Bingo ladies – are you getting married soon? Or are you planning a hen night for one of your bezzies? Well listen up, we’ve found an American craze that has made its way over to good old Blighty and we reckon you’ll love it!

Bridal Bingo has been a firm tradition in American hen nights or ‘bridal showers’ as they’re known, for over fifty years! The game is, for many people, the most important part of the event and also the most fun! Bridal Bingo allows everyone to get in on the anticipation of the upcoming nuptials and is also a great giggle for the girls!

The game is a simple variation on a traditional bingo game. Each person has a bridal bingo card that is the conventional 5×5 square. Instead of numbers, though, these cards have a variety of words associated to marriage on them. For example you could choose words like ‘commitment’ and ‘cherish’, or if you’re feeling a little saucier: ‘something blue’ and ‘garter’! If you’re playing 90 ball bingo, you’ll need to pick 90 different words or phrases and put them in a bag to be drawn during the game. From then on, the game functions just like a normal bingo game, with the words called out by the hostess and each person matching up these words to their bingo cards! The first to get a line wins! It’s as simple as that!

In America there are loads of Bridal Bingo sets available to purchase but many people like to make their own and customise them with photos of the bride, groom and guests. Maybe you could make your own version of Bridal Bingo where the face of each guest is printed on the bingo card and as their name is called, you can mark them off! This is a great way to familiarise yourself with the names and faces of the guests who will be attending the wedding and maintains bingo as the sociable game it always has been!