In New Zealand, calling nicknames are not used as much as in the UK, but here are some of the more common ones. When calling, the caller will usually say both digits on their own first, and then the number itself, for example, "Three and two, thirty-two". Some callers will use many of these slang terms, others just a few. However, "Kelly's Eye", "Legs Eleven" and "Top of the Shop" are often used, even if none of the others are. See section below for usage.
| Number | Slang Expression |
| 1 | Kelly's Eye / On its Own / At the Beginning / Start the Game |
| 2 | One Little Duck |
| 3 | Cup of Tea / One Little Flea / My little Fly |
| 4 | Knock at the Door |
| 5 | Man Alive |
| 7 | Lucky for Some |
| 8 | One Fat Lady / The Garden Gate |
| 9 | Doctor's Orders |
| 10 | Tony's Den (forename of current prime minister) |
| 11 | Chicken Legs / Legs Eleven |
| 13 | Unlucky for Some / Lucky for Some |
| 16 | Sweet Sixteen |
| 21 | Key of the Door |
| 22 | Two Little Ducks |
| 23 | Thee and Me |
| 24 | Two Dozen |
| 30 | Dirty Gertie |
| 37 | More Than Eleven |
| 44 | Droopy Drawers / All the fours |
| 45 | Halfway There |
| 50 | Bulls eye / Blind 50 |
| 51 | Tweak of the Thumb |
| 55 | Snakes Alive / All the Fives |
| 57 | Heinz Varieties |
| 59 | Brighton Line |
| 64 | Red Raw |
| 66 | Clickety-Click |
| 71 | Bang on the Drum |
| 76 | 7 and 6 - Was she worth it? / Trombones |
| 79 | One More Time |
| 81 | Stop and Run |
| 86 | Between the Sticks |
| 88 | Two Fat Ladies |
| 90 | Top of the Shop / Top of the House |
There is at least one nickname for each bingo number called. See sources for more.
Sources
Usage of Bingo nicknames in the UK
Since the introduction of the electronic Random Number Generator (RNG) in Bingo Halls in the UK, the usage of the nicknames above in mainstream Bingo has dramatically decreased. Bingo with an electronic RNG is much less time consuming and it has been discovered that replacing the nicknames with a simple repetition (in the pattern "All the fives, fifty five" or "Two and four, twenty four"), has allowed bingo halls to focus on the more lucrative business of Mechanised Cash Bingo (MCB), known in Gala Bingo Clubs as Party Bingo, and Mecca Bingo Clubs as Cashline.
It is perhaps nostalgic to note that the usage of these nicknames tends to be greater where the focus of playing bingo is upon fun rather than big business; this includes British holiday resort chains such as Haven, British Holidays and Pontins, and also church halls, social clubs etc.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
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