Bingo has produced some memorable life-changing wins, both in traditional halls and on modern online platforms. Below is some information about a selection of famous winners and record moments.
Christine Bradfield, 2008 – £1,101,686 in-club win at Castle Bingo, Merthyr Tydfil
On 27 January 2008, Christine Bradfield became the holder of the Guinness World Records title for the largest amount of money won at in-house bingo, after landing £1,101,686 on the National Bingo Game at the Castle Leisure Bingo Club in Merthyr Tydfil. She had been a long-time player at the venue and continued to attend after her win.
Bradfield’s win was historic because it formalised what many players believed possible in the National Bingo Game’s Platinum Jackpot era. It put a named player and club into the record books, and it arrived during a period of intense interest in large in-club jackpots.
Soraya Lowell, 2008 – £1,167,795 in-club win at Club 3000 Bingo, Coatbridge
Just weeks after Bradfield, on 23 March 2008, Soraya Lowell won £1,167,795 on the National Bingo Game at Club 3000 in Coatbridge. Reports at the time highlighted that she shared her prize with neighbour and playing partner, reflecting a long-standing agreement between the pair. The sum was widely reported as the UK’s biggest bingo hall jackpot to that date.
Lowell’s story quickly became part of UK bingo folklore. It illustrated the social side of hall bingo, where players often attend with friends and family, and it underlined how the National Bingo Game linked venues nationally for major prizes
Buzz Bingo Cricklewood’s Colossus record, 2025 – Largest payout for a single game at one bingo house, £105,000
On 30 March 2025, Buzz Bingo Cricklewood set a new Guinness World Records title for the largest payout for a game of bingo at a single bingo house. One winner took home the main full house prize of £105,000 at the club’s Colossus event. The attempt beat the venue’s previous record. The winner chose to remain anonymous, but the adjudication and event details are documented by multiple industry and official sources.
Although the winner is unnamed, the record shows how modern clubs build major one-night prize pools and how in-venue bingo continues to create headline achievements that resonate with players and press alike.
John Orchard, 2012 – £5.9 million on an online jackpot game at Butlers Bingo
In 2012, John Orchard from Lincolnshire won £5,883,044.43 with a 30p stake while playing a progressive jackpot slot linked to the Butlers Bingo site. Contemporary coverage identified the win as a record at the time for an online bingo-site jackpot. Orchard discussed retiring early and making family purchases after the win.
Important context – This was not a bingo ticket in the traditional sense. It was a progressive slot available via a bingo operator’s platform. Many UK online bingo brands offer slots alongside bingo rooms, so high-profile site wins like this often feature in round-ups of the biggest “bingo” payouts online.
Anne Marie Farrar, 2015 – £3.4 million on Iceland Bingo’s Millionaire Genie, 15p stake
In February 2015, Anne Marie Farrar won £3.4 million on the Dragonfish network’s Millionaire Genie progressive while playing via Iceland Bingo. Farrar’s win is frequently cited as one of the largest UK wins achieved through an online bingo operator. Like the Orchard case, it came from a slot game hosted by a bingo site. The combination of a modest stake and a multi-million prize helped this story gain wide attention.
How these stories fit into bingo’s wider history
The National Bingo Game, launched in 1986, connects licensed UK bingo clubs to shared prize opportunities. That framework explains how the two landmark 2008 in-club wins occurred and why they were so large for hall play.
Meanwhile, the internet era introduced 24-hour access, varied room types and integrated slot jackpots on bingo sites. That is the landscape in which Orchard and Farrar won multi-million sums online. The line between “bingo” and “bingo-site jackpots” is important. In-club and online bingo rooms pay fixed or progressive bingo prizes. Bingo-site slots can pay substantially higher progressive amounts, and many media round-ups group them together because the wins are associated with bingo brands.
What we can learn from the biggest wins
- Hall bingo can still set records = The Buzz Bingo Cricklewood Colossus event shows that physical clubs continue to create headline prizes backed by official adjudication.
- Linked national games create life-changing moments – The National Bingo Game’s Platinum Jackpot era produced rare seven-figure in-club winners such as Bradfield and Lowell, cementing their place in the game’s modern history
- Bingo sites host more than bingo – Online brands typically combine bingo rooms with slots. Record online wins usually come from networked progressive slots on those platforms, which explains the scale of prizes claimed by Orchard and Farrar.
Responsible play
These stories are exceptional. UK-licensed operators provide safer gambling tools such as deposit limits, time-outs and self-exclusion for anyone who needs them. Treat bingo and associated games as entertainment first. If you play online, use the available tools to set limits that suit your budget.