I had never organised a bingo night before. I want to be clear about that upfront, because everything that follows is the experience of someone who started from zero and worked it out as she went. I am not a professional events organiser. I am a retired school secretary from Dorset who said yes when the village hall committee asked if anyone could run a fundraiser, and then spent three weeks working out what that actually involved.
My name is Carol Jennings, and the bingo night raised £800. I am still slightly surprised by that.
How It Started
The village hall needs a new roof. This is not a metaphor. The actual roof has been a problem for two years, and the committee had been looking for ways to raise the money without putting the full burden on the regular users. Someone suggested a bingo night. Someone else suggested I organise it. I said yes before I had thought about what that meant.
The first thing I needed was tickets. Proper bingo tickets, not something printed at home on A4 paper. I wanted something that looked like a real bingo night, that players of all ages could read easily, and that would give us enough games to fill an evening without running out.
I found the Jumbo Bingo Tickets – 750 Books, 5 Page Game Strips of 6 at ALTOE. The format was exactly right: 750 tickets in total, organised into 125 strips of 6 bingo booklets, each booklet with 5 pages. That meant each player could buy a strip of 6 books and have 5 games per book, which gave me a clear structure for the evening. The jumbo format with big, bold numbers was important because our village hall attracts players of all ages, including several regulars in their eighties who would not thank me for small print.
At £27.71 for 750 tickets, the cost was very manageable for a fundraiser where the tickets themselves would be sold to players. I ordered them on a Monday. They arrived Wednesday, which gave me plenty of time before the Saturday event.
The Night Itself
We had 67 people in the village hall on the Saturday evening. I had been expecting about 40, so the first challenge was working out how to seat the extra 27, which we managed with some creative arrangement of the folding tables. The tickets were sold at the door in strips of 6, which gave each player a book for each of the 5 games plus a spare.
The jumbo format was the right call. I had one player, Margaret, who is 84 and has been coming to village events since before I moved here, who told me at the end of the evening that it was the first bingo night she had been able to follow properly in years because the numbers were large enough to see without her glasses. That comment alone made the choice worthwhile.
We ran 5 games with a break in the middle for tea and cake, which was provided by the WI and which I think contributed at least as much to the evening's success as the bingo itself. The tickets held up well through the evening, the booklet format kept everything organised, and we did not run out, which had been my main anxiety.
The Result
We raised £800. Ticket sales, plus a raffle, plus the tea and cake contributions. The committee was delighted. Margaret said she would come again. Several people asked when the next one was before they had even left the hall.
The next one is in October. I have already ordered more tickets.
I have also been asked by two other local organisations, a school PTA and a sports club, whether I would share how I organised it. I have told them the honest answer: find a good venue, get proper tickets, provide tea and cake, and do not underestimate how many people will come. The tickets are the easy part. The roof fund is now considerably closer to its target.
The Verdict
If you are organising a bingo night for a fundraiser, a community event, or a family gathering, the Jumbo Bingo Tickets are the right choice. The quantity is generous, the format is well-organised, the jumbo print is genuinely inclusive for players of all ages, and the price makes them practical for an event where you are selling tickets to cover costs. I went in knowing nothing about bingo nights and came out with £800 for the village hall roof. The tickets did their part.
Find the Jumbo Bingo Tickets – 750 Books, 5 Page Game Strips of 6 at ALTOE. Listed in Latest Products, Toys & Games, Games, and Bingo Sets.
Say yes to the fundraiser. Order the tickets. Provide tea and cake. The rest follows.
— Carol Jennings, Dorset
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