Senior citizens step aside as bingo makes a fashionable night out in Nicosia. ELENI ANTONIOU keeps her eyes on the prize
I could almost hear the James Bond theme playing in the background as we slowly walked down the wide staircase taking in the masterful, casino-like picture that was unfolding before us. My friends and I were at the Ethnikos Assias Bingo hall. If you’re ever been to a bingo night in Cyprus, you’ll know that the last thing you’d expect to see is anything associated with glamour. In fact, you’d probably drop to your knees and scurry under the table if you thought you’d been spotted anywhere near a bingo card. Yet, after a costly renovation, the once humble Opera Cinema continues to offer a mixture of traditional innocent gambling and state-of-the-art hip fun. Senior citizens make way; bingo is ‘in’ right now.
The game bingo has always held a special place in the hearts of Cypriots. Some call it ‘easy money’, if they’re lucky that is, while others enjoy the mere excitement and seriousness of the situation once numbers begin being called. Until the opening of this bingo hall, the game was considered an early bird activity, held in the most banal facilities, which were often football clubs. Plastic chairs and cheap, wobbly tables played host to cards upon cards bought mostly by retired citizens, looking for some kind of thrill on a Tuesday night. Then Theodoros Theodorou and a couple of associates decided to open a bingo hall, only this bingo hall would be sans plastic chairs. Not only did they envision glamour, they envisioned the former Opera cinema as a 600-person capacity, mini-Vegas casino sans the gambling.
The first thing that strikes you the moment you have a clear view from the staircase is the rich burgundy colour the chairs and carpet are washed with contrasting against strong yellow lighting bouncing off the tables. Tonight, at around 10.30pm, the joint was packed. There were people robotically walking down the stairs as they gazed far into the room, people looking for a spot to ‘park’ or sitting at the bar, drinks in hand; all while a steady voice could be heard through the speakers, directing gamers who were fixated on their cards awaiting that one special number. Once the game came to an end with a lucky person, or two, filling in their boxes of numbers and collecting shortly after, platinum blonde girls were unleashed and began distributing cards to those interested in handing over €5 for the chance to win anything from €50 to €5,000.
Once you are ready to go, markers and cards in place, the pure
professionalism of the way the bingo hall is run, comes into motion. State-of-the-art equipment includes giant glass-encased bingo globes on a stage linked to cameras, flat-screen TVs galore and digital boards with numbers flashing. However important the equipment, which is rumoured to have cost a cool €2.5 million, one feature that had people raving was the existence of a restaurant. One customer rightly noted: “If they have food, they’ve got it all.” With ‘Bingo Jackpot Burgers’ and ‘Bingo Platters’ on the menu, a well-stocked bar and MTV playing in the background, is it any wonder a high percentage of the clientele are the under 25s?
One thing that has stayed with tradition is the football club association. “I’ve always been a supporter of the team (Ethnikos Assias) and when I heard of the idea to turn the Opera into a bingo hall under the name of the team and for members of the team, I knew that is exactly what I should do with the place,” says Theodorou. The basement, in the heart of Nicosia, is full of memories and history despite its ‘eviction’ over five years ago when multiplexes monopolised the cinema industry on the island, before which it was owned by THOK.
“One thing I want to make clear,” says Antonis Mavris, partner and member of Ethnikos Assias Football Club, “is the misconception that we’re making millions. We’re not and we’ve had to make it clear to our kids too because apparently people have been there, played, seen how many people show up and are under the impression that we’re raking it in.” Firstly, 85 per cent of whatever is ‘made’ on the night goes straight back to the players. “People have hit the jackpot a couple of times and that’s €5,000, sometimes more,” says Theodorou. The rest is spent on staff wages. “We have 10 people selling cards alone,” they both say. “Plus 10 for the restaurant.” And let’s not forget the club, which has another percentage right to the revenue. By no means are the club’s affiliates, owner and partners complaining; around 1,500 customers pass through on weekend nights alone. Success? “We seem to think so.”
Bingo Ethnikos Assias
Open every night from 20:00 – 4:00 am. Tel: 22-665305 or 22-665375.
Lucky winner
Tania Kyprianidou, 37, has been a bingo regular since it opened its doors. “I work at the hair salon, Curlisto, which is next door, so on the day it opened I was there in a flash.” Unlike most curious, eager-to-win individuals that visited the Bingo station the first week, Tania knew she’d be a regular. She has a lucky streak, which was revealed in 2007, when she won £90,000 on the National Lottery. “When I was young, a fortune-teller told me 7 would be a lucky number for me. It didn’t make sense at the time but as soon as I won at the National Lottery, I knew it was my time.”
Since then Tania has frequently won small amounts of money on scratch cards and of course, bingo. “I never take more than €25 with me,” she says. “If I haven’t won by the time I’ve spent 20, my last fiver will definitely win.” Has she ever lost? “Well, put it this way. I’ve spent around €300 playing once a month but I’ve made over €3,000, so I wouldn’t say I’ve lost.” Whether she’s watching TV or at church, Tania confesses that if she gets “an urge” to play, she’s off. So what’s her secret? “You need to go after your fortune, you know, if you feel lucky.”
