Kelly’s Eye to Top of the Shop: Your Guide to Bingo Calls

If you want to look like a real bingo pro then you need to know your bingo lingo! These fancy phrases are used in halls all over the country and online, so let’s find out all about them.

Our Fave Sites to Practice Bingo Calls

Check out these sites if you want a practical place to practice your calls:

Big Tease Bingo

There are so many hosted rooms on this site for you to play in, with some lovely chat hosts too. Play for free in their newbie room to try them out.

See website for full T&C.
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See website for full T&C.
1st time depositors only. Min Deposit £5.Max bingo bonus £200. To withdraw Bingo bonus & related winnings, wager x4 the amount of your Deposit +Bonus funds. Deposit balance is available for withdrawal at any time. Withdrawal restrictions & full T&Cs apply.

Lucky Cow Bingo

With 2 hours of free bingo each day, this site is one of the best to try chatting on. The cosy atmosphere of this site means that you can always gossip with the other roomies.

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new players only, no deposit required, valid debit card verification required, £8 max win per 10 spins, max bonus conversion £50, 65x wagering requirement. Welcome bonus min deposit £10, £8 max win per 10 spins, max bonus conversion equal to lifetime deposits (up to £250), 65x wagering requirements and full T&Cs apply.
See website for full T&C.
new players only, no deposit required, valid debit card verification required, £8 max win per 10 spins, max bonus conversion £50, 65x wagering requirement. Welcome bonus min deposit £10, £8 max win per 10 spins, max bonus conversion equal to lifetime deposits (up to £250), 65x wagering requirements and full T&Cs apply.

Cheers Bingo

If you like a party then this is the bingo site for you, as it’s all about celebrating each and every bingo here.

See website for full T&C.
new players only, min deposit £10, £8 max win per 10 spins, max bonus conversion equal to lifetime deposits (up to £250), 65x wagering requirements and full T&Cs apply.
See website for full T&C.
new players only, min deposit £10, £8 max win per 10 spins, max bonus conversion equal to lifetime deposits (up to £250), 65x wagering requirements and full T&Cs apply.

Remember to look into the terms and conditions of these offers before you claim.

In the Beginning

Bingo calls originated out of necessity, as it was hard to hear the callers before sound systems were used. Bingo halls were often really noisy places too, which could make it hard to hear exactly what the caller was saying. Instead, they made up a language of rhyming slang for each number, so that players would be less likely to get mixed up with other numbers.

Even though this bingo slang isn’t really needed online, it’s still fun to use and features in many bingo lobbies. Here are a few examples of classic bingo calls:

  • 30 – “Speed Limit” – This was the speed limit in miles per hour of most built up areas in the UK.
  • 44 – “All the Fours” – The only number in 90 ball bingo with two instances of the number four.
  • 88 – “Two Fat Ladies” – The number itself resembles two larger ladies standing side by side.
  • 90 – “Top of the Shop” – The biggest number in 90 ball bingo.

The New Lingo

Everything changes with popular culture and bingo lingo UK is no different. In an effort to make bingo cool again, many operators have tried to bring in some younger references to their games.

Numbers like Oceans Eleven (11), Gareth Gates (8) and Jimmy Choo (32) have been added into the lingo.

These are more relevant than some of the older terms like Danny La Rue and Dirty Gertie, which don’t mean much to younger players! It’s just the natural progression of the language, as we’re always finding new terms added into our dictionary. In a year, approximately 500 new words are added to the dictionary, so it makes sense that this would apply to bingo too.

Bingo is Gr8!

When smartphones were first introduced, a whole library of abbreviations very quickly became part of the culture. Things like LOL and BTW aren’t restricted to texting, but there are special abbreviations just for bingo players. Examples of these include:

[table id=11 /]

There you have it, now that you know how to sound like a seasoned bingo player it’s time to become one! Play at one of our chosen bingo sites and make your way to the chat room to start flexing those fingers. You’ll find bingo is much easier and more fun when you do!

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