the NBGA contest is the more revered because of the media responsibilities you will endure. In my tenure as COTY I had to attend numerous radio interviews and local TV appearances not to mention perform at special events (see earlier posts for more on that, including eggheads and calling for celebrities)

After speaking to former Gala callers of the year you are very rarely used for anything PR related upon winning the Gala accolade! Actually the gala caller of the year title is nothing more than just that: a title. You might get the opportunity to call the big link games and you will get an audition for GTV but that is about it!

And if you think that the Gala caller is more professional than cast your minds back to the last 2 winners. Michael Farley did the splits on stage and the current champ Michael Edwards sang all the way up to the podium! Now is that something that happens every day in the club?! Even neutral watchers of last years final agreed that the winner won because he "stood out" from the other 10(?!?!?!?) finalists and showed some personality whereas the others were too similar. Maybe that is what is going wrong with the Gala competition: because of the success of the calling schools you are actually producing clones of what a caller should be at the detriment of why players love callers in the first place-there personality and individuality


What am i harping on about?! Why is this an issue? Am I just bitter because I never won the Gala competition?

Maybe! But the one thing that i can advise is why limit yourself? Enter as many competitions as you can if you think you are the best. I have been called arrogant on numerous occasions but I feel you need to have self-belief to do the job that you are doing! I am not an arrogant person in real life: I just know what I am capable of and I am competitive. I'm annoyed that because I now work predominantly on GTV that I am ineligible to enter either competition (and I could do with another trip to Las Vegas!)

If you are a hungry caller you would be thinking right now:

'great.......thats one less bingo caller to worry about! The title is mine!'

so what are you waiting for? DO IT!!

(Good luck to all the regional finalist's in this years Gala competition. Keep me posted on it all via this or any other media)







Posted by Brett at 00:40 | Add your comments [4] | Links |

Thursday, 20 March 2008

"Bring it Back Bingo" Celebrities coming to Gala TV!!!!

Over the weekend there are loads of special offers coming to you on Gala TV (Sky channel 841)
Free bingo, rising ladder prizes and comedy bingo are all in the schedule; but one thing you have got to watch out for is a promotion this Saturday called 'Bring it back bingo'
Over the next four Saturday's celebrities from the golden age of TV will be coming to the studio to participate in our live TV bingo fun starting with 'Hi-de-hi's' very own Ruth Madoc
(hello campers)

Then the following Saturday shows will feature.........
Timmy Mallett!!!!!!!!!


Keith Harris (and Orville!!)
and Sally James!!!!!!
So whether you are a member or not, if you are a bingo fanatic, tune into Gala Tv on Saturday from 6pm and reminisce about how good telly used to be!!!!

Posted by Brett at 12:13 | Add your comments [0] | Links |

Saturday, 15 March 2008

Bingo Budget Blues!!!


What is going on with this double taxation malarkey? it seems pretty obvious to me: Every other gaming establishment has only got one form of tax to pay, so why is this not the case with the bingo industry?
Once again the government are prioritising filling there coffers with our money before looking at the long term consequence's! How many more clubs have to close before this oversight is finally addressed.......10 clubs..........30 clubs?
And you can't really call it an 'oversight' as the treasury already acknowledge that bingo is the only gambling product to be double taxed in this way!!!!!
It reeks of greed.......maybe the government want another 100 bingo clubs to close.....they could then fill the vacant halls with 'state of the art Casino's' that prioritise departing you with your cash more than being a social outlet!
I could say more but I'm beginning to sound like a Daily Mail reader (which i am...funnily enough!)

Posted by Brett at 02:59 | Add your comments [0] | Links |

Thursday, 6 March 2008

Biggest ever winner on Gala TV!!!!!!!!

Hello,
Just got back from a busy night of work (it is nearly 3am you know!) and i forgot to mention to you guys sooner (what with all the 'Eggs' hype!) that our little bingo channel (Sky 841 Gala TV.....plug,plug,plug) gave away our biggest ever win on Sunday 24th February!!!!
Margaret1223 called a full house in 30 calls and claimed not only the full house prize; but also got the CashClimber jackpot of £67,700!!!!!!!
This is what 21st century bingo is all about......Margaret was sitting at home just having a little flutter on the telly and 30 numbers later she wins a life changing amount of wonga!!!!!! Well done to Margaret and if you are going on holiday soon then I'm available!!!!!!

Posted by Brett at 02:48 | Add your comments [2] | Links |

Sunday, 2 March 2008

EGGHEADS 1 BINGO CALLERS 0!!!




Well I'm sure you all know by now that the Eggheads trounced the bingo callers of the year last Friday!! It's strange because even though it is only a week ago in most peoples minds, to me the whole day began over four months ago in Shepherds Bush!!

The national bingo game had called me and asked if I would be interested in appearing on the BBC2 show 'Eggheads' For those of you that don't know what its about it's a general knowledge quiz show where you battle head to head with some of the best brains in Britain trying to win an accumulative prize which grows by £1000 a show until the 'Eggheads' are defeated. Now I consider myself of 'average' intelligence so I said ?why not!? The other members of the team would all be former bingo callers of the year and it seemed to me to be a great idea to take part and promote the game of bingo to a prime-time audience on the BBC!

The day of the shoot of our quiz was in early October and the first thing that struck me when I arrived at the television centre in Shepherds Bush was that this was going to be the first time that so many bingo callers of the year would be in the same place at the same time (a bit like the doctors all meeting up in 'doctor who' in the early 80's....remember?.......no?..........just me then!) up until that point there had been 12 bingo callers of the year and on this day half of them were going to be competing to beat the Eggs!(as I shall be calling them from now on!)

For the record the team consisted of(from most recent winner to oldest) myself, Mandy Gargan, Mike Vyse, Peter Lewis, Steve Linder, and the very first COTY Patrick Bowler. Six of us were required even though there are only 5 players in a team as they needed a reserve in case of illness etc. It was up to the producers to decide which one of us was to be omitted from the final team selection!!!! (Mike Vyse pulled the short straw on that one, but he wouldn't miss out if we won because he would get a share of the prize money as well!)

After costume approved our clothes (we had to wear neutral, unbranded shirts) we moved on to make up and then finally on to the eggheads set! After our microphones were put on we went to our seats and waited for our competition! They actually do 4 shows a day and we were the last team up for the day. Contrary to popular belief all of the 'Eggs' are really nice, even CJ: who appears really arrogant when watching the show, is really nice when you get to chat to him. After our introductions to our competitors the host Dermot came over and wished us all the best of luck. And with that the quiz was under way!!!!

The shoot is done ?as live? so there was no stopping and starting the cameras except for when we were doing the head to head sections (when we had to relocate to just off the main set). The first round was Entertainment and 1999 champ Steve Linder did a sterling job but one question let him down and the 'Eggs' drew first blood! Geography was next; which I wouldn't touch with a 10 foot bingo dabber, so 2003 winner Peter Lewis took the stage against Daphne (in my opinion the toughest 'Egg' to crack!) His timbre tones however were no match for the elder 'quiz-queen' and Peter bowed out in sudden death. Two of us down and Sport was up next...........MY SUBJECT. Now the weakest 'Egg' on sport is Judith Keppel (the first ever winner on 'who wants to be a millionaire') so she would be my choice on the head to head!!

WELL I would love to say that I trounced the millionairess but alas I got one question wrong (which was the easiest one, which I knew the answer to; but changed my mind when I got given the three options) whereas Judith GUESSED all three of hers correct!!!! Despondent, I was booted out of the final round and the last subject of Arts and Books ended in tears with the only female, 2004's Mandy Gargan losing out to CJ who never gave her a chance!

So the final General knowledge round was with the whole of the 'Eggs' versus the only Caller left: The very first bingo caller of the year Patrick Bowler!!!!!! He did a sterling job of keeping us in it but without anyone to bounce off he was eventually beaten by the five greatest brains in Britain. And with that it was all over. The 'Eggs' had beaten the callers and the jackpot would roll over to the next show. I hate to be clichéd but we had had a fantastic day even though we lost and after photos and a final chat with our competitors we went on our way out of BBC studios happy that we had taken part and hopefully spread the world of bingo to a mass audience!

The day ended with myself and Patrick sitting in a pub (both of us Gala callers who were on Gala TV) chewing the fat about the show and all things bingo! After a couple(?!!) of drinks I left Patrick to go to his hotel and I caught the last train back to Bristol.

So four months later and finally I can talk about this experience. I had a fantastic time; but if I had to give any prospective Quizzers any advice it would be the following: Stick with your instincts and NEVER change your mind on a multiple choice question!!! I don't think my mother is ever going to let it lie!!!!!!

Posted by Brett at 03:39 | Add your comments [0] | Links |

Sunday, 24 February 2008

Eggheads...........the result!!!!

Well if you don't know by now the bingo callers of the year could only finish second behind the eggheads!!!!! And i am still getting grief about not getting my question right on the show; not only from my colleagues at Gala TV but also from my mother and her friends!!!!
Next week I will give you the FULL breakdown on the whole Eggheads occasion.......what it was like..........meeting the other callers.......and is CJ really that arrogant? Find out next week!!!!!!!

Posted by Brett at 02:17 | Add your comments [1] | Links |

Monday, 18 February 2008

Bingo team take on the Eggheads on BBC2 this Friday!!!

Just to warn you guys that there is a team of former bingo callers of the year (including myself) taking on the 'greatest quiz team in Britain' the Eggheads this coming Friday (22nd) at 6pm on BBC2. If you don't know what the programme is all about then take a look at the link below where a team of students won over £70,000!!!!



I can't tell you how we did until after the show is aired! But my next big post will be telling you all about my day at the BBC and meeting up with past bingo champions!


Make sure you watch it. I've already set my video to record!!!!!!!

Posted by Brett at 00:15 | Add your comments [0] | Links |

Sunday, 10 February 2008

reaction to missed claims post on wed feb 6

In my years as a bingo caller I have had tons of missed claims: but in 7 years I can safely say that about 3 or 4 of those were down to me, the rest were late/quiet or non-existent shouts at all. If I ever had an altercation with a customer afterwards I would always say "If you shouted as loud as you are complaining now then I would have never missed your claim!"

In the case of the lady getting £9000 after missing her win earlier on in the week, I just think that it is the same scenario as I have had countless of times-but now the money is so large in bingo customers are not only coming in with there dabbers and lucky charms: they are also coming in with lawyers and threats of negative publicity if they don't get winnings that they 'feel' is theres!

Come on, we all know the rules of the game, so take my advice and SHOUT the place down when you have a claim-even if its only for a fiver-and make the callers job a little bit easier!

Posted by Brett at 14:29 | Add your comments [1] | Links |

Thursday, 31 January 2008

Bingo's Great For Social Networking - Don't You Forget It!

Anybody fancy poking me?

No I'm not being rude. I am just one of the millions of people who are being sucked in to the world of social networking! I must admit its a great way of meeting up with old friends and finding out what's been going on in their lives.

"Why are you telling us all this-you should be talking about bingo you doofus" I hear you cry! Well bear with me and I shall get to the point of this blog:

One of the things you can do on these sites is join up to groups with like-minded people on a variety of subjects. For example, I am a member of the Kevin Smith (Clerks/Dogma/Chasing Amy director) fan club and have joined the groups 'unlike 99.99% of the Facebook population, I was born in the 70's' and also 'I secretly want to punch slow walking people in the back of the head group' to name but a few!

Bingo does not escape this group craze. There are countless bingo groups on these websites with players, callers and staff members all putting in there opinions on this game. Here are just some of the genuine things that have been posted on a selection of these pages:

"Won f*k all on Saturday! what a performance as well! I was late, missed the first 5 numbers, managed to catch up after running through the bingo hall in a baywatch like fashion and began dabbing like I've never dabbed before!" - (as a caller I always find it funny seeing people rushing back in and trying to catch up!)

"Bingo is great stuff! I go almost every Sunday with my boyfriend lol 10 chances to win £1,000 why bluddy not!" - (I totally agree, love!)

"I've lost my dobber-my very first dobber :( " - (altogether now....AHHHHHHH)

(And check this one out:)

"Lol, two fat ladies, yep its 88. lol.

(This is) My local bingo, but still havent been. I love bingo. but wont go coz I just have an image of me walking threw(?) the door and the rest of the people being over 60 peeing themselves... Is it like that?" (So the stereotype of bingo still lives on... when will it ever go!?)

All of this is great: people talking and chatting about there great experiences down there local club. But there is another side you can see on these pages, and it's not very rosy. If you read between the lines on a few of these groups; especially the ones that revolve around the staff at various clubs and companies, you will find an unhappy trend. One that ties in with some of the things that have been happening in bingo in the last few months. I'll let a variety of these statements explain my meaning:

"Is it me or with all the staffing cut backs, loss of hours, ever decreasing morale, GM's that look like they want to hang themselves and the changes all over the company are we... sailing on a sinking ship?"

"9 years service got me 4 weeks redundancy cos of my age, its magic"

"Towards the end of my time as part of the management team I felt like I was doing an extremely thankless task on behalf of the company, employing a dangerous vicious circle - cut back staff hours and p*ss staff off, they p*ss customers off because of their attitude, the good staff leave, customers don't come back, so you have to cut back some more..."

Now, I have purposefully left out the clubs and group names in question because I don't want to appear that I am victimising anybody or any one company. But the fact of the matter is it seems to me that there are a lot of unhappy bingo staff out there. Even discounting the 'bitter ex-employee' rants, the message is loud and clear: something is up in bingo clubs across the land.

If the industry is not careful the 'annus horribulus' of 2007 will bleed over into 2008. Double taxation, the smoking ban, club closures, dwindling players-things are bad I know! Staff are feeling low and feeling the pinch as bingo companies tighten the purse strings. But this ripple effect is apparent and it is beginning to impact at the most important level: the clubs, staff and the players themselves. I feel things are going to get worse before they get better if this is not realised and acted upon.

However we must ride out this storm. I am one of the strongest advocates of this great game and I say to all of you out there-bingo is one of the best pastimes there is: a friendly social atmosphere, cheap food and drink, and you could even win a million! I wouldn't want to work anywhere else (unless the 'oiling the ladies up' at the Playboy mansion job is up for grabs!)

In the words of that great pop group D:Ream "Things can only get better!" and I shall leave all of you out there with some words of advice to turn those frowns upside down!

If you are a bingo player: support your local club; even if it means going without a fag for a couple of hours!

If you are a staff member: If you are getting frustrated talk to your superiors. They know how you feel and are in the same boat too!

And to the big wigs, whether you own one club or one hundred clubs: Keep your eye on the ball! Forget about the figures and the profit margins and keeping the share holders happy. Concentrate on the bingo and the players and you can't go wrong in the long term!

Well that's another rant over. Feel free to comment and I'll see you next time in Brett's Corner!

Posted by Brett at 11:41 | Add your comments [2] | Links |

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