Shantay, You Play: What's the Tea With Drag Bingo?

So, you've hit your local scene and spotted an ad for drag bingo. You probably have two questions - what, and more importantly, why?! Let's dive into the phenomenon that is drag bingo.

Rise of Themed Bingo

Over the past few decades, bingo has seen a wide variety of innovations. In particular, there has been a rise in themed bingo games, and different technologies introduced into the bingo mechanics. For example, players in the UK can try their hand at many different themed games of bingo at Paddy Power such as the art deco, vintage-style Lightning Ball Live, Ancient Greek-themed Age of the Gods Bingo, disco-inspired Paddy's Party, or TV show spin-off Deal or No Deal Bingo.

These games utilize unique thematics from their inspirations, such as characters, icons, motifs, and narratives, weaving them into the rules and gameplay of the bingo room. The theme of the bingo games make the gameplay more authentic and believable, engaging players through unique features and interactive elements. Coupled with technological innovations allowing players to play live games through any device, this has raised the demand for bingo games globally.

Dragging Up New Media

Just as bingo has seen a rise in popularity, the same can be said for drag. Propelled forward largely by films like Paris is Burning and icons like Divine, drag has become a modern phenomenon that has disrupted modern entertainment. The global drag economy today amounts to an estimated $1 billion, according to World Metrics, and the largest drag queen convention, DragCon, draws in an estimated 50,000 people every year. But it's not just the business of drag that is catapulting. The interest in drag goes beyond traditional perspectives of local drag performances, breaking into the mainstream.

Since 2009, over 300 drag queens have graced the main stage of RuPaul's Drag Race - a show that broke boundaries and won 30 Emmy Awards over the years, amongst many more. Not least, Drag Race has served as a springboard for drag talent to branch out. For example, statistics from Statista show that RuPaul has 4.7 million followers on Instagram, and Trixie Mattel (originally from season 7) is only 1 million followers behind. Mattel is one of the key figures highlighting the diversification of drag in entertainment, hosting a podcast, launching a makeup brand, hosting several web series, releasing four studio albums, and leading two hit TV shows.

With this in mind, perhaps the quirkiest collab of all time combines both the diversification of drag and the rise in themed bingo.

Drag Queen Bingo

Drag queen bingo - or just 'drag bingo' - is exactly what it says on the tin. Essentially, it mixes aspects of a traditional drag show with the gameplay of bingo. Drag queens and kings act as hosts for the bingo games, calling out the numbers for attendees to mark off their bingo cards. However, it's not quite as dry as your average bingo hall!

The drag cast often spice up the gameplay with their own twist. This often includes short comedy sets, lip syncs, roasts, reading, and a whole host of other performances interspersed between the bingo games. Not to mention, drag artists often don't hold back, so the calling of the bingo numbers can be entertaining in itself!

So, if you enjoy bingo and love a bit of drag, drag bingo might be just the event for you. There are often lots of drag bingo events hosted by your local queens, as well as large touring productions featuring queens of international acclaim. It's about to get sickening!