Bingo clubs can give a true sense of identity

A Good Night Out in the Valleys is a National Theatre Wales play

Bingo in the community

One of the things that attracts many players to bingo is its engagement with local communities.

Put simply, this is a game that draws people together and thriving bingo clubs can give a region a true sense of identity.

A similar idea underpins a well-received new play called A Good Night Out in the Valleys, which is set in a small former mining community in Wales.

Playing bingo down at the local club is one of the main pastimes in countless Welsh towns so we were pleased to see the country's favourite numbers game make an appearance onstage.

Going local

Indeed, this play is all about local communities, which is why the National Theatre Wales decided to unveil its first ever production at the tiny Blackwood Miners' Institute rather than a grander setting in Cardiff.

Moreover, all six actors in A Good Night Out in the Valleys are actually drawn from the Valleys for added authenticity.

And this sense of a play that really understands how small towns and community bingo clubs go hand in hand has drawn plenty of praise, with the Telegraph calling it "enjoyable" and full of "terrific jokes".

The review added: "Alan Harris' lively script is based on real-life stories from the Valleys, and there is a tang of lived experience about it."

Meanwhile, the Western Mail argued that it was a must for bingo fans, saying: "If you like to play bingo, enjoy a raffle and want to be entertained by a compere dressed in a chicken suit, then you'll love National Theatre Wales' debut production."

A Good Night Out in the Valleys is by no means the only play to cover the bingo phenomenon.

Last year, Strictly Bingo took London's Hackney Empire by storm while Everybody Loves a Winner gave audience members at Manchester Royal Exchange the chance to take part in a real bingo game.

Bingo clubs can give a true sense of identity

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