People around the world have been playing bingo for many years now. Bingo nicknames are a very important element of the game that makes it more entertaining. There is also a practical reason for using calls – they make it easier to tell the numbers apart in a loud venue. While the format and the rules of the game have stayed the same over the years, lately some changes have been introduced to the BarbadosBingo calls. Some of the old bingo calls have been replaced with new ideas.

Why new bingo calls being introduced?

Lately bingo is becoming more and more popular with young people who realised that some of the traditional bingo calls are slightly offensive. That mainly refers to the ‘Two Fat Ladies’ call describing number 88. The younger generation claims it promotes body-shaming and makes some people feel embarrassed and hurt.

Moreover, the new bingo calls often have references to modern lifestyle and topics trending amongst youth. Some of the old bingo calls are based on cultural or historic events, and these references are often not easily understood by young adults.

New bingo calls

Here you can find a few examples of the new bingo calls together with the old ones they replaced.

  • 88 – ‘Two Fat Ladies’ – the most controversial of the old calls is has been replaced by ‘Wills and Kate’. • 74 – ‘Candy store’ – many young people want the calls to inspire societal change and promote taking care of environment so the new idea for the call for this number is ‘Recycle more’.
  • 48 – ‘Four dozen’ – this nickname in its traditional form is rather self-explanatory, new call is ‘Not another Brexit debate’ which relates to current political events
  • 8 – ‘Garden gate’ – gate rhymes with eight so the call is east to remember, the new call is ‘Tinder date’ so it also relies on the rhyme, but it refers to a very popular dating app  
  • 39 – ‘Steps’ – the new call is ‘Love Island time’, Love Island is a reality TV show that young people have been crazy about over the last few years

There are just a few examples but millennials have come up with replacements for almost all of the 90 bingo calls. For now, you won’t hear them in the most renowned bingo halls but they are becoming more and more popular.

Is there a need for new bingo calls?

The biggest advantage of the new bingo calls is that they attract younger people and encourage them to play bingo. That helps eliminate the stereotype that the game is only played by older people. Nevertheless, some references in the new bingo calls will only be known to young adults.

Many players who have been playing for ages might get confused if they hear the numbers being called in a different way than usual. Moreover, except for the ‘Two Fat Ladies’ bingo nickname, the traditional calls don’t do any harm to anyone.