Bingo Lingo is a term referring to the slang used in traditional bingo halls. With bingo moving online, these terms have also moved to bingo rooms you can join on dedicated bingo sites.
If you are new to this form of entertainment, all these strange words and phrases may give you a hard time.
Stay with us to learn all about bingo calls and get ready for your next bingo session.
What Are Bingo Calls?
Bingo calls are nicknames given to bingo numbers.
Bingo is all about having fun, and using funny names for bingo numbers contributes to the overall gaming experience.
Although they are not the only terms in the slang used in bingo, bingo calls are the most entertaining ones as they mainly come in rhymes.
They may vary depending on the region the player comes from. Still, one thing is for sure – bingo calls keep spreading among online players faster than ever.
History of Bingo Calls
Originating in the 1950s in East London, bingo calls have been used for all numbers used in the game.
Their primary role was to clarify drawn numbers as some of them could have sounded the same. When you are in a bingo hall, you may not hear clearly which number has been announced. That’s when the number nicknames could help you tell two numbers apart.
Spreading around the UK, bingo calls have changed with new pop-culture references added to them. From bingo halls to the online bingo world, players have preserved widespread bingo calls and sayings.
While numbers are generated and marked digitally when playing the game online, the popular terms are today used for the sake of fun.
Bingo Calls Explained
Each number has its own nickname which can vary from region to region in the UK.
Some bingo calls are based on rhymes, like 8 Garden Gate, 17 Dancing Queen, 26 Pick and Mix or 62 Turn the Screw.
Some nicknames draw inspiration from the shape of numbers. The famous examples include 11 Legs 11, 22 Two Little Ducks or 69 Either Way up, also known as The Same Both Ways.
Another example is 55 Snakes Alive, which combines both the reference to the shape of the number 5 and a rhyme.
Some bingo calls contain historical references as well.
One of them is 9 Doctor’s Orders. It originates from the Second World War, when British doctors gave the number nine pill, a laxative, to soldiers without a specific condition to clear their organism of ills.
Full list of Bingo calls
- Kelly’s Eye
- One Little Duck
- Cup of Tea
- Knock at the Door
- Man Alive
- Tom Mix
- Lucky Seven
- Garden Gate
- Doctor’s Orders
- Boris’s Den (Name of the current PM)
- Legs 11
- One Dozen
- Unlucky for Some
- Valentine’s Day
- Young and Keen
- Sweet 16
- Dancing Queen
- Coming of Age
- Goodbye Teens
- One Score
- Royal Salute
- Two Little Ducks
- Thee and Me
- Two Dozen
- Duck and Dive
- Two and six, half a crown (or A to Z)
- Duck and a crutch.
- Overweight (or “In a state.”)
- Rise and Shine
- Burlington Bertie (or “Dirty Gertie”)
- Get Up and Run
- Buckle My Shoe
- Fish, chips and peas
- Ask for More
- Jump and Jive
- Three Dozen
- More than 11
- Christmas Cake
- Steps
- Naughty 40
- Time for Fun
- Winnie the Pooh
- Down on Your Knees
- Droopy Drawers
- Halfway There
- Up to Tricks
- Four and Seven
- Four Dozen
- PC
- It’s a bullseye!
- Tweak of the Thumb
- Deck of Cards
- Stuck in the Tree
- Clean the Floor
- Snakes Alive
- Was She Worth It?
- Heinz Varieties
- Make Them Wait
- Brighton Line
- Five Dozen
- Bakers Bun
- Turn the Screw
- Tickle Me 63
- Red Raw
- Old Age Pension
- Clickety Click
- Made in Heaven
- Saving Grace
- Either Way Up
- Three Score and 10
- Bang on the Drum
- Six Dozen
- Queen Bee
- Candy Store
- Strive and Strive
- Trombones
- Sunset Strip
- Heaven’s Gate
- One More Time
- Eight and Blank
- Fat Lady with a walking stick
- Straight On Through
- Time for Tea
- Seven Dozen
- Staying Alive
- Between the Sticks
- Torquay in Devon
- Two Fat Ladies
- Almost there
- Top of the Shop
