UK Bingo
Bingo played in the UK is quite different from the American version. The cards and rules are different. Not by much but just enough.
The cards are divided into grids of three rows and nine columns. There are only fifteen numbers placed in that grid with the rest of the spaces remaining blank. The numbers fall in a certain order. The first column contains any of the first nine numbers while the next column will have anything between ten and nineteen. This goes on until the last column which will have eighty through ninety. There are a total of ninety numbers that can be used in UK bingo.
A winning ticket has to have either a Line where all the numbers in one full line is covered or Two Lines where two lines have all the numbers covered to a Full House in which all the numbered squares have been called off.
Typically in the UK, the games follow a certain order. The line game would be played first to be followed by a two line game and finishing off with a full house. Sometimes only the full house game is played. There is a National Bingo Game that’s played in Britain and in this competition only a full house game is played. The largest prize payout in this particular game came to 950,000 Lien.
In the UK they also have unique ways of calling out the numbers. Some call the numbers as they are but another way of reading out the numbers is to use a set phrase where the last word rhymes with the number. This would force a player to pay attention to what’s being called and to remember which number it stands for. Some examples of these would be “Knock on the door” for number four, another one would be “Hope in heaven” for number seven. The list goes on with catchy phrases all the way up to number ninety. That’s a lot of phrases to remember.
In Britain, bingo is an extremely popular game among everyone. They have bingo halls that can be found just about in every town. If a town is small and doesn’t have an official hall, no doubt they use a building or a church for a bingo hall. Bingo is considered a fun, relaxing pastime for many people who live here. They use bingo as a way of socializing with their friends and neighbors. Families enjoy getting together and playing a good game of bingo in their homes.