Fifemen

 Bingo! Does the very name conjure up thoughts of austerity in post-war Britain, images of dull people in dull clothes hunched over tables scratching with fat pencils, aromas of mothballs and cheap scent, and the ragged cry of “House!!” (one of the original names for the game, along with Lotto and Housey-Housey) interrupting the call of the numbers? You’d be wrong!  Online Bingo is the new Poker for people who trust Lady Luck more than their skill!

For those familiar with the traditional UK dance-hall Bingo, there’s nothing new to learn or scare you in on-line Bingo. Most of the 250 plus working sites have the UK standard 90 numbers, from No 1, Kelly’s Eye, through Two Little Ducks, 22, and the rather un-pc Two Fat Ladies, 88, up to Top of the House, 90. The cards are generally 15 random numbers on a card grid. The US version sites have 75 numbers.  Numbers are drawn one at a time (“called”) and if you have that number on your card, you mark it off. You win by being the first to get one line across the card with all your numbers marked off, two lines, or a “full house”- where all numbers on your card have been called. There are variations- but the site you choose should spell out (or number out?) how to win.

So how do I get Bingo-ing on-line, and get on board this fast-growing phenomenon?  Depending on the site you choose, you may have to download some (free) software on to your PC, or if the site uses “instant” flash or Java mechanics, then you’ll need to open an account.

Next step, not surprisingly, is that you need to deposit some money up front. On-line Bingo isn’t a charity! However, depending on the site you choose, your initial outlay doesn’t have to be anything approaching a King’s ransom… more a pauper’s apology! £10 will see you started. There’s a variety of “goodies” to attract you to one site over another; you pays your money and you makes your choice!

You’ll be welcomed to the game in some way, and some have facilities whereby you can chat on-line with other players. There’s a variety of player aids and auto features to make life easy for you- no more straining to hear the caller’s voice in a cavernous hall and squinting down to scan and mark your cards.  Some mark your cards automatically, and even notify you, when you’ve won- so there’s nothing to do except sit back and see if fortune smiles upon you! A win will be credited to your account, and you can then plough that back in to give you more games, unless you quit while you’re ahead.

My recollections of “real” Bingo were that the caller called the numbers pretty quickly, and that if you hade more than a few cards, you’d quickly fall behind, and risk the embarrassment of missing a win, or arguably worse, making a wrong call for having won. Humiliation before the masses!  On-line there’s none of that- the pace can suit you- and with the automatic features, you need never miss a number.  The only downside is that for me there is something about the buzz of calling out a win in a crowded hall, and collecting the prize amid the backdrop of the muttering and chuntering of your fellow gamers who’ve you’ve beaten to the line!