New Hackney bingo club Hijingo in Shoreditch
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A new bingo club where players can win European holidays, bicycles, camera drones and cash, has launched in Shoreditch.
Hijingo has been designed by a team who have built stadium concerts for the likes of Beyonce, Jay Z and Skepta. The hi-tech venue boasts giant TV screens and videos that run across a grid in the ceiling.
When players shout "Hijingo", the computer is able to identify where they are sitting in the room and check their card.
The club is the only bingo club in the borough since Mecca Bingo on Hackney Road shut down after 65 years in 2015.
Hijingo creators plan to expand the bingo chain across the UK and world. - Credit: Matt Crossick
The creators of the new bingo club, in Worship Street, have plans to expand the chain across the UK and Europe. They say they have even entered into discussions with a site in Las Vegas.
Creator James Gordon was brought up in Hackney, and his first bingo events were in the borough.
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“Once I had raised the $20 million I needed to take the brand globally, I knew there was only once place to open the first venue: right back at where it all started in Hackney," he said. "Also, my mum still lives down the road."
The concept creator of Hijingo James Gordon. - Credit: Shayan Scott
A 2021 report on the bingo industry by LeanBack Player revealed that in 2019/20 both online and in-person establishments generated £910 million in the UK.
The bulk of which was made in live bingo, with online versions of the game growing in popularity, particularly during the pandemic.
Hijingo bingo club is located on Worship Street near the Shoreditch and Spitalfields areas.- Credit: Matt Crossick
James said the club will be "somewhere you can get the consistency and class of service people want, as well as a fun night at the bingo".
He added: "This is not a pop-up event, it’s a club that people want to come back to again and again”.
When players shout Hijingo, a computer identifies where they are sitting in the room and checks their card.- Credit: Matt Crossick
The club had planned to open in March 2020 but it was delayed for a year.
Hijingo's launch adds to a growing number of entertainment spots in Worship Street, including Junkyard Golf, Flight Club Darts and Platform Video games.
"It’s like the Las Vegas Strip for social entertainment, right here in Hackney," said Gordon.
The new club is located on Worship Street which James calls the borough's "Las Vegas strip". - Credit: Matt Crossick
