Online bingo: the new going out

Online bingo has become the new alternative to a night out for many people, according to a recent BBC News Magazine report, with an army of enthusiasts taking to their keyboards and mice on a day-to-day, week-by-week basis even if they don’t expect to win a game.

The broadcaster explains that, for an ever-growing number of mature individuals, online bingo is allowing them to meet with their friends from the comfort of their own homes, often at no greater cost than a night on the town, and without the need to get dressed up in order to make a good impression.

Anita Heffernan, a 50-year-old bingo fan, says she would much rather head to her favourite online bingo site than to a pub, club or bar. “It is a hobby,” she told the BBC. “I would much rather do that than spend a night out in town.”

But it’s not just those of a more mature age who are catching the bingo bug; many younger players are also joining in the online action, even at weekends, which is helping them to while away the hours on what might otherwise be a dull Sunday afternoon.

One example is 21-year-old Anni Nevison, who plays up to three times a week, including a regular five-hour Sunday session. “You go into a bingo site and it’s like a little family,” she says. “It’s so chatty.” She admits that, if it weren’t for the geographical distance between them, she would meet in person with many of her online bingo friends.

Meanwhile, Mark Griffiths, professor of gambling studies at Nottingham Trent University, tells the BBC that online bingo enthusiasts’ love of the game shows through not just in the way they view it, but even in the way they talk about it.

He explains that, for many people, online bingo is “a bit of harmless fun” – a flutter they can afford to make, even if they don’t win. “Even though they know it’s a form of gambling, they never use the word,” he points out.

The magazine’s article concludes by pointing out the advantages of playing bingo from your own home in the legislative environment of the 21st century – allowing players who used to enjoy a trip to their local bingo hall to keep up with their favourite hobby, without facing the dilemma between games of whether to head to the bar, or outside for a cigarette.