Bongo's Bingo sets sights on 1m tickets sold and breaking into America in 2023

The team at Bongo’s Bingo are gearing up for their biggest year yet in 2023.

Founded by Jonny Bongo and Joshua Burke in April 2015 in Liverpool, the crazy and raucous concept is the UK’s original and defining bingo rave night out and takes place in over 40 UK locations. Last year Bongo’s Bingo launched in Brighton, Bournemouth, Nottingham, York, Kingston and Swansea with more locations planned for 2023, as the experience economy industry leader continues to grow, focused on competitive socialising.

The company remains proudly based in Liverpool and employs a team of over 100 directly employed and freelance staff. Their target for 2023 is to reach 1 million tickets sold across all events by December 31st whilst planning to break America, off the back of their busiest December ever with 170 shows.

Bongo’s Bingo continues to sell shows out weeks and months in advance whilst keeping ticket prices low – the current maximum price for a standard ticket is £20 plus booking fee and many shows are cheaper.

Jonny Bongo explains:

“We came pretty close to one million tickets in 2022 and because we always aim high at Bongo’s Bingo we feel we can reach it this year. There’s a great team who host the actual shows, then there’s the office side and everyone else from the warehouse to the tech people. Everyone is highly valued in the company no matter what their role – it’s a big family. The demand for tickets last year truly was astounding, especially after two years of Covid – I feel it’s mainly because people trust us, they absolutely love what we do and most importantly it brings everyone some much needed escapism and a shared social experience away from normality. We’ve got our ticket prices low which is really important, especially given it’s a tricky time for many people right now.”

“In Liverpool alone I’ve seen so many magical moments, people letting loose together and leaving their worries at the door and that immersive feeling plays out everywhere we are. We invest heavily into the experience to make sure every show is the best it can be no matter where you are, so if you go to any Bongo’s Bingo show these high standards are always there and that’s because we do everything in-house from Liverpool. We don’t cut any corners.”

There will be more new locations launching in 2023 as well as the long-held ambition to bring Bongo’s Bingo to the USA. Joshua Burke says: “We’ve had great success abroad, notably in other English-speaking countries or with big UK audiences – in the early days we were in Australia a lot, then seasons in Ibiza and we have been back in Dubai for the last year which has been brilliant. Breaking America is a big part of our plans and 2023 is when we are going to make it happen. Jonny and the guys are very excited to take the concept there. Launching in the USA almost came to fruition just before the pandemic and now we are back on track.”

Spring and summer last year saw the bold XL concept tour across the UK, with gargantuan shows in huge venues across Manchester, Newcastle, Leicester, Sheffield and the two biggest Bongo’s Bingo shows ever – back to back dates in August on home turf in Liverpool.

Josh continues:

“Last year was huge for us. Our XL shows at the Exhibition Centre Liverpool in August were truly mind-blowing. We had close to 4,000 people each night and everything scaled up so well, the venue looked fantastic and the crowds were brilliant. But I really had to take a quiet moment on that opening Friday and literally pinch myself – it was phenomenal to experience it, Jonny and I having started this over 7 years ago, and most importantly we had amazing feedback from our customers. We’ve also been expanding across the UK – expansion for us is about identifying which venues will work well for our shows, developing strong business relationships with each location’s team and ultimately making each one a brilliant customer experience. We’ve got more new locations on the horizon which will help us reach the goal of 1 million tickets as well as launching live music gigs at our own venue, CONTENT, in Liverpool in a few weeks.”

Bongo’s Bingo’s purpose-build venue, CONTENT, will be used for a series of live music shows throughout the year with headline touring artists, based in Cains Brewery Village in Liverpool. The 2000-standing cap venue has an Adlib Audio sound system, 3 huge screens and a recently fitted new and bigger stage which will help expand CONTENT’s use beyond Bongo’s Bingo shows.