After six months of ‘smoke free England’, have the lights finally gone out at the traditional Bingo club?

The smoking ban has now been in force across England, Wales and Northern Ireland since 1 July 2007.  Before its introduction, experts warned that this could lead to disaster for many bingo halls throughout the country with up to one club in three facing possible closure.

It is estimated that around three million people play bingo every week and that half of these players are smokers.  Playing bingo and smoking has become a habit, but sadly for these avid bingo players, it is now the end of an era.

However, for our bingo friends in Scotland, the ban has been in force since April 2006 and many clubs have already closed down due to a significant fall in admissions.

In an interview with the BBC’s ‘Money Programme’, Neil Goulden, Chief Executive of Gala Bingo states that “the effect of the smoking ban in Scotland’s been a lot worse than we thought it was going to be.  We've actually now lost 8% of our customer base who have stopped coming altogether."

Lowering admissions are not helping the profits of smaller clubs.  Many smaller clubs’ profits are boosted through the interval sessions where players can play cheaper and faster games of table top bingo.  Many also use the interval sessions for buying snacks and drinks from the bar if available.

It seems that for smokers who still attend bingo, most now get up in the interval to go for a cigarette outside.  This means that not as many people are playing the additional games or going to the bar for food and drinks.  Mike Lowe, Manager of Premier Bingo in Kirkcaldy, Scotland estimates that during the interval, more than 40% of his customers leave the hall to have a cigarette outside.  This can only lead to a sharp decline in profits.

However, for health ministers, the smoking ban has been seen as essential to the health and well-being of everyone.  Ministers have argued that if they allowed a smoking exemption for bingo halls, what would stop people challenging the same rights for pubs, clubs and the rest of the leisure industry.

UK Bingo is mainly dominated by the two giants, Mecca and Gala.  Whilst they may have deeply lined pockets to cope with the decline in numbers attending bingo, this will not last forever and they will need to work hard to keep at the top of the game.  For the country’s smaller clubs, however, the future is looking pretty bleak.

And herald the era of online bingo….

Since the smoking ban was introduced in July 2007, there has been a significant increase in the number of sites where people can play online bingo.  Fuelled by the ban, these sites now offer instant access to bingo from the comfort of your own home with the added luxury of smoking till your heart’s content.

Iluvbingo.co.uk’s online bingo reviewer, Rosie, now plays online bingo all the time.  Rosie told us that she used to go to the Gala bingo hall where she lives every week, but following the smoking ban the sparkle seems to have faded and it’s now not as fun as it used to be.  She said that most people including her get up during the intervals to go outside for a cigarette.  She recalls that as so many people wanted to go outside to smoke, it was complete bedlam trying to get out and back in again, not to mention that she then missed the opportunity to play the additional table top games during the main session breaks.

Rosie now has the luxury of reviewing online bingo sites for iluvbingo.co.uk and can smoke as many cigarettes as she likes.  Rosie has told us that although she was apprehensive towards online bingo at first, she has caught on quickly and now really enjoys it.  “There are so many different people from around the country you can chat with online and they are all so friendly” Rosie said.

However, with all the temptations that online bingo offers, is this now adding to the demise of the already suffering bingo clubs?

Bingo has been an institution in this country for many years, but is it now lights out for the traditional bingo hall and eyes down for a new generation of online gaming?

Article was written by Crystal Page at iluvbingo.co.uk

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