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Paypal returns to internet gambling

mabel — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 08:30:59 +0000

There have been several interesting moves lately relating to the US online gambling saga, and one is the news that Paypal has begun to return to process payments for online bingo. This is seen by many as an indication that there will be regulated online gambling in America.

Going back several years Paypal was widely used by online gamblers, but this changed after Paypal was acquired by eBay in 2002. Soon after Paypal stopped processing payments due to the legal risks in the US. At the time this seemed to be a very cautious move, particularly as this was before the UIGEA. At the time the Wire Act was restricting payment processing for online gambling although in a low key way.

Recently though financial service, banking and credit card industries are becoming more vocal in their protests against the UIGEA’s restrictions and Paypal seems to be slowly re-entering the market. 32Red and Ladbrokes bingo have recently started to allow payments by Paypal, which many believe is a sign that Paypal is making a return to the world of online gambling. Paypal can also be used on the Virgin gaming network and it is expected it will be used by an increasing number of online casinos.

At the end of the day we believe that a greater choice in payment methods for players can only be a good thing, and we’ll certainly be watching this situation with interest.

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Bingo hall becomes church

Tom — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 13:47:54 +0000

We have reported many times on how the decline in land based bingo has led to bingo clubs closing down and the buildings being used for new purposes, and in America, the bingo situation is no different.

Alabama has had a huge crackdown on gambling, leading to many empty bingo halls scattered around the state. One hall though is having a makeover at the moment and has become a church.

James Gardner is the pastor of the Jasper Christian Center and was in the same building for more than 20 years. In this time his congregation grew and so he and his wife started to look for a new building. He said; “Most people in the community think it’s about bingo. But for us, it’s about revival. We started driving up and down the road. We saw a for rent sign on this one, so we leased it for a few years so we can grow.”

The church have been holding services for a few months and began whilst they were still painting and cleaning the building. “It’s a funny irony,” Gardner said. “We have people who say they’re no longer going to shout ‘Amen’ they’re just going to shout ‘bingo.’ We have people doing that. We’re glad bingo’s gone. We’re against it as a congregation. But this wasn’t about us defeating bingo, legislation and prayer did that before. We’re just here because it was an available building and we needed space.”

From the sounds of things, the congregation objects to the community spending money to play bingo. Opposing views to this line of thinking clearly believe that it is our right to spend money on playing bingo games as we see fit.

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Gala Coral Chief Executive Leaves Company

Jaymac — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 18:16:34 +0000

It’s time for a change at Gala Coral, the parent group of popular online bingo site Gala Bingo, as their Chief Executive, Dominic Harrison has left the group for pastures new.

Whilst the company looks for a new Chief Executive Neil Goulden, the Executive Chairman, will become Interim Chief Executive. He has been with the Group for 10 years and prior to his present position was Group Managing Director (Bingo and Casinos) 2001-2004 and then Group Chief Executive 2004-2008. He became Chairman in January 2009 and will revert to that role as soon as a new Chief Executive is appointed.

Dominic Harrison on the other hand joined Gala in 2004 and was appointed Gala Coral Chief Executive in October 2008. He will remain with the company until 1st October to ensure a smooth handover of the popular online bingo site.

Neil Goulden said “Dominic has played a big role in the development of the group over the last six years and we are grateful for his contribution. He leaves with our thanks and best wishes for the future”.

Dominic Harrison commented; “After six years with Gala Coral it is time to seek fresh challenges. I wish Neil and the rest of the team all the best as they take the company forward to the next phase in its development and ensure that it remains at the forefront of the sector.”

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Islington Mecca Bingo Site at Risk

Tom — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 13:45:25 +0000

A former bingo club in Islington has been put on the ‘at risk’ register by English Heritage as, despite several promises, no work has been carried out in it during the last 3 years where it has stood empty.

The building is Grade II listed and used to be a Mecca Bingo club until it was closed in March 2007. It is currently owned by Evangelical Church Resurrection Manifestations who had promised to restore the historic building to its former glory. They blame Islington Council for the lack of work, saying they are dragging their heels over granting planning permission.

English Heritage grew concerned over the building and took the decision to place it on the register. Nigel Barker, the acting regional director for London said; ‘Something has got to happen. This is a very important building and certainly one of the greatest assets in the area. The building has been empty for some years and it’s deteriorating – particularly the interior. When the church first came up with their approach we were reasonably comfortable because they said they would let the community in and because the building wasn’t going to require many alterations. But we have had no clarity yet as to when they are going to do something and what the delay is. All we know is that there is no clear way forward.’ It has been suggested by English Heritage that if no work takes place the council may force the church to sell the building.

The building started life in September 1930 as Carlton Cinema. In 1972 it closed as a cinema and then re-opened as a bingo club. Mecca decided to close the club just before the smoking ban took place and the Christian group bought the building 6 months later, in September 2007, reportedly for $5million.

The company had big plans for the building – as well as returning it to it’s former glory they were going to include a conference centre, church and community venue. Behind the building they would erect a seven storey block of 44 flats. The total cost of the project was said to be approximately £18 million.

Islington Council granted permission regarding the conversion of the bingo club to a community venue and church but was still debating the block of flats, which the owner said was needed to fund the other works. However, there was an almost 2 year gap before the application was filed, so blame for the delay is down to both groups.

A spokesperson for the company commented: “We could go in tomorrow and convert it into a church. We have got enough funds for that. But we need the flats to fund the community project. By the council’s own rules, there is a time limit by which they have to give us a response. It’s gone way over that. It’s now going to an appeal hearing. The building has been lying derelict all this time. We are eager to put it to use.”

Owned by the Rank Group, Mecca Bingo is one of the largest UK bingo clubs. There are over 100 Mecca Bingo Clubs in the UK, which collectively has nearly 1 million club members on the books. Mecca Bingo’s owners additionally own and operate Rank Interactive, the Internet bingo site for Mecca Bingo, Grosvenor Casinos – a popular casino chain in Great Britain, and Spanish Casino chain Top Rank España.

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J-Lo faces casino lawsuit

Jaymac — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 14:21:53 +0000

International superstar Jennifer Lopez has been told she may soon be facing a $40 million (£26.6 million) lawsuit over a cancelled engagement in Cyprus.

The singer/actress was due to perform at the opening night of the brand new Cratos Premium hotel complex in the north of Cyprus, situated in the Turkish-occupied area. The opening was scheduled for 24th July, which is the date of her 41st birthday and is also the 36th anniversary of the invasion. After this was announced though there was a outcry from several groups, including the Cyprus Action Network of America, which seemed to work. “After a full review of the relevant circumstances in Cyprus, it was the decision of her advisers to withdraw from the appearance,” read the statement on Lopez’s website. “Jennifer Lopez would never knowingly support any state, country, institution or regime that was associated with any form of human rights abuse.”

This decision however has not gone down well with the company that runs the hotel, who have threatened to sue her if she does not perform. Murat Bozoglu, the Chief Executive, said; “The contract has not been terminated. If she does not show up for the concert, we will begin a procedure in the courts to claim 35-40 million dollars in damages. The cancellation… is not covered by any clause in the contract she signed with us.”

Feza Firat, the PR spokesman for the $220 million resort believed that Lopez may have been misinformed about the situation in Cyprus. She has been “led to believe there [is] a war going on”, he said.

Cyprus is the home to numerous Internet bingo sites, including popular UK bingo sites Eat Sleep Bingo & and Bingo Playground, both of which are situated on the Cozy Games Platform.

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City Council rejects money from bingo halls in Alabama.

Jaymac — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 09:08:12 +0000

Times are hard in many areas and most councils are busy coming up with new ways in which to boost their income. For any council to return money is very unusual, but that’s what has happened in Fairfield, Alabama, USA. The City Council has just returned cheques amounting to $10,700 to two US bingo hall operators as they claim they are owed more money.

Mayor Kenneth Coachman has said that Sparkle Bingo is the only hall in the town that has paid what it owes in June. Two other halls, Bingo Fantastic and J&B Games, only paid a percentage of their fees as they were both asked to close on June 4th. Therefore they do not see why they should pay the full amount, and so sent pro-rata cheques which they felt was fair.

Councilman Ves Marable has said that the Council wants the full amounts as required by the city’s ordinance. ‘That amount of money is an insult and is unacceptable’ he said of the 2 cheques. The council is presently owed approximately $450,000 in fees.

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BT strike threat for online operators on hold

Gladys — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 08:47:54 +0000

There are many factors that affect online bingo. The economic climate is a major factor, as can be seen by the struggles faced by many operators at the moment, and the weather is another. One factor which would have had some impact may have been narrowly avoided however, and that is the possible strike by BT employees which has just been called off.

BT have not gone on strike for more than 20 years, and the rumoured one has been called off due to legal technicalities, the Communications Workers Union (CWU) confirmed. The strike, which would have happened next week, could have had an adverse affect on broadband and telephone lines, and any faults would have taken far longer than usual to be fixed. BT did state that they had contingency plans, although this is no guarantee of uninterrupted service. A large number of internet service providers (ISPs) lease their broadband lines from BT Wholesale, and depend on BT engineers to fix any faults and keep their networks running.

The CWU did confirm that a strike by BT engineers and call centre staff could have a “significant impact” on internet services throughout the UK. “Although BT might move call centre operations to other centres, it’s really on the engineering side of things that things will be felt most keenly. The biggest impact could be in fixing faults on exchanges or broadband lines – which would be on hold for the duration of a strike – and things that are scheduled to happen, such as laying new fibre or upgrading exchanges, wouldn’t happen.”

Although bingo clubs that play bingo would not be as severely affected they do rely on phone lines to run linked games. One bingo operator said; “If lines were to develop a fault we would have to review participation in link games, however generally bingo lines have many telephone and ISDN lines and as such, unless all lines are down, temporary measures can be taken.”

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Ireland man killed on way home from bingo

Tom — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 15:54:44 +0000

A 66 year old man on his way home from playing bingo in Buncrana was killed in a horrific car crash on Sunday night, along with 7 young men. The two car collision took place on the Drumfree to Clonmany road, which has been the scene of other accidents in the past.

The late night accident occurred in County Donegal, approximately 15 miles from the Northern Ireland border, and involved men from 3 different parishes. 7 of the dead, all in their late teens and early twenties, were travelling in a Volkswagen Passat which is believed to have hit a Renault before crashing into the Toyota Corolla being driven by Hugh Friel from Clonmany. The driver of the Passat is in a critical condition in Letterkenny General Hospital.

Donegal senator Cecelia Keaveney said it was “an ordeal” for all of the families involved. “Because of the close-knit community it affects very, very many people in Inishowen particularly,” she said. “We have had so many fatalities on the roads over the past decades, for many families, this will reawaken the difficulties they faced. The immediate concern is for the families, but it will reawaken histories for many people as well.”

Brian Cowen, the Irish Prime Minister and Martin McGuinness, the Northern Ireland Deputy First Minister, were amongst those sending condolence messages.

Get the scoop on all the bingo halls and casinos in the UK, as well as the latest bingo promotions and new bingo site listings from http://www.LondonBingo.net/.

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Manchester City footballer arrested for casino fight

Tom — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 21:04:48 +0000

Kelven Etuhu, the Manchester City midfielder, was arrested after a fight in a casino in Manchester which led to 3 people being injured. The 22 year old will answer bail next week after being held on suspicion of wounding.

The incident took place at the 235 casino in Manchester City Centre, where police were called to after receiving reports of a disturbance. Mr Etuhu and 27 year old Leonard Rico Richards from Longsight were arrested after a 23 year old woman and two men, aged 24 and 26, were taken to Manchester Royal Infirmary for treatment to injuries. Crown lawyers now have to decide if the men should be charged or not.

Mr Etuhu rose through the City’s Academy ranks, making his senior debut in September 2007. Towards the end of the 2007/08 season though he was loaned out to Leicester City following tough competition for places in the squad. He was unlucky enough to suffer a hamstring injury at the beginning of the 2008/09 season which took him out of the squad into after the New Year. He has been on loan to Cardiff since August, though he did return to Manchester City for treatment after suffering an ankle injury in December.

London Bingo brings you the scoop on UK bingo halls and casinos, as well as news on new bingo promotions & bonuses and Internet bingo happenings.

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Bingo win in time to celebrate 21st birthday

Gladys — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 08:11:54 +0000

A 21st birthday is always an important one, but for one lucky person her near approaching birthday will be celebrated in style after she scooped a very handy £22,000 whilst enjoying a game of bingo.

The 20 year old was playing at the Opera Bingo Club in Penrith, and can consider herself quite lucky as she had only joined the club in January. She managed to call Full House on just 38 numbers, which meant that she won the National Bingo prize, hence the larger than usual jackpot. This is great news for bingo halls and internet bingo.

Ethel Nicholls, the Club Manager, said; “It is absolutely fabulous. Everybody started cheering and she was shaking. Everybody is delighted for her. We are getting a lot of younger players nowadays. We’ve had an exciting couple of weeks at the UK bingo club, as last Thursday we had a young lady win our monthly holiday game, a luxury four-star holiday for two.”

The winner has not been identified although it has been said that she lives in a nearby village. If you know someone who plays bingo, will be 21 in August, and is walking around with a bigger than usual smile then there’s a good chance you’ve found the lucky winner.

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Bingo club may become cinema

Victoria — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 08:01:19 +0000

We have often reported on the struggle that bingo clubs and online bingo“>internet bingo rooms face to stay operating, and even when they are forced to close there is often a battle as to what becomes of the building. The fate of an old Gala Bingo club in Cambridge though may finally be resolved after a lengthy battle.

The Hobson Street site is a huge Art Deco building. It started life as a cinema before becoming a bingo club. There has been speculation that the former bingo club would be turned into a block of flats, though the latest rumours are that it may reopen as a cinema again.

Bidwells, a local estate agents, have confirmed that they have received an offer from a business on the building, which at the moment only has permission to be used as a bingo club or a cinema. If any business wanted to develop the site for residential use they would have to apply for planning permission, which would probably be opposed quite fiercely from local businesses and residents.

Emma Thornton, the manager of the city centre estate agents said; “It’s a key building in the historic city centre and we are pleased that it will be used after being empty. But it depends on what it is used for and we hope it will be appropriate as it would revitalise that area of the city.”

Gala Bingo closed the club in June 2009 despite local opposition, and it is said that approximately 400 players attended the final session. The building had been used as a UK bingo“>uk bingo club for 37 years, following its conversion from a cinema in 1972.

Following its closure Occupy Cambridge, which describes itself as a group of “squatters, anarchists, revolutionists, land rights types and general social misfits” occupied the building. One of the group members said that the actions would send a message to authorities about providing community spaces. He said; “We’ve got pubs closing down and there is nowhere for people to go to meet as a community. This is a protest against councils and the capitalist system which are abandoning communities. We are calling for radical social change.”

The group were soon evicted and metal shutters put up against the doors. Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service inspected the building and declared it was unsafe for people to live in.

Despite the current economic climate Cambridge City Council has said that there has been a “number” of enquiries relating to planning permissions as well as applications from various parties. The building is classed as D2 which covers cinemas and bingo halls and is listed as a “building of local interest”

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Special New Bingo bonuses & games this weekend

Victoria — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 13:04:24 +0000

The weekend is filled with special bingo bonuses, as well as bingo games from the best new bingo sites in town. London Bingo visitors will be well served in taking advantage of our special bingo games & promotions:

Win a car courtesy of Polo Bingo – Polo Bingo is giving their players the chance to win a new car by playing bingo, which would make for a really stylish drive around London. Players who join Polo Bingo earn two tickets to the Polo Bingo car giveaway game. Players can earn a maximum of seven bingo tickets to the Polo Car giveaway or they can be purchased for £2 each. While depositing to Polo Bingo is not required for getting free car tickets, their deposit bonus is quite difficult to pass up – as polo bingo gives one of the biggest bonuses around at a whopping 100% up to £1000.

The Polo Car, a VW model S 5 door A/C basic, will be won through the Polo Car bingo game, which is to be held on 27 September. Claim your big bingo bonus & take a shot at the Polo Car by registering and depositing at Polo Bingo now.

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Bingo for Detainees under question

mabel — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 08:51:21 +0000

Bingo is an activity enjoyed by many people worldwide, but for one group of people it is currently being questioned whether it should be on offer to them or not.

Bingo, along with other activities such as yoga and cooking classes, may soon be offered to illegal immigrants waiting to be deported from America, although not everyone agrees with this idea and one Congressman is currently fighting this.

US Rep. Brian Bilbray has asked the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to clarify proposed changes that would ’soften’ illegal immigration detention facilities to try and make the detention centres more humane. There are several centres run by the Corrections Corporation of America, and amongst those targeted for the new programme is one in Otay Mesa, San Diego.

Bilbray and 18 other members of Congress have sent a letter to the DHS, stating that although they agree detainees should be treated with respect they’re worried that the new provisions and costs will fall back onto taxpayers.

The new changes would provide detainees with activities such as bingo, dance classes, movie nights and continental breakfast.

Bilbray said; “The federal government doesn’t pay for Grandma and Grandpa to get these kinds of accommodations, I’d be damned if we ought to be talking about providing that for someone who is waiting for deportation. This is exactly the kind of message you don’t want to send that people that are illegal in the United States are entitled to treatment better than U.S. citizens” he added.

Lauren Mack with ICE said; “These reforms have been offered by ICE contractor CCA for consideration by ICE. They are currently being evaluated and have not been implemented. Any such reforms will not be funded at additional taxpayers expense. ICE is committed to making sensible reforms to its non-criminal detention system and will continue to consider reasonable approaches that seek to achieve those goals.”

“No one can tell me with a straight face that these accommodations are not being paid by the taxpayers,” Bilbray said.

The proposals also include allowing visitors to stay 12 hours at a time, eliminating lockdowns, and letting low-risk detainees wear personal clothing.

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Netplay issue profits warning

mabel — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 08:01:16 +0000

Television is always a risky business as results can go either way, both with advertising and with programmes, and it seems that the gamble has not worked out for NetPlay TV. They have just issued a profits warning after seeing lower than expected revenue from the initial run of their ITV Bingo Stars programme.

NetPlay TV have Challenge Jackpot and Bingo Stars on ITV, STV and Virgin 1. Bingo Stars was launched on 27th May and a new way of playing the game, which is a type of quick play keno, by mobile phone was recently introduced.

The company admitted that the take-up of the mobile gaming product was lower than expected. They said; ” It is becoming clear that we need to be very flexible in our product outputs and, on 21 June, we altered our format and scheduling to trial an alternative format in our earlier segment. This product is a more akin to our proven interactive gaming formats. We have gained a vast amount of knowledge from our current successful and profitable media partnerships and we are using this knowledge to the full, both in terms of potential cost savings and customer playing habits. Early signs are more encouraging with customers depositing funds during the show as well as to the website the following day.”

The company did warn however that revenues would take longer to collect because players would lose money over a greater time period; “The move from an instant play model to a more traditional game play, as well as increased first half costs, will have a material impact on our short term profit performance. As a result the Directors believe this will have a significant impact on the full year market expectations. The initial costs associated with producing and trialling new gaming formats are high, although as we amend the model to be more inline with our proven formats we are able to reduce costs significantly with immediate effect. The focus on developing new formats, moving technical platforms, migration offshore and improving our core offerings has been a major upheaval for the business; as a result costs have increased substantially in the short term. In altering the current format and scheduling as well driving more synergies between our brands we
are able to strip costs out from the business with immediate effect, thus protecting cash and the Company’s balance sheet.

NetPlay TV has several online Internet bingo, including Bingos.co.uk, Bingos.com, El Bingo and Bingo Friends.

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Police seize bingo machines from bingo hall in Alabama.

Gladys — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 09:45:48 +0000

16 people have been arrested in Alabama, USA, including a State Senator, when they protested against the seizure of bingo machines from a popular bingo hall by police. The Greenetrack bingo hall was the scene of the protest, which took place in a bid to stop state troopers from following orders from the Alabama Governor, who had decreed they should seize 800 electronic bingo machines. They blocked the entrance to the hall for 12 hours before the troopers decided to make the arrests.

The protest was mainly as the closure of Greenetrack will lead to 400 employees losing their jobs, and as the hall is in an area of high unemployment the chances of the staff quickly finding alternative jobs are quite remote. The Democratic State Senator Bobby Singleton of Greensboro was one of those arrested, and the Democratic nominee for governor was amongst the protestors. All of the 16 were released on a $1000 bond.

The majority of employees at the hall are black, leading black legislators to claim that the decision to close Greentrack has racial undertones, and so making this a big political issue.

Alabama’s Republican Governor, Bob Rily, believes that the electronic bingo machines are in fact illegal slot machines, which therefore contravene state laws on gambling and Internet bingo. He has been backed by John Tyson Jr, the gambling task force commander who has helped close more than 20 bingo halls in the last two months. Only Victoryland, the giant hall with more than 6000 electronic bingo machines in Macon County is still open, along with the three state-endorsed Indian casinos in Alabama.

There are currently 34 charity bingo halls in Alabama which, in line with Alabama state law, run bingo games as a charity fundraising purpose, and do not have electronic bingo.

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No merger for Party Bingo and bwin

Mon, 05 Jul 2010 08:52:42 +0000

There have been many rumours recently that a merger was on the cards between Party Bingo and bwin, but it has been confirmed that this will not be happening now. Party Gaming own Cheeky Bingo and Foxy Bingo, and have been in talks with bwin, the European sports gambling giant. If things had gone ahead as speculated it would have created the largest bingo online group in the world.

Hannes Androsch, bwin’s largest single shareholder and chairman of the company’s supervisory board, said that talks to merge the two companies have been abandoned; “In the end, the talks have not led to the desired outcome”.

Party Gaming bought Cashcade only last July but due to the increase in legislation in all European gambling markets all online gaming companies, in the bingo industry and associated markets, are expected to undergo a series of acquisitions and mergers in order to become bigger and stronger to ensure survival in these difficult times.

Bwin have said they are in talks with a ‘competent’ American company who’s goal is to end up with a 11 per cent stake in the online gambling company. At the moment bwin hardly feature in the bingo industry. It is believed that the San-Francisco based company has been chosen for strategic reasons, to help bwin enter the all-important American market when it opens up for online gambling.

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Scottish grandmother mugged after bingo

Tom — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 08:44:46 +0000

We all know that times are hard, but a thief in Scotland stooped very low this week when he mugged a 63 year old grandmother on her way home after a night at the bingo.

Margaret Craig from Tillydrone, Aberdeen had won £140 playing bingo, and had an additional £60 in her handbag. The pensioner said; “I was at the bingo and decided to walk home because it was such a nice night. I was going on to Portal Terrace when I heard someone running behind me. When I turned round, this guy started pulling my bag and said, ‘Give me it.’ I swore at him and said no but he kept pulling and pulling and we struggled.” The gran of four said the man then pointed a silver sharp object against her hand, which caused her to stumble. She added; ”I landed on the grass verge. That’s when he kicked me in the face. When he kicked me a second time, the strap broke and he ran away. I screamed and screamed. A guy came down and helped me.”

Mrs Craig was taken to hospital where she was treated for minor injuries, including a large bruise on her eye, before being released. Police are investigating the crime, Constable Duncan MacKintosh said; “This was a terrible attack on a lone woman. We are determined to find the person who was responsible.”

This just go to shows its some times safer playing online bingo in the comft of your own home.

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Bingo hall fighting to open

Gladys — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 08:24:42 +0000

A California bingo hall’s opening has been delayed again whilst the final decision is referred to the City Council.

Pop’s Bingo World was given approval to open a bingo hall on Willow Pass Road, Concord, California in April 2010. However, the Concord Blue Devils bingo hall, a local would-be rival, went to the city’s Planning Commission to lodge an appeal against the approval.

This is the second time there has been an approval followed by an appeal, and the final decision will now be made on 13th July by the City Council. The Blue Devils appeal asks that the city undertake a full environmental study on how the new bingo sites
would affect parking, traffic, crime and the provision of city services before issuing an approval.

The owners say though that the building was previously used as a gym for many years, so there is plenty of evidence as to the environmental impact of using the site.

There are 197 bingo halls in California at the moment. They must all operate to raise money for charity, although bingo hall operators are allowed to be for-profit organisations which hire out their equipment and hall to charities who want to operate bingo nights. Pop’s Bingo World shares their name with another bingo hall that is run in Richmond, Virginia.

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Two online bingo sites to close

Tom — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 09:09:11 +0000

The online bingo market in the UK is seen as a tough market, and with the constant addition of
new bingo sites combined with the present economic climate it is not really surprising that some sites will disappear.

It has been said that two sites, Bingo Fantasy and Bingo 777, will be closing at the end of the month and so are entering into their final week of operating. Neither site has sufficient funds to start an advertising campaign, which is not a cheap undertaking, nor are they supported by other sites on the same network.

The online bingo industry is constantly changing, and some of the largest players in the industry have had to join forces in order to maintain their position and success. Even software providers such as Virtue Fusion and Playtech are amalgamating, and if leading players like those are having to adapt to survive just think what it must be like for players at the other end of the scale.

It is believed that the company behind Bingo 777 and Bingo Fantasy is closing these sites down to concentrate on their online casino sites which are more profitable for them.

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Online bingo not legalised in Australia

Tom — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 09:01:36 +0000

Despite speculation that a change was in the air, and recommendations from a policy advisory board, legislators in Australia have decided not to legalise online bingo.

The panel had recommended that online bingo, as well as casino and poker games should be legal for Australians to play, but this advice was ignored by the Communications Minister, who believed that any potential benefits of allowing online gambling would be outweighed by the likely rise in problem gambling. This will surely effect the people who play bingo online.

Australia has one of the highest rates of problem gambling in the world, but experts believe this is related to the mixing of gambling and alcohol in Australian bars and the high number of slot machines, otherwise known as ‘pokies’. It is estimated that there are 160,000 problem gamblers in Australia.

Online gambling on bingo, casino and poker was banned by the 2001 Interactive Gambling Act, but as many Australians didn’t know that sites were illegal they continued to play on unlicensed sites.

The Communications Minister, Stephen Conroy, and the Families Minister, Jenny Macklin, both gave interviews where they said that the government had decided to ignore the advice of the Gambling Policy Board, an independent body who suggested that the tax and player protection benefits which could be gained from allowing online gambling would be beneficial.

Conroy said that the government would do their best to crack down on online operators who target Australians from overseas, and would talk to American legislators about how they passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, and how they tried to enforce what is widely seen as a badly drafted piece of legislation.

Recently there has been speculation that a few British companies were planning to acquire Australian gambling licences in advance of the hoped for change in legislation. William Hill were.

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YouTube to allow gambling adverts

Gladys — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 09:06:04 +0000

In a move that could be quite interesting to various parties YouTube, the popular video sharing website, has said that they will allow; “licensed entities located in England, Scotland, Wales, Italy, France or Spain” to run online gambling advertisements on YouTube videos, according to new advertising guidelines which have been posted on the site.

There will be some restrictions though, and a viewer will have to verify that they are 18 or older before they can view any content. Companies will be able to run advertising campaigns on their own channels as well as TouTube’s home page and video pages.

Google actually owns YouTube and over the last 2 years they have been slowly easing their once strict policy on gambling restrictions. In October 2008 Google lifted their Adwords ban on internet gambling advertising in the UK which saw a sudden flood of activity.

It is widely believed that Ladbrokes will be the first company to run a display advert on YouTube, although we are sure that many other companies will follow, as they attempt to introduce their brands to a new and so far untapped market.

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Gala Bingo restructure finalised

Tom — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 08:49:07 +0000

Its always good when a deal comes together, and when the deal in question has been going on for over a year the conclusion is definitely sweeter. The deal we’re referring to is the Gala Bingo restructure although some of their major investors have lost out financially. The largest ones are Cinven, Candover and Permira, Permira are the largest losers but between the 3 of them they have lost approximately £600 million.

Before they entered negotiations the gaming and bingo giant were believed to have around £2.7 billion of debt, but now it is believed to be roughly £1.9 billion – still a considerable sum in our eyes! The new owners, headed by Apollo Management have not only restructured the company’s debt but have also steered them away from administration.

The Chairman of the Gala Coral Group, Mr Goulden, believes it is a positive move and said; “Everyone believes it is the best offer on the table and everyone agrees it is the best thing for the company.”

He also said that Gala bingo will be unveilling a new board this week. It will have 4 new industry experts, to be nominated by the new shareholders, as well as Mr Goulden, Dominic Harrison, Gala’s existing Chief Executive and Gary Hughes, the Chief Financial Officer.

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Budget Announcement for Bingo

Jaymac — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 15:00:12 +0000

The bingo industry is on tenterhooks this morning whilst they wait for the new budget to be announced, with much speculation as to how it will affect them.

It is expected that there will be an increase in National Contributions and VAT, which will have a knock-on affect in other areas as this will lead to a general rise in costs. Hopefully gaming duty will not increase, so at least the impact of tax increases on the bingo industry will be on par with other industries.

Due to the present economic situation the Government needs to raise revenue, so tax cuts are not expected. Some people in the gaming industry believe this could be the time when gaming duty is levelled throughout the industry, and Gross Profits Tax raised to 20% for everyone, including bookmakers.

It is also feared that an increase in VAT could cause problems for the larger bingo clubs, particularly those that rent or lease their properties. As a large proportion of the income does not attract VAT, and the machine income is affected by GPT instead of VAT, the recoverable VAT from premises will drastically reduce, whilst the amount paid on top will increase.

On the other hand online bingo companies which offer their games to customers from off shore will probably not see any changes that will affect their revenue streams. However, the amount of taxation that is presently lost abroad has been noted by the Government, and new legislation to increase the tax burden on off shore online gaming companies is expected shortly. Instead of offering incentives to operators who operate in the UK it is a distinct possibility that off shore companies will face financial penalties instead.

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Mecca Bingo Club Hosts Charity Event

Victoria — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 11:36:44 +0000

If you’ve got a free space in your diary on Saturday then why not head down to the Mecca Bingo Club in Chester, which will be holding a Blooming Great Tea Party to raise funds for the Marie Curie Cancer Care charity.

There is a ‘Mad Hatters’ theme to the party, during which members will be offered cakes and drinks for £1, the money for which will be donated to the charity.

From Mecca Bingo Bernie Dullaghan said; “We are very excited to be holding a Blooming Great Tea Party to support our charity partnership with Marie Curie Cancer Care and hope that many of our club customers will come and join in the fun. The money raised from the tea party will allow more Marie Curie Nurses to provide free care to terminally ill people in their own homes.”

A community fundraiser for the Marie Curie charity, Siobhan Hefferman added; “We are really pleased that Mecca Bingo is holding a Blooming Great Tea Party. We’re asking everyone in the community to host their own Blooming Great Tea Party for Marie Curie Cancer Care this summer. It’s such an easy way to get together with friends or family.”

The company, which as well as Mecca Bingo also owns Rank Interactive and G Casinos, has set an overall fundraising target of £200,000, which would fund 10,000 hours of vital nursing care for terminally ill patients in their homes. Over 8,000 employees throughout the group will be taking part in a variety of activities for the campaign, which will last throughout the year. As well as acting as collectors for the charity they will take part in the Blooming Great Tea Party campiagn in June and July, hold other events and also organise various challenges, such as leg waxing and completing a marathon.

A spokesman for Mecca Bingo said; “It’s very important to us to ensure that we make a positive contribution to the communities in which we operate. Marie Curie is a fantastic cause and I’m very much looking forward to working with them over the coming year. Our employees and customers have set a great example through the work they have undertaken with Whizz-Kidz in 2008/9 and I have every confidence that we will exceed out 2010 fundraising target for Marie Curie.”

Tom Hughes-Hallett, the Chief Executive of Marie Curie Cancer Care added; “We are really looking forward to working with the whole of the team at the Rank Group over the coming year. I’m confident that the group’s employees and customers alike will rise to this wonderful challenge for 2010, and get their friends and families involved, knowing that their efforts will help terminally ill people spend their final days in the familiar surroundings of their own homes.”

Marie Curie nurses, for those not familiar with their work, provide free care to terminally ill patients in the comfort of their own homes, which means they can stay close to their loved ones. Mecca have a history of fundraising and last year managed to raise the grand total of £516,000 for the Whizz-Kidz charity, through Meccabingo.com and the Mecca Bingo clubs.
We hope they do just as well this year, and we think its fantastic that you can play bingo and help an important charity at the same time.

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EGaming Review award the bingo industry

mabel — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 12:20:39 +0000

Recently we told you about the bingo winners named at the Online Bingo Summit, and this week was the turn of the EGaming Review ceremony. This was held at London’s Old Billingsgate centre, with Olympic silver medal winner Steve Cram handing out the awards.

Playtech won the prestigious Bingo Supplier of the Year category through its Virtue Fusion product, which is a leading brand in the bingo industry. They beat Dragonfish, Parlay Entertainment and NYX Interactive to take the honour. This followed on from their awards at the Online Bingo Summit, where they took the honours for Best Online Bingo Innovation and Best Online Bingo Software. Mor Weizer, the CEO of Playtech said; “The EGR Awards are a prestigious new event in the industry’s calendar, so we are delighted Playtech have been recognised here with three separate awards. It really shows the strength of our products across the group. Being named Bingo Supplier of the Year is a fantastic endorsement and it is extremely satisfying as it comes straight after our double success at the Online Bingo Summit.”

The prize for Bingo Network of the Year was taken by Dragonfish, who beat Microgaming and Fusion Network.

Dragonfish made it a double when they scooped the award for WhiteLabel Partner of the Year. Neogames, who power Prime Scratchcards, were highly commended in the Software Rising Star of the Year category.

The Innovation in Bingo award was accepted by NYX Interactive, who edged out Cozy Games, Playtech and Alvin5, who had the consolation of being highly commended.

To the surprise of many G2 GTech who own St Minver, the bingo white label supplier, were not shortlisted for any bingo awards, although as a consolation prize they did win an award for Lottery Software Provider of the Year.

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Giant 888 expands again

Victoria — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 13:11:59 +0000

In a move which is sure to be viewed with great interest in the gaming world, 888 has agreed to purchase several assets from Real Dice Inc as it enters the world of social games. The deal will go ahead at a base price of $18 million, plus additional amounts which will be determined by the profit for 2011, and has been set up through a wholly owned subsidiary of the gaming giant.

888 will pay Real Dice $12 million in cash as soon as the deal is completed and an additional $6 once certain criteria have been met, connected to the mobile and social networking games before the end of December 2011. The additional profits based amount will be capped at $30 million, meaning the maximum amount payable by 888 will be $48 million.

The deal will see 888 acquiring the Mytopia social games development studio, providing them with many opportunities for the future. The development studio specialises in developing cross-platform social games for mobile handsets, smartphones and social networking platforms such as Facebook. 888 has said that Mytopia would form the cornerstone of its future social and gaming mobile strategy.

Part of the deal also sees 888 acquiring several games including Bingo Island 2, a Facebook application, a social poker application and a real-time multi-player mobile phone application for the Blackberry, Windows Mobile, iPhone, Android and J2ME handsets. Other assets include a technology platform for hosting and operating real-time social games and a software licence for Particle Code, a cross-platform application framework for mobile devices and tablets.

Gigi Levy, the CEO of 888 Holdings said; “This is a very exciting deal for 888 including the Internet bingo arm, and builds on our aim of providing a variety of entertainment destinations where people can enjoy a truly interactive experience on a multitude of platforms. Mytopia is one of the leading publishers of cross-platform social-games and this acquisition gives us an immediate footprint in the fast-growing social gaming arena, complementing our core offering and giving us access to millions of customers. “Improvements in mobile technology now mean more people are comfortable using applications on the move, and we expect significant growth in this area,” added Levy. “The acquisition extends 888’s reach and market share in the fast growing social networks and smart mobile devices, such as iPhone and Android powered handsets, and leaves us well positioned to take advantage of this growth.”

The assets in consideration did make an unaudited loss for the period ending December 31st 2009, but their future value through the opportunites they present are significant.

The CEO of Real Dice, Guy Ben-Artzi said; “888 understands where the market is going. Mytopia will thrive with 888’s infrastructure and expertise behind it and bring to 888 new revenue streams from virtual goods and micro-transactions on social networks and mobile devices. We both believe that an advanced social gaming creative and operational capability, along with technology to move faster in critical smartphone and emerging platforms like iPad, is the best way to connect with the next-generation of players.”

While the assets in consideration made an unaudited loss for the period ending December 31st 2009, their future value through the opportunities they present are significant. The deal is said to be subject to several conditions.

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NYX Interactive Acquire Cashball

Wed, 16 Jun 2010 08:34:50 +0000

NYX Interactive, the Swedish online bingo software provider have just completed the purchase of Bingo network Cashball, one of the most innovative network operators, from Bonnier Lottery.

Steffan Lindgren, the CEO of NYX was extremely pleased with the deal and said; “In addition to being a transaction, in financial terms, it is also an acknowledgement that we have chosen the right direction – that allows Nyx to create greater benefits and value for our customers. We will be able to deliver customer projects and value added services more rapidly than ever. We have a unique market position that will create a huge opportunity for existing customers and new bingo sites for any operator who wants to connect to the Cashball network. The Cashball services and the NYX Rapid Platform together create a framework for operators to be proactive against the rapidly changing market and add content that they know their players want.”

He added “Bonnier Lottery sees the value in this approach and will continue be a close partner to Cashball and NYX Interactive. Their focus will remain on the parts of the business that are closer to Bonniers core values such as distribution, marketing channels, content and brands.”

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Former Bingo Club Fights to Avoid Demolition

Victoria — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 08:47:24 +0000

Many former bingo clubs have been axed in recent years, but one that is still hanging on is the former Opera House in Workington. The site has been under debate for some time, and has just been given a stay of execution from plans to demolish it whilst councillors decide its future.

The site was originally called the Queen’s Jubilee Hall and Opera Club and could hold more than 1300 people when it opened in the late 1800’s. The small theatre unfortunately burnt down in 1927 and was then rebuilt as a cine-theatre. In 1958 Robert Graves changed the building to a bingo hall after there was a fall in demand for cinemas. In 2004 Opera Bingo moved out and the building has mostly been empty since then.

The owners of the building, Graves (Cumberland) Ltd want to demolish the Coopers Walk building, along with 3 adjoining shops, and build new retail units and apartments in their place. In a campaign against these plans a petition with 117 names on it has been handed in to the council, and a Facebook page has approximately 1000 members.

Members of Allerdale’s development panel paid a visit to the site and then stated that they were looking to keep the building as an entertainment venue. They agreed to delay any decision on the demolition plans for 3 months, in which time the campaigners could put together a detailed rescue package for the building.

Councillor John Armstrong said; “It is a quality building and there is nowhere in West Cumbria quite like it. It has got to be saved for the people of Workington and West Cumbria and we need to see if there is any other way to preserve it.”

Councillor Peter Kendall added; “We need facilities like this in the area and we need to promote arts and leisure in the heart of the town centre of Workington so it must be kept.”

Councillor Allan Caine commented; “We should give it three months to see if anybody comes forward to restore it.”

Councillor Alan Smith said; “It is a big area and a lot of work needs to be done with it.”

Due to the size of the site it is believed there will be limited interest in it. 3 months is also thought to be a short timescale for another plan to be submitted. The other shops that would be demolished are the British Heart Foundation shop, Supernews and the former Card Warehouse shop. In turn 9 shops and 15 apartments would be built, so it would lead to a significant change in the nature of the area.

We all love internet bingo but we have to keep the heritage of our live bingo halls across the UK, they seem to be taking them down faster than they are gowing up. Which is worrying times for the live bingo halls.

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Bingo Caller gets an Award

mabel — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 08:06:26 +0000

Blanche Gibbs, a 78 year old bingo caller, has been fund raising for the last 11 years and has now been officially recognised for her work. Over this time she has managed to raise more than £30,000, and has been called a ‘community star’ for her efforts.

Mrs Gibbs has organised a string of charity nights in Ludham Church near Great Yarmouth, where people take part in bingo games and she acts as the bingo caller. In this time she has helped the Air Ambulance and several charities, voluntary groups and schools.

Her charity work began in August 1999 when she decided to raise funds for the Air Ambulance, following an incident where a young boy was knocked down by a car in Stalham. “When I started 11 years ago I never thought I would still be going today” she said, but since that first event she has organised over 100 bingo nights. Mrs Gibbs buys all the prizes herself as well as calling the numbers, and she has had up to 50 people at her nights.

This week her work was officially recognised by Norman Lamb, the MP for North Norfolk, who presented her with a MP’s Heroes Award. He also praised her work, saying; “She is a remarkable woman and a real star. She is an absolute example to us all for putting others before herself – while entertaining a lot of people on the way.”

Although many people her age and younger would be looking for an easy life as the years advance Mrs Gibbs has a different view on things, and says; “I hope to keep going until I am 100 at least. The reason I think the bingo nights are popular is because it gives people somewhere to go and socialise and have fun.” Her next charity event will be on 22nd June, and is again hoping for a good turnout.

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Bingo Summit Awards Announced

Fri, 11 Jun 2010 13:26:40 +0000

The 5th Annual Online Bingo Summit has just taken place and there are some very happy bingo operators celebrating the results. This prestigious event was held at the Park Plaza Victoria in London, and was attended by many leaders in the industry, as not only was there an award ceremony but also a series of talks from leading names, as well as the all important party afterwards.

The winner for the highly sought after ‘Online Bingo Operator 2010′ was Tombola, who beat off the other nominated operators of Foxy Bingo, Wink Bingo and Paddy Power.

Another hotly contested category was for ‘Best Newcomer 2010′. The nominations were for Red Bus Bingo, Tea & Bingo, Tasty Bingo, Hollywood Bingo and Caesars Bingo. All sites have performed well and had some excellent promotions, but Tea & Bingo took the honours, possibly gaining an edge from their length of operation.

The award for ‘Online Bingo Software’ is always an important one in this very competitive field, and Virtue Fusion ended up with this, beating off the other nominees of Parlay Entertainment, Dragonfish, Cozy Games, Nyx Interactive and Gamesys. Virtue Fusion also took the award for ‘Best Online Bingo Innovation 2010′ for Deal or No Deal.

Bingoport walked away with the prize for ‘Best Online Bingo Information Portal 2010′, Income Access were the winners in the ‘Best Bingo Affiliate Programme 2010′, and in an increasingly growing field Foxy Bingo took first place in the ‘Best Marketing Campaign 2010′ with ‘The One That You Want’

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100 Years Old and still Playing Bingo

Victoria — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 13:11:43 +0000

It’s been said that bingo is a game for all ages, and Lydia Clark is living proof of this, as the great-grandmother has just celebrated her 100th birthday with a game of bingo.

To celebrate her centenary birthday she had a family party, and then went to her local bingo club with 50 of her bingo friends. She plays at the day centre at Woodside House, Woodside Park High Road in North London, and her and her friends were joined by Eddie Griffiths, the Major for Haringey. He presented Mrs Clark with a pair of whiskey tumblers, embossed with the Haringey Council logo, and said; “It is a great privilege to see somebody who is not only 100 but an active 100 as well.”

He was referring to the fact that Mrs Clark was still ballroom dancing at 90, for which birthday she celebrated with a trip to the London Eye. She visits the club once a week to catch up with her friends and play bingo. She lost her husband Herbert in 1977 and never re-married. When asked by Councillor Griffiths what had kept her going she replied; “Just accept things and don’t worry about them. And have a glass of sherry now and then when playing internet bingo.”

Mrs Clark, a mother of four, was 29 when the Second World War started, and whilst her husband joined the army she stayed at home with the children. She said; “I met my husband when I was 18, and I liked him because he was with it. I couldn’t work during the war because I had babies. I’ve got a good memory, and I’ve always been positive. I never got depressed.” In later years they ran a newsagents together in Plamers Green, although Mrs Clark is originally from Edmonton.

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Irish Government decision on gaming imminent

Jaymac — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 08:39:10 +0000

We’ve already seen announcements from France, Spain and Norway this month regarding new legislation on online and land-based gaming and it looks like Ireland will soon join this club. They have been carrying out a review for some time which could lead to the creation of a significant number of jobs, and it is believed a decision will soon be made regarding an outdated law.

The law dates back to 1956 and is the Gaming and Lotteries Act. In its present state this prevents Ireland from introducing a new regime which would help the country from becoming an important e-commerce hub for the global online-casino industry. DKM Consultants have carried out a study which indicates that a change in legislation could create between 5000 and 8000 jobs, with an average pay of €40,000 per year. These would include web developers, accountants, e-commerce professionals, business analysts and mathematicians.

The law has been under debate for some time, and it is feared that if the delays in amending it continue then other countries may capitalise instead. A lot is at stake, as if Ireland managed to take just a 5% share of the global online casino business it would be worth €2.2 billion.

A spokesman for the Department of Justice said that Dermot Ahern, the Minister for Justice, initiated a major review of gambling on 1st May. He said; “The review will provide Government with options for a new and comprehensive legal and organisational framework governing the gambling architecture in the State, including remote gambling and
online bingo. Three important considerations, which are the hallmark of most well-regulated gambling codes, inform the review.” These are the protection of the young and vulnerable, that gambling should be kept crime-free, and that all aspects of gambling should be fairly and openly conducted.

“Following the settling of policy in relation to a new gambling architecture for the State, legislative proposals will be published in the normal course,” the spokesman said. He confirmed that the consultation phase of the review had been completed, and that since 1st May material on the department’s website had been viewed more than 5000 times, with over 50 face-to-face meetings and 71 submissions.

This is good news for certain businesses, including betting firms and online casinos and new bingo sites, although news that the Government is also considering levying a tax on online betting is a cause for concern for local betting firms such as Boyle Sports and Paddy Power. Paddy Power of Paddy Power Bookmakers said that a speech Taoiseach Brian Cowen TD gave to the horse-racing industry recently suggested the industry would receive financial support into the future through taxes on online betting.

Paddy Power currently employ 700 people in Tallaght, and are hoping to create an additional 350 jobs over the next 3 years. A spokesman said; “Our concern is that of the Top 10 bookies in Ireland, ourselves and Boyle Sports are the only two actually based here. We have no problem paying an online betting tax as long as it is enforceable and others pay it, too. As employers in Ireland this is a concern. We will have to look at the future of the company. There is an opportunity here. We are probably the most successful and largest indigenous e-commerce company in Ireland. We are a smart-economy company and as we grow internationally we will create more employment in Ireland. But we are obviously concerned that our successful business model is under threat with this new tax.”

Their concern is that less than 10% of bets they take are do to with horse racing, so therefore feel that these bets should not be affected by online tax. They added that over the last 10 years approximately €540m have been given to the horse-racing industry from betting taxes.

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Gala Coral gets a bronze in Corporate Responsibility Index

Jaymac — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 09:15:15 +0000

The Gala Coral Group, one of the leading gambling operators in Europe who operate UK bingo website Gala Bingo and own the bingo clubs of the same name in the UK, are extremely proud to have been awarded a Bronze in Business in the Community’s 2009 Corporate Responsibility Index.

The Index is usually seen as the most important voluntary benchmark of corporate responsibility in the UK, so it is a great honour to be recognised by it. The Gala Coral group won it’s award for their leading position on responsible gambling, as well as their award-winning partnership with Sue Ryder Care and their strategy on environmental care.

The Index helps companies in various fields to integrate and improve their business operations, by providing a dedicated approach to managing, measuring and reporting on business impacts in society and on the environment. To gain a Bronze is a reflection of the Group’s commitment to corporate responsibility across all of its business, which includes brands such as Gala Bingo, Gala Casinos, Coral bookmakers and Eurobet. Gala operates both live and online bingo and gambling parlours.

The Chief Executive of the Gala Coral Group, Dominic Harrison, said; “We’re delighted to have been included in the Corporate Responsibility Index for the first time and we are aiming higher as we continue to work on clear corporate responsibility goals. We were highly commended for our strong community partnerships where we have worked hard to raise over £1m for Sue Ryder Care. We also gained accolades for developing our strategy on environmental stewardship, where we have set and exceeded clear targets on carbon reduction.” He added: “Business in the Community also recognised our leading relationships with key stakeholders in the field of responsible gambling which remains an important area of focus for the Group as well as for our transparency on Corporate Responsibility reporting.”

The Chief Executive for Business in the Community, Stephen Howard, said; “I congratulate Gala Coral on achieving Bronze in the 2009 Business in the Community Corporate Responsibility Index. Companies participating in the Index may be at different stages of their responsible business journey, but they have all demonstrated that they take these issues seriously and are leading the field in ensuring this is just how they do business. We believe this is imperative if we are to strengthen and stabilise our businesses and economy.”

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Chief Executive of Dragonfish leaves

mabel — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 11:23:06 +0000

In a sudden announcement it has been revealed that Gabi Campos, who was the Chief Executive of Dragonfish, the business-to-business division of 888, has left the company to pursue his own personal projects. He will be replaced by Gigi Levy, the 888 Chief Executive until a replacement is found, which is expected to be announced within the next month.

Dragonfish is the bingo software provider to several large online bingo brands, including Costa Bingo, Think Bingo, Wink Bingo, Foxy Bingo and the recently launched Bingoyard. It was launched in March 2009 with Campos in charge. He had been in the company for nearly 2 years then, and had overseen the acquisition of Globalcom, the software provider to brands such as Mirror Bingo, Bingo Scotland and Foxy Bingo. Dragonfish was conceived to provide a business-to-business service to media companies who wanted to enter the bingo, casino, sportsbook and poker world but with lower overheads. Dragonfish was launched at the same time as a deal to power the Racing Post’s online gambling operations was announced.

An unidentified source who has knowledge of 888’s operations has said; “The relationship between Gabi and Gigi seems to have become increasingly strained, especially as Dragonfish is perceived as the only growth area of the business. Gabi definitely saw it as his own kingdom and would have liked to have eventually seen it spun-off. In the end it was his personal decision to leave. It definitely didn’t help that 888 failed to buy both GTS and Cashcade, both of which they were in a position to execute and then didn’t do so. There was a feeling that these two could have been key deals and to lose them to Playtech and Party doesn’t look good to the City, especially at a time when profits are dropping. But you should remember that 888 is hugely cash generative and it would be silly to write them off.”

We recently reported how 888 had surprised the City with a profits warning, although at the same time they said that internet bingo was the shining light in an otherwise gloomy report.

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Spain to Cut Down on Gambling

Victoria — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 10:05:48 +0000

Following on from new legislation in France regarding gambling Spain has also announced it will be introducing new methods which aim to target problem gambling.

We’re used to seeing health warnings on packets of cigarettes, but it has now been said that slot machines in Catalonia will also carry warnings, advising players that if they play for too long then the machines may turn themselves off. This is part of a pioneering new project that aims to tackle problem gambling. Although not confirmed it is believed that the machines will flash a message every 30 minutes, making players aware of how long they have been on the machines. In an even stricter move it has been said that one machine, known as ‘video lottery’ and installed in bingo clubs throughout Spain, has actually been programmed to switch itself off after 90 minutes of continuous use by one player.

These measures show some similarities to new legislation recently introduced in France, which means that online gaming operators must show a player how much money they have staked in a session, as well as how long they have been playing for. The French legislation though appears to benefit the government more than the players, as under the new policies they will receive more tax. It also seems to be somewhat a protectionist policy, as it means that overseas operators will find it difficult to offer their services within France, leaving a clear way for French operators to gain an advantage and so keep a larger portion of money within the French economy.

Most operators within the internet bingo industry already work with organisations such as Gamcare to monitor and also help those who feel that gambling is more of a pastime, whilst these latest reports seem to indicate that certain European governments are taking a more proactive approach in an attempt to restrict players. Organisations like Gamcare and the GREaT Foundation have done much research in the field and this, combined with their years of experience, means they are an effective force, unlike some of the measures introduced by governments which do not seem to be particularly well thought out.

The measures being considered by Spain may flash several warnings to a player when playing on sites such as Red Bus Bingo, and even lead to the machine switching itself off, but there is nothing to stop a player simply changing to another machine. Many people believe it is more beneficial to educate both operators and society in general so that they can spot the signs of problem gambling, and hopefully nip any potential problems in the bud before a person becomes addicted.

The problem with much of the new legislation seems to be that it is being introduced by bureaucrats, instead of by people who have experience within the gambling industry. It has been suggested that this is an ideal time for bingo operators of all countries to form an online bingo association to help shape future legislation which would truly be beneficial to all members of the community, instead of being mostly in place to line the pockets of a fortunate few.

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Mecca Bingo Club Converted to Supermarket

Victoria — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 08:28:42 +0000

It seems that nearly every week we are coming across stories about old bingo clubs being converted for another use, and this week it’s the turn of the former Mecca Bingo club in Toxteth to get a new lease of life.

After gaining support from the government Tesco will go ahead with what will be the largest supermarket in Liverpool. This will be built on the former Mecca Bingo site, and is rumoured to be the largest private investment in the area since the notorious Toxteth riots in 1981.

The plans were originally approved by the planning committee last February, but were later amended by Tesco after several concerns were raised. One of the main fears was that the development would lead to the loss of the Park Road post office, although these fears were put to rest with the news that the revised plans included a larger, self-contained post office, as well as approximately 530 parking spaces.

The government also confirmed that under the Shopping and Departure Directives legislation they would not be objecting to the project. Tesco will be contributing £600,000 for upgrade works and the new Post Office. They have also promised to set up a job guarantee scheme to cater for local unemployed people, and it is hoped that approximately 500 jobs will be created out of the works.

As the government has given it’s approval it is expected that the final sign-off, to be given by Liverpool council’s planning committee, will be just a formaility. The Deputy Council Leader, Paul Brant, was very pleased at the news, and said; “This will be a major boost to the Liverpool economy and bring in much-needed jobs and training for people. It will also bring back to life this part of Park Road. The ward councilors and the council are fully supportive of this project and pledge to make it a success for the community of Liverpool and Tesco.”

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New bingo and gaming rules a possibility

Gladys — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 09:49:24 +0000

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Gambling Commission are discussing measures that may lead to online bingo and gaming operators based overseas seeing huge changes to the current remote licensing laws and approved ‘White List’ of countries allowed to advertise in the UK. In January the DCMS produced a report on current legislation, and also commissioned a feasibility report to see how any changes to existing legislation would impact on the industry, and if it would lead to greater protection for consumers. The latest report not only sets out the proposed changes but also asks for feedback on how the proposed changes to the Licence Conditions and Code of Practice (LCCP) would affect the online bingo and gaming industry.

Present legislation for gaming and online bingo sites aims to make sure that sites which target the UK market have specified measures in place. Amongst others they have to report irregular betting and any suspicions of organized crime to the authorities, do their best to prevent irregular betting, protect vulnerable adults and underage people, test games for fairness, have a clear procedure for any complaints, and ensure that their terms and conditions are clearly displayed so that players can easily refer to them.

At the moment only sites that have their equipment based in the UK have to abide by license regulations. Other remote gambling sites in areas which are covered by the White List, including Alderney, the Isle of Man, Antigua and Barbuda, as well as those in certain European countries, such as Gibraltar (Silk Bingo, RedBus Bingo, 888 ladies), are allowed to advertise in the UK.

Thanks to the influx of new bingo and gaming sites, as well as the rapid increase in remote gambling, certain changes are needed in the industry, especially as some sites which are advertising in the UK are neither on the White List nor licensed in the UK. Not all, but certainly some of these UK bingo sites, offer no protection to the consumer and do not help deal with problem gamblers as legitimate sites do. This unbalanced system is overdue for an overhaul, and it is expected that changes will lead to a more consistent standard of regulations that will apply to all bingo and gaming sites that target the UK market.

At the end of the day all sites should put the consumer first, and we welcome any legislation that will offer a greater degree of protection for all players, as well as dividing the cost of upholding regulations between all sites that operate in the UK market which would be a fairer way of doing things.

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Norway acts against unlicenced gambling operators

Tom — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 09:55:03 +0000

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It seems a few countries are trying to put their foot down regarding gambling, both on-line and off-line, and Norway has made it’s feelings clear as it will now block financial transactions in a move to prevent it’s citizens from using unlicensed foreign gambling operators.

The new law will prohibit banks from allowing transactions between Norwegian consumers and gambling operators, irregardless of whether the consumers are located in Norway or elsewhere.

What has upset many people though is the fact that if you a foreign betting operator you cannot obtain a Norwegian gambling licence, so therefore you are classified as an unlicenced operator and there is nothing you can do about this.

Norway isn’t part of the EU but is a member of the EC, and so has to subscribe to EU principles and trade laws. One of these is the freedom to offer services, though in this case Norway has decided to ignore the same rules they are signed up to protect. They have stated they are acting to prevent crime, fraud and gambling addiction, although there is no firm evidence that blocking licenced EU operators achieves this.

The opposite view is that, by reducing the legal options available to Norwegian players, some will be pushed towards unlicenced and illegal gambling operators, especially as the legal options are quite limited in terms of value and quality. There are currently 2 state-operators in Norway, Rikstoto and Norsk Tipping, which are exempt from the transaction ban, though many consider them to be inferior to outside operators.

Many people in the industry believe that this move is a poorly veiled attempt to boost the profits and status of the national monopolies, rather than looking after the consumer. This is a potential blow to players who will now be deprived of a free choice, but it will be interesting to see how effective this new law actually is.

Brought to you by London Bingo News

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Bingo does well for 888

mabel — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 10:07:20 +0000

888 is a big player in the world of online gaming & internet gambling, but that has not prevented it from having to issue a profits warning. On a positive note, 888’s online bingo operations was a bright spot amidst the doom and gloom of their earnings warning.

Shares in the 888 company dropped 20% in early trading, falling to 55.5p which valued the company less than £200 million. A spokesman for 888 holdings said they had “revised its outlook for the remainder of the year and now expects profit to be significantly lower than previous market expectations”.

The company has seen it’s online poker sites suffer a huge fall in player numbers; real money ring game players falling 18% from January to May. 888 attributed this though to a general decline in player numbers throughout the online poker industry, and not to a decline in numbers for just their poker brands. They also felt that the weak euro and sterling against the dollar contributed to a decline in profitability, as did the forthcoming World Cup.

In contrast to this though – bingo, which includes wholly owned brands 888 ladies Bingo, Posh Bingo and Wink Bingo, and the software behind sites such as Think Bingo, Foxy Bingo, UK Bingo and Bingo Ireland has showed good results in the internet bingo market, and had avoided what 888 call a “a difficult trading environment”.

This news is bound to increase pressure on Gigi Levy, the Chief executive who was appointed in January 2007 and has since seen shares in the Gibraltar-based company suffer a sharp decline. Analysts believe the company is now ripe for a takeover, naming Ladbrokes and Bwin as possible candidates. One analyst said: “None of this should have been a big surprise to the market but we think Gigi is reducing expectations now so that the company is re-rated and the share price gains some upward momentum, rather than constantly drifting downward.”

Despite all this, 888 stated that they believe the online gaming industry would continue to consolidate and they are well placed to make acquisitions.

Brought to you by London Bingo News

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Bingo Club to be demolished by Aldi

Gladys — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 08:49:54 +0000

There are many historic bingo clubs scattered around the UK, and the news that another is to be demolished has got local residents up in arms according to the Blackpool Gazette. The controversy is surrounding an Art Deco building, which dates back to 1934, and was formerly the Orion Bingo Hall on Crescent Street, Cleveleys. Workman have started to tear down the building.

Wyre Council Planning Committee granted permission to Aldi, the supermarket chain, to knock down the building and build a new 15,000 square foot retail unit, although some admirers of the historic building had called for it to be listed and therefore protected from such acts. The affair has led to conflicting views as some traders believed the building, which was originally an Odeon Cinema, should have been demolished and a multi-storey car park erected in it’s place.

Martin Hunns, the Chairman of Cleveleys Traders Association, said: “The traders are on a downer, we need a car park in Cleveleys not another supermarket. There’s already an Aldi two minutes away in Fleetwood. It’s very frustrating. Cleveleys is desperate for a car park and that would have been an ideal site but Wyre Council said it was too dear to buy. We have gone for years about parking in Cleveleys. All this money has been spent on this beautiful promenade but people are being turned away because there is nowhere to park.”

A local resident however was pleased with the decision and neither wants the building to be preserved or sees the need of a car park: “The demolition has not outraged residents and traders only SOME of them. The whole block is an eyesore and its great that it will be demolished. It is a pity the old post office counter cannot go along with it. On the parking front, there is plenty of space around the streets of Cleveleys (I have lived here over 25 years and have never had a problem parking – and I am neither a user nor abuser of the blue badge scheme). IMHO the largest amount of parking space is taken up by the car showroom on Bispham Road near to Victoria Road. Because there are very little parking restrictions on some of the surrounding streets the garage owner parks his vehicles for sale there for days and weeks on end. Bring in one hour parking throughout the area during daytime and there would be many more places available.”

Peter Gibson, the leader of Wyre Council, commented: “Our planning committee can only look at what is in front of them. I’m sure somebody would have had something to say if we had bought the land with council tax money, we have to be very careful. Cleveleys is a booming town and that brings its own issues with car parking. We have no plans at the moment to change car parking in Cleveleys but it’s something that we are always willing to look at.”

It’s always sad to watch a piece of history disappear, and although we are always pleased to report when an old hall is preserved, this is one battle which sadly was not won.

Brought to you by London Bingo Bonus

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New Bingo Sites of the Month – June – Giggle Bingo

mabel — Mon, 31 May 2010 21:53:30 +0000

Giving £5 GBP free and a £200 GBP match bonus up to £200 GBP, Giggle Bingo has been named London Bingo’s new bingo site of the month for June 2010. Giggle Bingo joins WilliamHill Bingo as the only new bingo sites to be featured as bingo room of the month at London Bingo.

“Of all the Microgaming Internet bingo sites, Giggle Bingo is the most player friendly and finest bingo room of the bunch. The selection of bingo games, the generous double match bingo bonus, and the abundance of daily, weekly, and monthly bingo room promotions makes Giggle Bingo an easy and natural fit as one of our bingo rooms of the month. We’re proud to welcome GiggleBingo to our family.”

Players who are new to Giggle Bingo will receive 5 free on signup, and can also get a 200% up to £200 bonus when making a first time deposit. When depositing to Giggle Bingo, players can fund their bingo accounts with a full selection of credit and/or debit cards, as well as through Postepay, Moneybookers, NETeller, prepaid credit cards, cheque, and bank transfers.

Controversial plans for Bingo Club dropped

Victoria — Wed, 26 May 2010 10:58:18 +0000

Residents in Upper Norwood, South London are celebrating this week after hearing that, after a long running battle, disputed plans concerning an old Gala Bingo Club have been dropped.

The bingo site in Crystal Palace was bought by Kingsway International Christian Centre (KICC) in May 2009. The Christian organisation were located in Wimbledon but wanted to move, and believed their plans would lead to spiritual development of local residents, as they would be providing training and counselling.

The group outbid City Screen, the independent chain behind Clapham Picturehouse and the Brixton Roxy for the site, which led to protests by residents who wanted something instead which would provide them with jobs and revenue. The closure of the Gala Bingo Club had badly affected the local community as it provided jobs for many people, and the locals felt they needed something to help them financially in it’s place.

Such was the strength of feelings about the proposed church move that thousands of protest letters were sent to Bromley Council in the Picture Palace Campaign, claiming that the area had already suffered enough with the clubs closure and they wanted a cinema to open in the old club. They branded the proposed application unneighbourly and arrogant, and felt that parking would become a major problem if it went ahead.

On 17th December the application was doomed when Bromley Council Planning Committee Chairman Gordon Jenkins used his casting vote to refuse the application. At the same meeting John Getgood, a Committee Councillor said; “There is nothing wrong with another church coming into the area. The problem with this one is that it is being imposed on the community. This is a wandering tribe looking for a home. Crystal Palace is the wrong place for it.”

A representative of Kingsway, Bhavash Vashi, from architects Broadway Malyan, confirmed the KICC had dropped their plans, saying: “I can confirm my clients are not going to appeal the decision. They haven’t decided what to do with the building but are looking into the possibility of turning it into an entertainment venue.”

Annabel Sidney, The Picture Palace Campaign chairwoman said: “The Picture Palace Campaign welcomes the Kingsway’s recognition that an entertainment use is best. We would appreciate an opportunity to work with the church so any future developments are discussed with the whole community in mind. Meanwhile, we will continue to campaign for a local cinema and strongly feel that this is the best possible location for this. Moreover, it is key to the economic, social, cultural and physical regeneration of Church Road and the entire district centre.”

Vice-chairwoman of the Crystal Palace Chamber of Commerce, Sue Nagle said: “I am glad KICC has accepted that it is not practical to run the building as a church, and I hope they can find it in their hearts to allow the cinema company to buy it for the benefit of the community.”

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£42.5 million refund for Rank

Victoria — Tue, 25 May 2010 12:32:24 +0000

Rank, the owners of Mecca Bingo and the Grosvenor Casino brands – which is amongst the largest providers of UK bingo games, are said to be celebrating today as they’ve reportedly received a £42.5 refund from HM Customs and Revenue in relation to overpaid VAT. This consists of £16.1 million for VAT paid on main session bingo fees from 2004 to 2009, and £26.4 million for VAT paid on amusement machines from 2002 to 2005. The repayment follows a number of successful rulings, both in the High Court and the Tribunal Tax Chambers.

The first case Rank brought was in relation to the double taxation that bingo clubs were subject to. Operators had to pay bingo duty and VAT on the fees taken in bingo games & sessions, but Mecca said that VAT should not be charged.

The refund claim for the second case started as jackpot machines were subject to VAT, and fixed odd betting machines prior to 2005 weren’t. Rank said that the VAT obligations contravened the European Union principle of fiscal neutrality, basically that as the machines were similar they should be treated the same as far as VAT was concerned. The tribunal ruled in their favour, agreed that they were similar and therefore the jackpot machines should not have been subject to VAT.

Deloitte gave advice to Rank in both cases, and always believed that they would win. Tony McClenaghan, a Senior Tax Partner for the company said; “This is a very welcome decision following on from earlier victories at the Tribunal and in the High Court. We have always been confident that there was a breach of fiscal neutrality in the differential treatment of the relevant gaming machines and we welcome the Tribunal’s confirmation of this fact. Taxpayers affected by this decision should now consider making claims for overpaid VAT.”

HMRC have appealed the rulings to the European Court of Justice. This is expected to be heard some time next year, although it is not thought likely to succeed. Rank must be keeping it’s fingers crossed on this, as if the HMRC were to overturn the original verdicts then they would have to return the payment, and to add salt to their wounds would also have to pay interest on this.

In the present climate a £42.5 million refund is a welcome gift indeed, and it will be interesting to see if any of this windfall trickles down to Mecca Bingo in any way.

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The National Bingo Game Association launches National Cash

Victoria — Sun, 23 May 2010 13:03:30 +0000

For those of you unfamiliar with the name, the National Bingo Game Association works with leading bingo operators to offer games of bingo with massive prizes. They deal with land based bingo halls and basically use the total number of tickets sold, across all clubs, to generate a total prize fund. This happens twice a day, every day of the week for 364 days of the year, which is a mammoth undertaking.

The National Bingo Game has been operating now since 1986 and the majority of regional and national bingo chains take place, including well known names such as Mecca Bingo, Buckingham Bingo and Beacon Bingo. The prize varies according to the day and time; from Sunday to Friday afternoons for example the prize can reach up to £5000, whereas on a Saturday afternoon it can reach £10,000. If you strike it lucky in an evening session then you’ll be even more pleased – as Monday to Thursday evenings the prize is up to £20,000, increasing to £25,000 Friday to Sunday. The idea behind the game is very straight forward, to be a winner you have to call house on the least number of calls throughout all participating halls.

It is said that the introduction of the National Game back in 1986 gave a fresh burst of life to bingo, and it will be interesting to see how their latest move, the launch of their new linked game, National Cash, performs. Bingo hall players, for just a £1 stake, will be able to play for a £5000 jackpot, twice a day, every day. To win the jackpot players have to call house in 45 numbers or less. However, if no-one crosses off all of their numbers within the 45 maximum, the game will continue until one player in each of the halls linked to National House calls house to claim a prize.

National Cash has the honour to be the first wide area mechanised cash bingo game in the UK. Previously, before the installation of this new technology, less than 30 bingo halls could link up, whereas now up to 250 UK bingo halls are said to be looking to participate.

Bingo halls have faced a tough time of things lately, but this is another move that could lead to a comeback and rise in popularity.

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More bingo in Missouri

Jaymac — Sun, 23 May 2010 12:53:57 +0000

For those of you planning an overseas holiday in the future you’ll be pleased to hear that bingo in Missouri may soon become a more regular event, following a recent bill in the southern US state which has just been approved.

Since the mid 1990s the number of buildings which are licenced to hold bingo games has fallen by a massive 50%, and bingo hall owners are hoping that the new legislation will enable them to be more competitive when compared to casinos and other gambling entertainment. At the moment bingo halls, or parlors as they are called there, are only allowed to have games once a week, which many have seen as too restrictive. The changes being asked for would mean that halls could offer games twice a week, as well as being able to open earlier and close later, which should lead to increased income.

Bingo halls in Missouri can only be operated by a limited type of organisations, namely charitable, veteran, fraternal, religious and service, and this is not likely to change. However, US bingo players, as well as UK Bingo players alike can get $20 free to try Cyber Bingo on top of a 500% bonus up to $250. Click here to play at US bingo site Cyber Bingo now.

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Bingo battle in Alabama

Jaymac — Sat, 22 May 2010 11:53:06 +0000

People in Alabama can enjoy playing electronic bingo at the moment, but a huge row in the middle of America’s Bible belt may put a stop to this in the near future.

Alabama has several bingo casinos, including the massive Victoryland which is the largest with 6,000 machines. Of late though there have been several raids leading to the closure of several casinos. Even the FBI are involved, carrying out a public corruption probe. The matter is made more complicated by the fact that the bingo casinos were authorised by the local counties to provide slots and bingo games and thus have the legal right to operate. In most states in the US bingo is covered under either a casino license or a small games of chance license.

The problem is that, although they provide jobs and tax revenue, Alabama is a very religious area, and many feel that these casinos lead to corruption. Bob Riley, the Governor for Alabama said; Alabama is being threatened by bingo. I think one of the biggest threats we have in the state today is the corruptive nature of what gambling does to a state. We have said this ever since we started this. This is not about gambling as much as it is about corruption.”

Stan Hubbard, the Gaming Director of Victoryland has a different view on things; “Overall, it’s just like any other industry. It is like a car manufacturing plant with respect to what it means to the community. [In] this particular community, when there is no industry, it’s the largest private employer in this county. However he freely admits “There are some conservative religious elements that are antigambling of any kind and we respect that.”

Victoryland has no roulette or blackjack, just slot type machines which are all for electronic bingo, the only type of gambling that is legal in the state. There are 3 casinos in the state that are safe as these are on federal land, and are run by Native Americans. At the moment the state is looking into new laws, which would allow state residents vote to see if they wish to keep the bingo casinos, which not only provide thousands of jobs but also could provide millions in tax, a huge benefit for the state.

…Brought to you by London bingo news – covering all things bingo both live and on the Internet – in the UK, as well as abroad.

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Bingo gives Paddy Power a boost

Victoria — Sat, 22 May 2010 09:20:53 +0000

Paddy Power, originally known for being a leader in the world of bookmaking, have said that huge growth in Paddy Power Bingo is behind their strong trading performance so far this year. Profits were slightly more than expected which is a good thing in the current climate – bet volumes in Paddy Power’s online sportsbook grew by 39% whilst the gross win for bingo, casino and games was 32%.

For several years Paddy Power Bingo was part of The Games Network, powered by Parlay Entertainment software. Since switching to Virtue Fusion software, which is also behind Ladbroke’s Bingo, William Hill Bingo, Virgin Bingo and Crown Bingo amongst others, they have seen player retention and financial performance take a big leap. Virtue Fusion has recently been acquired by Playtech, a true giant in the online gambling software field.

Nigel Northridge, the Chairman of Paddy Power plc told the company’s Annual General Meeting: “2009 was a year of significant developments for Paddy Power. We grew our turnover and market share across all our channels and expanded internationally through successful acquisitions in Australia, continued shop openings in the UK and a B2B agreement in
France. Turning to 2010, the highlights of the year to date have been a very strong revenue performance in online (total gross win (ex Australia) +32%) and good bet volume growth across all channels. Significant investment has contributed to this growth and we continue to invest to maintain our business momentum and strong competitive position. Following a run of adverse sporting results in 2009, I am also pleased to report that the Group’s sportsbook gross win percentages have returned to normal expectations in the year to date.”

Shares in Paddy Power were up 1.92 per cent in early trading at 26.50 euros.

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Financial results from Bingo.com

Victoria — Sat, 22 May 2010 09:11:47 +0000

Over the last 2 weeks many operators have been announcing their financial results, some faring a lot better than others, and the latest to join them is Bingo.com. They revealed that the first quarter saw a fall of $344,806 compared to that of 2009 – some of this they attributed to the strengthening of the Canadian dollar but most of this they believe is due to the change in software.

The CEO of Bingo.com, Tarnie Williams, explained that the new software in Q1 didn’t perform as well as expected and halted plans to enter the UK bingo market, which is extremely competitive at the moment. This resulted in Bingo.com partnering with Unibet, which in turn led to the new Bingo.com website which has just been unveiled. The new bingo site is available in 23 different languages, which they are sure will lead to far better financial results, though as the Unibet based site was launched in mid Q2 the results may take a while longer to show.

The new Bingo.com site offers all new players a £3 no deposit bonus upon registration, as well as a 100% first deposit bonus. The site already gets a large amount of traffic, partly thanks to it’s name which has to be the most sought after name in online bingo, giving it a head start over it’s competitors. With the joining bonuses and the new interface they are hoping that the amount of active members will show a large increase.

There has been a lot of new sites launched recently, including Red Bus Bingo, Tasty Bingo and Bingo Hollywood, so it will be interesting to see how the new look Bingo.com fares.

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Bingo operator announces increased profits

Tom — Thu, 20 May 2010 08:50:36 +0000

Wink Bingo have got some fabulous Internet bingo

One of the largest operators of bingo clubs in the UK, Carlton Bingo, has just announced a very welcome leap in profits – which must have made for unhappy reading for the operators who have announced losses recently. Despite the problems faced by the industry; the recession, the effects of the smoking ban, the increase in bingo tax and changes in legislation, the management owned operator announced a £6.2 million profit last year, up from a £650,000 profit the year before. With 14 halls across Scotland and the north of England Carlton are the 4th largest operator. An increase in profits was expected as they had reclaimed £3.6 million in overpaid VAT, but even without this their profits have increased 4 times. They partly attribute their good news to lower debt repayments, the sale of property and reduced costs.

Regarding the current bingo tax system Peter Perrin, the Managing Director, said; “What most businesses want is certainty, fairness and consistency in fiscal treatment and at the present time we do not have this in our sector.”

Bingo tax was increased last year from 15% to 22% last year, though in October it was slightly reduced to 20%. However, as many other gaming sectors pay 15% tax the bingo industry is still lobbying the government for a level playing ground. Most online bingo sites don’t pay the UK bingo tax as they’re not based in the UK. Bingo hall operators just hope that one day the system is reviewed and everyone will pay 15% tax, regardless of where they are based. Casinos would especially appreciate this as they pay even more than bingo halls at the moment. Due to the economic situation and the recent election any lobbying at the moment will probably fall on deaf ears, and it looks like the new government will increase VAT – though luckily bingo fees are tax exempt

Brought to you by London Bingo News

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Latest Gala Bingo news

Gladys — Wed, 19 May 2010 08:20:21 +0000

There’s always something new happening at Gala Bingo, but the latest news from the gaming giant may not be good for some people. They have announced that as from the 31st May they will be leaving the Nectar Card Scheme, and this applies to both their land based bingo clubs and also from their internt bingo site, www.galabingo.co.uk

The news may come as a surprise as they have been members of the popular reward scheme for several years. As of 1st June though players will no longer be awarded Nectar points. They also will no longer be able to spend them at Gala Bingo clubs, but will be able to spend them at other retailers. There are a long list of participants in the scheme, including Homebase, Sainsbury’s, Argos, Eurostar and Amazon. They haven’t yet said if they will be introducing a similar scheme, just that they are reviewing their loyalty programme.

Apart from that though we are pleased to report that Gala Bingo still has it’s usual range of fantastic promotions. Every week in May they have some extra special offers, and if you deposit and stake a minimum of £5 at least 4 times in the week then you’ll be entered into a draw that week where you could win a £400 jackpot prize!

Brought to you by London Bingo News

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£85 million winner has come forward!!

Victoria — Tue, 18 May 2010 08:43:32 +0000

UK Largest Lottery Jackpot win has come forward yesterday claiming a life changing £84.4 million prize Said by the national lottery.

This dwarfs the 2nd larest amount of £56m won back in last febaury, that come from a rollover from the euromillions.

The winning ticket has still not be validated the spokeman from camelot said “We are looking forward to welcoming the lucky ticketholder to our millionaires club which is already 2,400 strong,”

It is still unclear if its a single person or a syndicate who has scooped this massive jackpot. Winning a sum this big will be very hard to keep under wraps for long. The only real way is to keep your job, and you cant tell friends or family about your lucky winning ticket, parking a rolls royce in front of your council house will be a dead give away.

Keeping the nation upto date with London Bingo News

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Bingo halls struggling in Canada

Gladys — Tue, 18 May 2010 07:56:59 +0000

We’ve already written how the number of bingo halls has fallen over recent years in the UK, and it seems that we’re not the only country to witness this.

The Canadian market has seen a massive fall in the number of halls. One of the worst affected areas is Ontario, which has gone from 200 halls to a miserly 70. As well as the many people who have lost their jobs as bingo halls close a big loser are charities. Approximately 3000 charities obtain some of their income from bingo, which used to gain more than $250 million a year from various halls.

Lynn Cassidy, the Executive Director of the Ontario Charitable Gaming Association said “The industry has declined due to competing forms of entertainment and that’s not only the rapid expansion of government gaming in the past 10 years – race tracks with slots, charity casinos, the large commercial casinos – but also other forms of entertainment that people have today, like movies and the internet, home theatre and that kind of thing. We need to update the whole industry, we need to modernize the industry. We’re in a world of technology and we need to move forward that way.” Even some of the biggest UK bingo hall giants like Gala Bingo and Mecca Bingo are feeling the pinch with the live bingo scene

Another factor is the spread of online bingo, which has gained popularity over recent years. In bid to boost numbers to previous levels Ontario has slowly increased its electronic bingo halls, with 5 eBingo gaming sites in the area, including both computerised and traditional bingo options. These seem to have worked, gaining a more diverse group of players to include both men and also younger participants. There is also pressure on the government to allow bingo halls to include slot machines and other gaming technology.

Brought to you by London Bingo News

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Who has the £85 million ticket?

Gladys — Mon, 17 May 2010 08:45:22 +0000

There’s bound to be a lot of anxious pocket and bag searching this morning, with the news that the Euromillions jackpot prize of a staggering £85 million has been won by a ticket from the UK. The winning numbers are 1, 17, 31, 43 and 47, with the Lucky Star numbers being 2 and 3. This is the biggest jackpot in UK history, and a spokesman for the National Lottery is urging the winner to contact them, so they can not only receive their life changing prize but also receive advice on how best to manage their new found riches.

A spokesman for Camelot said last night: ‘This is absolutely fantastic news – and the biggest ever lottery win in the UK. We’re delighted to have yet another massive UK win, following hot on the heels of Nigel Page’s amazing £56million EuroMillions win in February 2010. Subject to a claim being received and validated, the prize could be paid out when the banks open on Monday. The winner can then decide whether or not to go public and share their news.’

Other nations must be cursing the luck that has been following the UK lately. Only in February Nigel Page and Justine Laycock won £56million in the EuroMillions draw. Not long before this, in November 2009, a fabulous £91 million was shared by 2 UK ticktes, one belonging to Les and Sam Scadding from Wales and the other shared by a syndicate from Liverpool.

Nine countries play EuroMillions – the UK, Ireland, Spain, France, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, Portugal and Switzerland. Computer searches will today determine where the lucky ticket was sold – which is bound to lead to even more speculation. It’s not us unfortunately, but it would be lovely if it was one of our readers.

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Ladbrokes Gives Hope To The Bingo Industry In Their First Quarter Financial Figures.

Jaymac — Fri, 14 May 2010 21:46:38 +0000

Gaming Giant Ladbrokes have announced that one of the largest growths of its online betting areas was bingo in its financial report for the first four months of this year. It will be interesting see the number that William Hill Bingo report to see if this growth in the bingo industry is a growing trend.

The figures show a massive ten percent growth in the amount of people signing up to their online bingo room. This has resulted in a 5 percent growth in revenues in just 4 months which has helped to steady a downturn in their other gaming divisions.

The financial report wasn’t all good new though, sadly in the first four months of 2010 Ladbrokes have seen a 6 percent drop in net revenue which has resulted in a 3% drop in their profit. This is not good news for the online gaming industry or offline for that matter. One of the biggest shocks was a 11 percent drop in revenue taken over the counter at the Ladbrokes offline betting shops, which might further cement the rumours that offline gambling is starting to really suffer.

The newly appointed chief executive; Richard Glynn said “Although only a few weeks into my role as Chief Executive of Ladbrokes I am hugely enthused by the longer term opportunities available to the company and I am excited at the prospect of revitalising the Ladbrokes brand and re-energising the business.”

It’s nice to see new blood being pumped into the long term gaming giant Ladbrokes and though this first four months aren’t looking too good it looks like Ladbrokes definitely has something up their sleeve.

Brought to you by London Bingo News.

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Lottery winner jailed

Gladys — Fri, 14 May 2010 16:01:52 +0000

David Smith, 51, must have thought he was a very lucky man when he won £164,633 on the National Lottery on 17th March 2005, but that luck has now run out as he has been jailed for not declaring his win and continuing to claim benefits.

It has been revealed that he opened a separate bank account for his winnings and continued to claim a total of £21,700 in income support, housing benefit and council tax between March 2005 and April 2009. Following routine computer checks the secret bank account was discovered by council officials. Mr Smith first of all claimed that the win was his fathers, for who he cared for, and that he had just collected the winnings on his behalf. This was checked with Camelot though, who confirmed the he had not signed to state that he was collecting the cheque on anyone’s behalf.

In his defence Mark Harper said: ‘He used the winnings to make his father’s last 12 months to two years as good as he could. Holidays, a vehicle, various things. When his father passed away in 2007, funeral expenses and the like.’

Cllr Joe Kitchen of Tameside Council said: ‘People who make fraudulent benefit claims are not just cheating the system – they are cheating the whole community. Tameside Council is committed to the prevention, deterrence and detection of benefit fraud.’

Mr Smith appeared before magistrates and was sentenced to 2 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to benefit offences. Smith pleaded guilty to two counts of failing to declare the change in his circumstances and a further five charges of failing to declare the information on his application forms for benefits. He was almost sentenced to 3 months, but due to his early guilty plea escaped with 2 months.

Brought to you by London Bingo news

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Controversy over Kingston Bingo development

Tom — Thu, 13 May 2010 14:01:21 +0000

Local businesses and residents are up-in-arms following the alleged sale of a former Gala Bingo hall in Richmond Road, Kingston. The site had been on the market with various agents since late 2009, at an asking price in the region of £2,250,000. Although some agents have still got the old hall on their books it has been reportedly sold by one of them, and with the economic climate still in recession we’re sure that the price was a lot more favourable than when it was first listed.

The new owners are apparently looking into converting the bingo hall into a nightclub much to the dismay of local residents, who have joined with businesses in the Canbury Ward area to show their opposition by creating and signing up to an online petition on the council’s website. They believe that there will be problems with excessive noise and potential trouble, particularly in the early hours when the club would be closing, leading to a large number of night clubbers hitting the streets at the same time.

A local resident in the area commented: I think that everyone should support this as it’s not just Canbury residents that will suffer. Kingston has been lucky so far in that the very large chain pubs haven’t yet taken over the town centre, other than the Kings Tunn. We already have two very large clubs and a third would change the nature of the town centre for the worse.

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Bingo minibus crashes

Gladys — Thu, 13 May 2010 09:05:52 +0000

12 players from the Crown Bingo and Social Club in Hudson Street, Tyne Dock, South Shields have had a lucky escape after their minibus overturned on it’s way back from the club.

All of the players managed to free themselves from the crash although 3 of them were taken to South Tyneside District Hospital for what police have described as minor injuries.

London Bingo Staff wishes everybody a speedy recovery, get well soon!

The Neighbourhood Inspector, Peter Sutton said: “We received a report of a minibus that had turned over at about 9.16pm. Several people were on board at the time and suffered minor injuries. The road was closed and the buses were diverted while an investigation by traffic officers was carried out. Inquiries into what happened are still continuing.”

Following the incident the road was closed whilst the police investigated the incident. Traffic Police have now been brought in to determine why the minibus flipped over. They are asking for anyone who witnessed the incident to get in contact with them, to help establish it’s cause.

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Grandparents abandon child to play bingo

Victoria — Thu, 13 May 2010 08:14:30 +0000

We appreciate that sometimes people have obstacles that may interfer with their desire to play bingo, but we were shocked to hear of the grandparents who abandoned their grandson at a casino to go in and play some bingo games.

The disgusting event took place at the SkyCity Casino in New Zealand, where security staff came across the 10 year old boy on the 3rd floor of the casino, outside the main gaming room. Apparently the child was left alone for 6 minutes before he was noticed and his grandparents found playing bingo in the main gaming room.

Police were called to the scene but did not make any arrests. The Problem Gambling Foundation said the incident provided “very, very sad” evidence of the industry’s impact on families. Their Chief Executive, Graeme Ramsey, said: “This is just the latest in a long line of incidents over the years where people neglect children because of gambling. It absolutely points out where a lot of the misery of gambling is felt.”

Peter Tracey, the general counsel for SkyCity said “We have absolutely no tolerance for people leaving children unattended.” The grandparents, once found, were escorted from the casino and banned for 2 years for their actions. He added that the casino had no plans whatsoever to offer a creche or similar child care facility, and that it was the responsibility of all patrons to organise suitable vhild care before visiting the casino.

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Mystery winner gets $266 million jackpot

mabel — Wed, 12 May 2010 17:17:38 +0000

People in the Los Angeles area are frantically checking their tickets with the news that a ticket bought for just $1 has scooped a massive $266 million win in the multi state Mega Millions draw.

Although the ticket holder has not yet been identified, the restaurant which sold the winning ticket is celebrating as they get a half of 1% of the winnings, which comes to a very satisfactory amount of
approximately $1.3 million.

The winner gets to choose between an annual payment for 25 years or a once off payment – what a decision to make! The jackpot in Tuesday’s draw, which is played in 38 states, was the 8th largest so far in the
history of Mega Millions. The winning numbers were 9, 21, 31, 36, 43 and 8 and according to the official lottery website the odds of getting them were an amazing 1 in 175,711,536.

We can imagine many players are busy checking wallets and pockets now in the hope that they’ve struck gold. Why not try those numbers yourself the next time you have to pick some lucky numbers – who
knows, next time it may be you!

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Big wins from small operator

Gladys — Tue, 11 May 2010 08:08:31 +0000

We often hear news from large operators, both online bingo and land based halls, about big wins for their players, so it’s nice to be able to talk about success from a small operator.

Opera Bingo is based in Cumbria and they have just 3 halls, at Penrith, Workington and Whitehaven. However, since November they have recorded wins at each of their halls, and are hoping the good luck continues! The lucky spell has been shared over all 3 clubs, starting with 2 players at Whitehaven and Penrith who recorded wins on the National Game, totalling £38,000. This was then followed by a winner at Workington, who thought she had won the club prize of £110.16 but was delighted the next day to be told by the club manager that she had in fact won both the National and Regional zone prize, and so had in fact won £5,682.88. At the time Charlotte Kennedy, Opera Bingo marketing manager, told the local News and Star newspaper: “It’s great news to have three big winners in such a short space of time and for each of our clubs to have their chance is even better. This recent win amounts to five national game wins in just over seven months, which is
fantastic. We certainly seem to be having a lucky run at Opera Bingo at the moment and certainly these three lucky ladies are in for a very happy Christmas.”

Lady Luck still continues to smile on Opera Bingo though, as recently Roselyne Murphy won £15,000 and Diane Stagg, the latest winner, walked away with £29,002, with plans to spend some of it celebrating her 50th birthday in Las Vegas.

So, if you live in Cumbria and fancy trying your luck at bingo why not visit your local Opera Bingo hall and see if you can join the winners roll!

Brought to you by London Bingo News

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Bingo players bring the roof down!

Victoria — Mon, 10 May 2010 08:03:16 +0000

We’ve heard about a good play ‘bringing the roof down’, but this week it was the turn of the bingo players at Pavilion Bingo hall to do this. The incident happened on Thursday evening at the Scottish Borders club at Galashiels, though luckily no-one was hurt when the ceiling suddenly collapsed.

The Fire Brigade was called out and the hall and the neighbouring cinema were evacuated. The building was immediately sealed off by Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service crews, with inspectors from the building control team at the Scottish Borders Council being called in to carry out an investigation into the collapse.

The Scottish Ambulance Service attended but fortunately their services were not required. A spokesman for the rescue service commented: “The information we have is that a large part of false ceiling has come down in the bingo club. No persons were injured and the matter will be investigated by building control.”

This is not the first ceiling collapse to occur at a bingo hall, as many halls were constructed some time ago and use false suspended ceiling tiles. The cause in other cases has been attributed to a slow leak over a period of time, leading to the tiles absorbing water and becoming more and more heavy until eventually the affected section collapses.

Although it is still too early to make any conclusions in this particular case we are just pleased that no-one was hurt, and hope that the Pavilion Bingo hall is soon re-open for business.

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Gala Bingo in hostage ordeal

Gladys — Sat, 08 May 2010 10:40:40 +0000

Bingo is not usually classed as a dangerous occupation, but for 3 employees at the Gala Bingo hall at High Street, Kettering this was not sadly not the case this week.

Four smartly dressed, and as yet unidentified men, knocked on the door and upon being let in proceeded to tie up, assault and hold hostage the 3 unfortunate members of staff who were in the building, before escaping with a considerable amount of money. The 2 men and 1 woman were taken to the General Hospital but have since been released with what has been described as minor injuries.

Forensic teams were immediately called in, whilst the hall was closed for the rest of the day. Chief Inspector Andy Collins, commented: “I’d like to reassure people that incidents of this type are very rare, but when they do happen we treat them very seriously indeed. We have a team of officers working flat out to catch the people responsible for this despicable crime. We are urging anybody who was in the area between 9.40am and 10am and thinks they saw anything suspicious to contact police.” Detective Inspector Andy Nichols, added: “Reading between the lines, this has happened shortly after they have opened up.I would imagine it will be a substantial amount of cash. We will be trawling all of the CCTV in the area. We take matters like this very seriously.”

A Gala Bingo spokesman stated: “As always our main concern is for the safety of our staff, and we are working closely with police. We took the staff in for observation and they were obviously very shaken by the incident, but they have now been released.”

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Grandmother wins £4.5 million on lottery

Victoria — Sat, 08 May 2010 10:35:41 +0000

A 59 year old grandmother is celebrating her good luck after winning £4,559, 128 on the National Lottery. Pauline Stanley celebrated the win with a takeaway Kentucky Fried Chicken meal along with her husband of 21 years Barry, an aviation engineer.

Some winners would now be busy planning a world cruise, or a holiday of a lifetime, but Mrs Stanley has suffered from agoraphobia for 10 years and would rather spend time in her garden, although the couple might splash out on a conservatory and new carpets, though have not ruled out buying another house in the same area.

The couple from Churchdown, Gloucester have 6 children altogether, one child from their marriage, Mrs Stanley having 3 from a previous marriage and Mr Stanley having 2. Mrs Stanley is looking forward to treating them and said; I know they are all struggling and I can see them all right and that will make me happy. I do worry about the family. There’s lots I will do for them.’

As she took in their unexpected windfall she had a strong cup of coffee, whilst 61 year old Barry had a scotch. Their quiet evening in was totally changed by the win, Mrs Stanley explained; ‘Barry was on the computer and he came over and said “I take it you haven’t won the lottery? I said “I haven’t checked the ticket yet”, and I looked at the ironing and thought “I’ll do my ironing and watch Casualty”. As I stood up I thought “I will go and check”, and that was it. My ironing didn’t get done!’

Mrs Stanley has been agoraphobic since the death of her father, and can only manage very short trips to see family and friends, and even then has to travel with her inhaler ready. However she is very content with her life, saying she may see the doctor and get counseling, although it’s not a priority at the moment as she is ‘happy in my own little world’.

After surviving burst stomach ulcers only in February, which led to a 5 day stay in hospital and tablets for life, it looks like her luck has definitely taken a turn for the better!

The National Lottery is the official lottery game of the United Kingdom. You can play Internet lottery style games when you play Prime Scratch Cards.

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Ali G gets $17,000 from bingo player

mabel — Fri, 07 May 2010 17:15:54 +0000

A long running court case has finally been settled, and the winner is actor Sacha Baron Cohen, better known for his roles as Ali G, Bruno and Borat. This case was started due to an incident in the filming of the 2007 hit film Bruno, where Richelle Olsen claimed she was attacked and crippled during the filming of scenes at a bingo hall.

In the film Cohen, playing the role of a gay Austrian fashion journalist, was to call the numbers at a charity game that Olsen run for pensioners in Palmdale, California. When Olsen started the lawsuit in June 2009 she said that Bruno was “extreme, outrageous, offensive caricature of a gay man dressed in sexually revealing clothing with an Austrian accent” and used “vulgar and offensive language”. When she tried taking the microphone from Bruno, a “physical struggle ensued” and she was “offensively touched, pushed and battered” before falling to the ground. Olson claims three cameramen then took to the stage “where defendants attacked [her] for a period of one to five minutes to intentionally create a dramatic emotional response … while [they] recorded her humiliation and embarrassment.” She then claims she went to another room where she was “sobbing uncontrollably” before becoming unconscious and “falling forward onto the
thinly covered concrete slab, passing out and causing her to hit her head.” She was rushed to hospital with a diagnosis of 2 brain bleeds, which led to the lawsuit against Cohen and NBC Universal.

She later withdrew her assault claims but did continue to claim damages for emotional distress, for which she wanted $25,000. The court though has now ruled against her, and has said that she must pay Cohen’s legal fees, which amount to $17,000.

To add insult to injury the bingo game scene never made the final cut of the film and ended up on the cutting room floor during editing.

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It’s good to share with bingo!

Jaymac — Thu, 06 May 2010 07:53:05 +0000

Many people are finding present life a bit of a struggle, so it’s lovely to read of a bingo winner who has decided to share her good fortune. The lucky winners are 2 pensioners from Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, and play at Winners Bingo.

The lucky player was 80 year old Joyce Middleton, who had the good fortune to call house in just 42 numbers, and so claim the national and zone jackpot prizes of £23,000. She is sharing her prize with her close friend, 62 year old Joyce Turner. The ladies were particularly stunned as up until now their largest win was a humble £50!

Joyce, who has been a regular bingo player for 22 years, when she lost her husband Jim said; “Yvonne has been a brick since my husband died. Afterwards, she said I needed to get out and invited me to bingo and we’ve been going ever since. We’ve always shared our winnings.” She added “Yvonne was worse than me afterwards, she kept asking if I was alright and she made me sleep round hers that night as she said I wouldn’t be able to sleep. Then, in the morning, she said she had still been awake at 2.45am as all she could think was ‘£23,000′.”

Sally Bowers, the manager of Winners Bingo stated; “The moment she won was wonderful. She got a big round of applause and everyone congratulated her. She’s a regular and a really lovely lady – we couldn’t have chosen a nicer person to win it. When it came to the next game of bingo she was still shaking, but she managed to carry on.”

Joyce has yet to tell her family of her jackpot win, but has said she will treat them to something. She has always shared any winnings with Yvonne, and vice versa, and the fact this win was larger than usual didn’t change a thing. In these cynical times it’s refreshing to be able to report such a story, and we wish both ladies pass their fair attitude onto others.

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Parlay Entertainment report $1.4 million loss

Gladys — Thu, 06 May 2010 07:24:49 +0000

With the end of the financial year it’s interesting to read the reports from various companies, though many do make for depressing reading. Parlay Entertainment are a market leader in online gaming software but they are not immune to the difficulties facing the industry as recent figures show. In 2008 they were pleased to report a net income of $0.5 million, whereas for 2009 they have reported a net loss of $1.4 million.

Scott White, Parlay’s Chief Executive Officer said; “Given the significant consolidation in the online bingo sector, and the fact that some of our customers were part of that consolidation, timing was such that our business model could be expanded allowing us to move into the business of operating gaming platforms. Throughout 2009 we invested significant financial and human capital resources in the development of our Alderney and North American gaming platforms, which operate under the brand Parlay Games Services. Although these platforms are accelerating in terms of growth today, we generated very little return from this significant investment in 2009, resulting in a substantial loss and cash burn.”

“With 2009 as our reformulation year,” concluded Mr. White “we are pleased to report that we have in excess of 40 networked partner sites, which are either launched or launching within PGS. We have numerous prospective partner arrangements in various stages of development. With the market changing again because of additional consolidation, we are now in a unique position to offer services to various customers who are searching for new solutions in the bingo vertical. With a revised cost structure and a robust and envied technology platform, it will be our intention to supplement our traditional software licensing model throughout 2010 with the growth of PGS throughout the world. As we have outlined previously, our offering will be flexible and unique, fostering customer access into multiple software technologies offering multiple software vendors, both gaming and non-gaming products and multiple languages and currencies”

So, the loss for 2009 has been attributed to investing heavily in the future. This is in common with many companies, and analysing the ones who have reported better figures it seems that their statistics owe more to acquisitions than they do to growth. This year could be a pivotal one for many companies – it will be interesting to see who remains at this time next year.

Brought to you by London Bingo News

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Leading bingo software company sold for £75 million

Victoria — Wed, 05 May 2010 14:13:09 +0000

After 8 months of talks it has been announced that the British software company, Inspired Gaming, has agreed to a £74.4 million takeover by a private equity company. The leading bingo solutions company giant has a 37% share in the UK bingo market as well as a 20% share in the e-table and casino slots market.

Although Inspired Gaming is not a name that many players would be familiar with, there are many who play with it’s customers – which include Paddy Power, Gala Bingo and Betfred. It has become an important player in the supply of electronic bingo solutions over the last 3 years, and has also been a major influence in the use of hand held consoles, which have become more common to play bingo, interval bingo and slots with.

The private equity firm, Vitruvian Partners, has offered 60p per share in cash for Inspired Gaming, which equates to a 21% premium on the closing share price on 30th April. The board of Inspired Gaming have recommended that share holders accept the offer. A non-executive director of the board, Julian Paul said; “We believe that the acquisition fairly reflects both Inspired’s future growth prospects and the challenges of executing its business plan as a publicly listed company,”.

Shares closed at 49.5p on Friday, which valued the company at £64.1 million. Shareholders would be offered shares in the new company as an alternative to cash. With much talk of doom and gloom in the industry it’s good to read some positive news for a change.

Brought t you by London Bingo News

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Lucky player wins £10,000 at Beach Bingo Hall.

Victoria — Wed, 05 May 2010 06:36:56 +0000

A special promotion being run by Beach Bingo, an independent operator, paid off for a lucky lady on Saturday when she called house in 45 numbers to win the £10,000 jackpot.

Usually large jackpots are won in a linked game – in online bingo this is where several brands using the same software join together to play a game, increasing the number of players and therefore the stakes and jackpot. In bingo played in clubs a larger than usual prize is usually offered where the game is played over several weeks. Each week a certain percentage of the stake money is held in a specific fund, ready to pay out when particular conditions are met, ie house is called in a limited amount of numbers.

Often the criteria states that full house has to be called in 38 balls, but in the Beach Bingo promotion, which was running for 4 weeks only, the jackpot had to be claimed in 45 balls. The last game was being played by 231 players, and Ann Young had already struck lucky in the game, when she called 2 lines on 43 numbers. Tension was high when news spread that she was just waiting for one more number for the full house, 87. Alas the next number called wasn’t her number, and the pensioner had an anxious minute. The caller, club owner and manager Rob Garrad made everyone wait in suspense before calling the all important 45th number, and this time it was the long awaited number 87. The crowd broke into applause and people rushed to congratulate the regular player. Through tears of joy Ann Young, from Whitley Bay, said “I never believed anything like this would ever happen to me”

So, the moral of this story is that lady luck can sometimes be waiting in the wings to pay you a visit, and if your local bingo hall has a special, limited promotion then make sure you take part – as it could be your turn next!

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Bingo crime doesn’t pay!

Gladys — Tue, 04 May 2010 11:22:21 +0000

Regular readers to this blog may remember that at the end of March we reported how a crafty crook in a Mecca Bingo hall in Southport claimed a £500 full house prize that wasn’t hers! After the call had been made the woman said she was collecting the prize on behalf of her friend, and unfortunately the staff didn’t follow their usual procedures so the thief got away with her deception. The fraud was only discovered when the genuine winner went to claim the jackpot – by this time though the fraudster had disappeared and the hall were forced to pay out again.

As we reported the story police were carrying out their enquiries, examining CCTV footage and conducting interviews – although no firm leads had been reported.

However, we are pleased to report that the crook has been caught and successfully prosecuted. The woman, 27 year old Clair Borrill of Victoria Street, Southport, pleaded guilty of fraud at an earlier hearing. On appearing in front of magistrates this week the cheeky crook was sentenced to pay back the money as well as compensation. Altogether the crime has cost her £700 in the form of compensation, fines, court charges and fees.

Crime in general is rising, mostly due to the economic problems many people are facing, but we are glad to be able to report a happy conclusion to this story, and hope that people only go to the bingo to play, and not to steal.

Brought to you by london bingo news

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Bingo Helping Charities

Gladys — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 11:18:24 +0000

We’ve written before how bingo is not safe from crime these days – but we should also point out that there is also a good side to it, in that large sums are raised through bingo sites for various charities.

Gala Bingo certainly believes that charity begins at home, and last year raised an astounding £1,000,000 for their chosen charity, Sue Ryder Care. This very worthy cause cares for people who suffer from illnesses such as cancer, Huntington’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinsons, providing support for both sufferers and their families. This year they have decided to continue their efforts, and have set £500,000 as their target. Last year they had the help of Kezia Obama, Barack Obama’s step-mother, who used the interest in the US President to help raise £10,000. A group of employees also climbed to the base camp at Mount Everest to play the highest ever game of bingo – a real case of scaling the heights to success.

Mecca Bingo have just announced their new charity, which this year is the Marie Curie Cancer Care charity. The last 2 years they have supported Whizz-Kids, the charity which helps children and young people to gain independence through mobility, where they managed to raise the magnificent sum of more than £500,000. The team at Mecca Bingo and Rank Interactive hope to raise more than £20,000 this year, and we’re sure they’ll come up with some great ideas to do so.

Our furry friends in the animal kingdom have not been forgotten about, as this week JackpotJoy Bingo are holding a special promotion in aid of the RSPCA. For every player who buys 4 tickets for their dedicated RSPCA Week bingo games the company will donate £1 to this important animal charity, who have recently announced that they are struggling to cope at the moment, due to a combination of more animals being abandoned and less money being donated as people face financial problems in the current economic crisis.

At least if anyone questions you as you go to play bingo you can say, hand on heart, that it’s in a good cause!

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Britians got Talent are Teaming up with Mecca Bingo

Gladys — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 08:30:34 +0000

Mecca Bingo have just signed a new deal with britians got talent, they will become there offical gaming partner.

Britians got talent will be bringing out there very own bingo room, the staff here at blog.londonbingo are very excited as we are all huge fans of the show.

When i say “talent” you say “bingo!!!”

We will keep you posted on any further news on this story.

Brought to you by London Bingo News

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Rank Group announces improved figures

Gladys — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 07:58:24 +0000

Rank Group, one of the leading bingo hall and casino operators, has said it has had an ‘encouraging’ start to the year, led by strong sales at its Grosvenor Casinos and Rank Interactive units. Based on these figures it was feeling confident that 2010 would be a good year for the group.

The cold weather in January was partly blamed for a sluggish start to the year as far as its Mecca Bingo halls chain was concerned, but this no longer applies. In the same trading statement, released on Thursday, Rank also said despite the adverse economic situation in Spain Top Rank Espana had displayed a small growth. On the same day they said that a new VAT reclaim of approximately £42 million, relating to main stage bingo and amusement machines, and an existing £59.1 million reclaim for interval bingo would now be received later in the year, as opposed to the first quarter as previously stated.

“The Group has made a positive start to the year with revenue growth in each of its four businesses… (and) remains confident in the full-year prospects for the Group and in its longer term growth strategy,” Rank said in a statement. Up until 18th April like-for-like sales growth in revenue for the group was 4%, and there was a 10% increase in total group revenue.

In February Rank, which boasts 103 bingo halls and 34 casinos, posted a forecast-beating rise in full-year pretax profit. In the year to date Rank stock has risen 40%, outperforming the FTSE All Share Index by 30% and closing late Wednesday on 117.9p a share, valuing the company at £454 million pounds. Brought to you by London Bingo News

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Shop assistant wins $258.5 million

Gladys — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 12:17:00 +0000

A 29 year old shop assistant is celebrating in America after scooping $258.5 million (approximately £170 million) on the US Lottery. The win was made especially sweet as he only had $28.96 left in the bank (approx. £20) and had a mountain of bills.

The lucky man, Chris Shaw, said; “We didn’t come from money. For us it’s just going to be a huge relief to know I’m going to be able to pay my electric bill, my gas bill. It’s like a weight lifted. I had bills at home – I didn’t know how they were going to be paid.”

Although still early days he wants to take his 3 children and his girlfriend’s 2 children to Florida for a visit to Disney World. He presently has his 2 front teeth missing, so can now afford to visit the dentist to get them replaced, and will pay his friend back the $1000 he recently borrowed to buy his truck with.

Mr Shaw bought the $5 ticket which won the Powerball jackpot at the Break Time convenience store where he is employed in Marshall, approximately 80 miles east of Kansas City. He is still deciding whether to leave his job, which he has only be at for 3 weeks, where he is on the minimum wage of $7.25 an hour.

His win is the 10th largest Powerball jackpot prize of all time, and the happiness was easily seen in his face as he picked up his cheque at the Missouri Lottery headquarters.

“We had been kidding each other all day about winning it, but no one actually thinks they will win,” he said. We congratulate him on his win, and hope that just a small part of his good luck rubs off on us! Brought to you by London Bingo News

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Pressures continue for live UK bingo halls

Gladys — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 12:33:15 +0000

Bingo halls have faced many pressures over the last year, and for some of them the recent disruption to air travel is just another nail in the coffin.

One of the biggest disruptions came with the introduction of the smoking ban in the UK, back on 1st July 2007. Great Britain not having the warmest climate in the world saw many bingo players choosing to stay away, when faced with the prospect of not being able to enjoy a cigarette as they marked off their numbers. Although some clubs had, or soon made, outdoor covered areas many players felt that the atmosphere was lost, and as outdoor shelters can, by law, only be 50% covered, the solution wasn’t ideal by any means. Following the smoking ban in Scotland Rank reported a 10% drop in admissions, a 7% decrease in spend per head, and a 17% drop in turnover. This of course led to a decrease in prize money, which could have also led to the fall in admissions. Since the introduction of the ban in England over 200 halls are said to have closed as a direct consequence of the ban.

Many organisations have long lobbied for a fall in the rate of tax which is imposed upon bingo halls. In the last budget a decrease was announced, taking the duty down to 20% from 22%. This only came into action last month, so the affects cannot be seen yet, although as other forms of gambling have as low as a 15% duty there is still a lot of work to be done.

The general recession has also had an affect on bingo takings. With many people suffering with unemployment, people only be able to find part time or poorly paid jobs, coupled with the high cost of living a
night out at the bingo is a treat that not all players have been able to keep up. Although many players still make their outings, both as a night out and the hope of winning a large cash prize, many either now stay at home or have cut down on their outings and expenditure.

The disruption caused by the volcanic ash from Iceland will undoubtedly add to these problems. Forget about the short term fact that some people have been forced to extend their holidays overseas and so have missed out on a session or two. The long term cost will be seen as many people, having spent vast amounts of money to either extend their stay abroad or to make long and expensive trips to get back to the UK, will now be forced to drastically cut back on any non-essential spending in order to recoup their outlay. A fortunate
few may have been covered by insurance, or were lucky enough to have family and friends to help them, many have maxed out their credit cards to survive and return.

If you’re lucky enough to still have your favourite bingo hall open make sure you support it, as your hall needs you!

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Beacon Bingo Gets Bought For £45 Million.

Jaymac — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 13:45:55 +0000

Those upset at Manchester’s Buckingham Bingo shutting down will be happy to heard that Beacon Bingo has been given a new lease of life with a £45 million takeover deal. The Beacon Bingo Group have managed to accumulate £40 million in bank debt but the gambling investment company Praesepe didn’t care.

The Beacon Executive Chairman Brian Mattingly has an extensive portfolio of working with successful gambling groups. This portfolio includes the 888holdings group that run 888ladies bingo as well as the Gala Coral Group who run Gala Bingo. He has decided to accept the offer of moving over to the Praesepe Board.

Praesafe could obviously see the potential in the Beacon Entertainment group which turned over £35.9 million at the end of the April 2009 financial year. Praesepe claim they can save over 2 million pounds after the two brands have been moved into established amusement arcades. This boost should help the keep Beacon Entertainment afloat as well as renew peoples confidence in the UK bingo industry.

London bingo halls are in no danger of fading it seems. Praesepe has also bought Crystal Rooms which is located in london. The CEO of Praesepe Nick Harding expressed his excitement about the deal saying “UK bingo has a market value of over 1.7 Billion pounds and the management team, which will be bolstered by the addition of Brian Mattingley, has some very exciting ideas and initiatives to build on and enhance its reputation as a superb entertainment proposition.”

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Manchester’s Buckingham Bingo shuts down

Tom — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 11:10:05 +0000

London bingo players are safe, but any players from the north of England may be a bit upset as the closure of a Buckingham Bingo site in Didsbury, Manchester has been announced. Buckingham Bingo have been operating since 1970 and are the largest independent bingo chain in the north of the country. With 1.7 million attendances a year you would have thought they would have been safe, but circumstances have gone against them, proving that nowhere is 100% secure these days.

The smoking ban, the introduction of the gross profit tax to replace bingo duty and the present recession have led to the closure of the Parrs Wood Centre bingo hall, although the chain still has 11 sites, 3 of which are in the Greater Manchester area – Middleton, Old Trafford and Walkden if you’d like to pay them a visit. 27 members of staff are unfortunately affected, although 3 will be moving to positions at other bingo halls within the group. The chain are now left with 350 staff, which is still a fairly considerable number.

A spokesman for the company said; ‘Buckingham Bingo is responding to this by consolidating and restructuring the company to secure a longer-term future for the rest of our clubs and better equip us to
move forward from what has been a difficult economic period for most businesses’. Venture capital firm Alchemy Partners bought the business in 2005 and were the ones to make this difficult decision, which in
the current climate is not the first hall closure and will probably not be the last. Andy Cunningham, Group Chief Executive, has said that the group are undertaking reviews of under-performing clubs and are re-negotiating certain leases in order to put the group into a more stable position. He admitted that 2009 figures were down, which is to be expected, but he also stated they the group did have several large,
profitable clubs and their online bingo was performing very well.

In this day and age we are accustomed to hearing about businesses in various sectors being forced to close down, but we hope that wherever you are there will always be a bingo club close at hand for you to play at. Of course if you do get stuck there’s always plenty of online bingo clubs who will be more than happy to help you out!

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Buckingham Bingo Halls are feeling the Pinch

Victoria — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 06:39:41 +0000

A spokesman for the company said; ‘Buckingham Bingo is responding to this by consolidating and restructuring the company to secure a longer-term future for the rest of our clubs and better equip us to move forward from what has been a difficult economic period for most businesses’. Venture capital firm Alchemy Partners bought the business in 2005 and were the ones to make this difficult decision, which in the current climate is not the first hall closure and will probably not be the last. Andy Cunningham, Group Chief Executive, has said that the group are undertaking reviews of under-performing clubs and are re-negotiating certain leases in order to put the group into a more stable position. He admitted that 2009 figures were down, which is to be expected, but he also stated they the group did have several large, profitable clubs and their online bingo was performing very well.

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Tombola are the new Sunderland Sponsors

Thu, 15 Apr 2010 16:35:00 +0000

If you’re a fan of both bingo and football you could be in with a treat, as the very popular online bingo site, Tombola, have announced that they will now be sponsoring Sunderland AFC. They’ve signed an initial 2 year deal, starting from June 2010, which both parties are very happy about. Tombola Bingo are actually based in Sunderland, so knowing about the club and the city makes it a perfect fit for them.

The Tombola name will be displayed in the famous Stadium of Light and will also be on both the home and away shirts in the 2010/2011 season. Sunderland Chairman Niall Quinn said how thrilled they were to be joining forces with Tombola at such an exciting stage in the journey of the club, affectionately known as the Black Cats.

Tombola Chief Executive Paul Cronin was equally thrilled, saying that ‘Sponsoring Sunderland AFC is a fantastic opportunity for Tombola. We’re really looking forward to working with Sunderland and we’re confident that this sponsorship will help us achieve our own ambitions’.

Tombola began in 1999, originally to provide free to play games for other websites before moving on to working with the Sun newspaper in 2006, and then going solo in 2008. They currently sponsor Emmerdale, and the move into football sponsorship, along with the global exposure it will bring and the introduction to new audiences, is yet another big step forward into what is proving to be an interesting journey.

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Grandma Mugged after Bingo Win.

Tue, 30 Mar 2010 16:31:11 +0000

After winning £80 playing bingo 78 year old grandmother Phyllis May Barry thought she was on a winning streak, but unfortunately this didn’t last too long as she was then mugged on the way home.

The mother of 3 had been playing at the British Legion Club in Rumney, Cardiff on Sunday and had left just after 11pm to catch the bus home. She saw 2 men running but assumed they were also in a hurry to catch the bus, until one of them pushed her over and snatched her handbag. Although Mrs Barry had earlier won £80 she had about £150 in her purse, along with family photos, glasses, her bus pass and cigarettes. The muggers also took her house keys which meant she had to get her locks changed. The retired barmaid described the incident as ‘quite scary’ and said it left her ‘feeling shook up and aching all over’.

The grandmother of 5 didn’t believe that the mugging had anything to do with her win at the British Legion club, where she had been playing bingo for over 25 years, although her 52 year old son Brian doesn’t have the same opinion. Although relieved his mother wasn’t seriously hurt he believes that the mugging, coming so close after her win, was more than a coincidence, and feels that someone who was at the bingo and knew of Mrs Barry’s win had something to do with it.

South Wales Police have arrested 2 men in connection to the mugging, which DC Hannah Millership of St Mellions CID described as ‘a serious, horrendous crime against an elderly, vulnerable female on her way home’. The DC though did go on to say that it was very unusual for such an event to happen in that area of Cardiff, and that it was being treated as an isolated incident.

We hope that the next time Mrs Barry has a win it won’t be followed so closely by such bad luck.

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Cheeky £500 Jackpot Win

Tue, 30 Mar 2010 10:54:40 +0000

It’s always great when you win at bingo and collect your winnings – but one very cheeky woman has just collected a £500 jackpot prize without actually winning it! The staff at Mecca Bingo Ltd, Garrick Parade, Southport were extremely embarrassed when they discovered the truth – but unfortunately this was only when the real woman came to collect her prize, and by that time the crafty customer was long gone.

Apparently the usual procedure for any players cashing out their winnings is for them to present their bingo membership card, along with their winning ticket number. In this case this was not done, though whether the woman somehow distracted them or the staff simply forgot is not too clear. The fraudster claimed that she was the winner’s friend, and the staff happily gave her the £500 for hitting the jackpot. A little later though the real winner, along with her membership card and winning ticket turned up. The bingo hall staff were understandably not too happy to have to pay out twice for the prize, although as it was totally their mistake for not following their own procedures the second £500 was swiftly paid out.

The local police have been informed, and as well as examining all relevant CCTV footage they’re also conducting interviews in the local area, with the hope that they can catch the trickster. She obviously had her eyes down for a confidence trick as well as the game!

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London Bingo Scene

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 12:23:36 +0000

There is a lot to be said about the live bingo seen in London. Bingo is one of the favorite pastimes and therefore this makes for a lot of options when it comes to finding a place where you can go in order to jump in on some exciting bingo games near you. The location you choose to go to in order to play bingo is ultimately up to you. However, since there are so many options available for you to choose from, you will want to pick one that has the entire atmosphere and setting that you will be the most comfortable with.

Some of the popular bingo clubs in the London area include the Gala Bingo Club, the Carlton Bingo Club, Mecca bingo, Castle Bingo, and Deluxe bingo Clubs. Each club will have a little something different to offer the bingo players in attendance. You will find that some of these bingo clubs have their own cafes and bars, many of them will also offer slot machines.

When it comes to the live bingo scene in London, there is one thing that’s for sure; you will find yourself gathered with a lot of people that are ready for a good time. There will be a bingo game going on each and every day in London, they won’t be hard to find. Each bingo club will have their own way of doing things, give a few of them a try until you find one that you feel gives you everything you want.

When playing free bingo no deposit there are plenty of sites on the internet but none better than cutebingo.co.uk

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London Bingo Halls

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 08:15:18 +0000

London Bingo halls

London has a very happening bingo scene for anyone looking to get in on an exciting game of bingo. Since playing bingo is one of the more popular pastimes, it makes sense that there would be a lot of great options available when it comes to bingo. The places you will have to choose from will vary in what it is that they have to offer, but one thing is for sure; you will have a great time!

When you experience live bingo in London, you will experience laughs, fun, and the chance to walk away a winner. One choice you will have when it comes to live bingo halls are the Carlton Bingo Clubs. With 19 live clubs, there is a good chance that one is near you. Not only do the Carlton Bingo Clubs offer very entertaining bingo games, but they also have a fully licensed café and bar where you can let off some steam, slot machines, and both electronic and traditional bingo.

When you are in the bingo scene in London, you will be able to enjoy a lot of great fun while you are waiting for your numbers to bring you a win. The bingo clubs offer you the ability to connect with others that share in your love of the game of bingo. The atmosphere is one of fun, excitement, and adventure. London is definitely a great place to be if you are interested in bingo, as it caters to bingo players.

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London Bingo staff reviews Bingo Playground

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:06:25 +0000

The London Bingo staff recently had the opportunity to spend time in the Bingo Playground, where we have drafted a Bingo Playground review. We think the London Bingo visitors will find the £15 free at Bingo Playground most useful, and additionally believe that our bingo players will truly appreciate the generous selection of bingo deposit bonuses we have made available through Bingo Playground.
Also, be sure to note the abundance of jackpot bingo games, as well as slots and other games of chance all available via the Bingo Playground platform.

Click to read our detailed Bingo Playground review.

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Ton of Prizes Daily at Posh Bingo

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 09:34:39 +0000

Posh Bingo is giving away a free ton each day at 19:30. In the Posh Ton Room, the first player completely filling their bingo card will receive £100 free into their Posh Bingo player account.

To take advantage of this free money opportunity, Posh Bingo players need only fund their account and pay 10p for each bingo card in this game. Bingo players may purchase from five to ninety-six bingo cards in this game. Should your bingo card be the first to fill completely, you will claim the posh £100 prize.

London Bingo players looking to get in on this posh promotion may click our special link to visit Posh Bingo, where players will be entitled to receive up to £200 in free posh bonuses.

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Bingo Tip – Wink Bingo Vouchers Make Great Gifts

Tom — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 09:35:33 +0000

Looking for a great value added gift to send a family member? Look no further than Wink Bingo!

Wink Bingo Vouchers

London Bingo members can purchase a Wink Bingo Voucher for a friend or family member, and Wink will double the value of the bingo voucher – absolutely free. You can purchase a Wink Bingo Voucher from £1 to £20, and wink matches your purchase by depositing money into your friend’s bingo account!

Perfect for birthdays, holidays, are just because, Wink Bingo Vouchers are a great gift to ship to a friend or family member.

How to Purchase a Wink Bingo Voucher

To Spread the Bingo Love:

* Step 1. Complete the Wink Bingo Voucher form.
* Step 2. You will receive a confirmation email showing all the details you have submitted, including the total of your purchase and the recipients you have selected.
* Step 3. Each Friend will receive an email telling them how wonderful and generous you are. They will be required to respond to that email with their alias in order to receive the credit into their Wink Bingo account.
* Step 4. Once they have replied with their alias the money will be deducted from your account. Please make sure you have enough real funds in your account to avoid disappointment.
* Step 5. Wink Bingo will confirm to you and your friends once everything has been adjusted.

Need more convincing? Check out the London Bingo review of Wink Bingo .

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London Bingo Staff Relaxes for Bingo Day

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 09:15:18 +0000

Recently the London Bingo staff took time to relax for an enjoyable evening of bingo at Bingo Day. We were unanimously impressed with the look and feel of Bingo Day’s software, as well as with the spread of 75 and 90-ball bingo games available to us at Bingo Day.

Exclusive Bingo Day Bonus for LondonBingo Members

While the day was meant to be relaxing and full of bingo, the London Bingo Staff could not help themselves, as we mixed business with pleasure and managed to negotiate a special and exclusive bingo deposit bonus for newly depositing players at Bingo Day. To get the full details of this exclusive deposit bingo bonus from London Bingo and Bingo Day (as well as to get the juicy details of our BingoDay field trip) – take a look at our full London Bingo review of Bingo Day.

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Gala, Bingo Day Reviewed by LondonBingo Staff

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 09:00:20 +0000

Recently the LondonBingo staff had the opportunity to review Bingo Day and Gala Bingo.

The Bingo Day Review and the Gala Club Bingo Review add to the already strong line-up of online bingo sites covered and reviewed by the London Bingo staff and website.

To celebrate the review of Gala Bingo, LondonBingo offers a free £10 to new players visiting Gala Bingo by way of the Gala Bingo review by London Bingo. Ambitious online bingo players will additionally receive an exclusive £30 for use at Bingo Day from LondonBingo when visiting the Bingo Day site by way of the London Bingo Review.

London Bingo looks to add many more new and exciting deposit bingo sites to their live Bingo club overview and online bingo site reviews.

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High 5 Bingo Rollover Jackpot Exceeds £325K at Gala Bingo Clubs

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:05:15 +0000

Live bingo players in the London area will be pleased to know the high 5 rollover jackpot at the Gala Bingo Clubs in London sits over the £325K mark!

To trigger the rollover jackpot, you must complete a full house using the number five. Should your bingo ticket be the lucky winner, you will receive half the rollover jackpot value. Additionally, the other bingo players participating in the link game will share in the remaining 50% of the bingo progressive prize!

The Link game, featuring this monster of a rollover jackpot plays every day at 2.30pm as well as at 8.30pm. So now there’s a big jackpot to chase in the daytime plus twice as many chances to scoop the Link game prize, and the High 5 jackpot! Visit your local Gala Club in London. To play bingo online at Gala, have a look at our overview of Gala Bingo on the web, where every new player will receive a free £10 bonus and have access to all the 75 and 90 ball bingo games, as well as a vast selection of online slots games – all at Gala Bingo.

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Gala Bingo now part of the London Bingo Card

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 15:00:12 +0000

By far the biggest live and online bingo provider in the UK, bingo giant Gala Bingo is now part of the London Bingo card of quality and trusted bingo providers. Gala runs several live bingo halls and a top online bingo gaming platform.

London Bingo offers a free £10 bingo bonus play for LondonBingo players. London Bingo players interested in learning more about playing bingo at Gala either in person or online can take a look at the London Bingo review of Gala Bingo.

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