How bingo remains part of British culture
What do you think of when asked to ruminate on British culture? Many people will think of a lovely cup of tea with biscuits, strawberries and cream at Wimbledon, getting a sunburn on holiday, excessive apologising, or cucumber sandwiches at the cricket.
Sometimes great things come from other countries and we love them so much we make them ours, but with a little twist to suit our tastes. This is particularly true with our food. Everyone knows we love curry, but did you know fish and chips originated in Portugal?
The same is true of one of our favourite games, as bingo originated from the Italian lottery and swept the US before becoming widely popular in the UK.
Early years
Bingo has been on a wild ride and looked to be dying out not too long ago. Now, this game is thriving in the iGaming sector, as many people visit an online bingo site to interact with the traditional 90-ball format as well as new iterations like Slingo and free play options. But how did it get here?
Bingo was popular throughout Europe and British soldiers it seems were responsible for bringing the game to the UK during the 1930s when it was played frequently all over the country in working men’s clubs. But the catalyst for the bingo boom years happened in the 1960s and bingo halls appeared all over the UK. Even the BBC got in on the action with Bob’s Full House hosted by the legendary Bob Monkhouse, a form of quiz show bingo that is still remembered fondly. Bingo’s popularity remained steady and visiting the brick-and-mortar bingo venues remained a favoured entertainment activity for many until around the turn of the millennium.
Technology to the rescue
The declining appeal of bingo halls seemed to be the end of bingo. Many halls closed their doors and were no longer a part of the landscape in cities and popular holiday venues. Bingo’s unlikely saviour was the internet and in the late 90s, we saw a number of free-to-play games spring up that offered the chance to play the classic game but with no prizes. While free-to-play online bingo was relatively popular, the major online casinos saw an opportunity and bingo began to appear in the libraries of the basic, slow and glitchy online gambling sites of the time.
The considerable advancements in technology have transformed the online gambling environment. Now, casino game developers are now producing incredibly popular titles and casino gaming is its own gaming genre that attracts notable attention.
Continued growth
While online casinos saved bingo, it was mobile optimization that really brought back the bingo boom years. As more and more people became dependent on mobiles for engagement, they also wanted entertainment. Bingo games today work seamlessly on any device and the game developers have been savvy in ensuring there’s a bingo game that appeals to a variety of different people.
While bingo continues to be enjoyed regularly, its spin-off, Slingo, appears to be stealing all the thunder. A hybrid of bingo and slots, Slingo gives game developers more to work with and they’ve been busy creating appealing titles like Slingo Who wants to be a Millionaire?, Deal or No Deal Slingo and Britain’s Got Talent Slingo. These games have huge appeal to British punters and although there will always be a place for bingo online, Slingo is quickly catching up.
Bingo remains a favoured game for Brits and the convenience of play nowadays has cemented it as a part of our entertainment culture. While Slingo is a popular alternative, it’s reassuring to know bingo will always have UK players who prefer the traditional game.
