How to Play Telly Bingo

How to Play Telly Bingo

What is Telly Bingo? 

Telly Bingo is a bingo game that you can play for a chance to win €10,000 or more in the comfort of your own home! 

How much is a Telly Bingo ticket? 

Each ticket costs €2.50. 

When is Telly Bingo? 

Every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, the Telly Bingo TV Gameshow is broadcast on RTÉ One at 12.45pm. You can also watch the recordings on our YouTube channel or on the RTÉ player.  

Watch the latest TellyBingo Draw

Watch TellyBingo on RTE

Sales close at 11am and re-open at 11.15am on draw days. 

Who hosts Telly Bingo? 

Declan Buckley is the presenter of the Telly Bingo TV Gameshow on RTÉ since 2001. Nuala Carey occasionally presents the gameshow.

When did Telly Bingo start? 

Telly Bingo started in September 1999.

How to Play Telly Bingo

You can purchase Telly Bingo tickets at retail agents. All Telly Bingo tickets are generated randomly by the Lotto terminal using Quick Pick.  

Simply ask your National Lottery agent for a Telly Bingo ticket and you will receive a ticket which contains a grid of 24 randomly selected numbers and one free number represented by ** in the middle square. This free number is considered already marked.  

Each ticket shows the valid draw date, so don't forget to be in front of a telly on that date! 

For each Telly Bingo TV Gameshow there is a random drawing from 1 to 75.  

How much can you win on Telly Bingo? 

There are six prize categories in Telly Bingo:  

  1. Corners 
  2. X Cross 
  3. Fullhouse 
  4. Snowball 
  5. Lucky Line and  
  6. Phone Risk

A player can win in more than one prize category on a single ticket. 

Corners

  • To start the game 32 numbers are randomly drawn. 
  • Players who match the four corner numbers on their ticket on or before the 32nd number is drawn, win a parimutuel prize of on average €10, taking one Telly Bingo game with another. 
  • This prize will never be less than €5.

Xcross

  • A further four numbers are then drawn, bringing the total to 36. 
  • Players who match all eight numbers to make a cross or ‘X’ on their ticket, on or before the 36th number is drawn, win a parimutuel prize of on average €100, taking one Telly Bingo game with another.

Fullhouse

  • Additional numbers are then drawn until one or more players have marked all of the numbers on their ticket(s). This is called a ‘Fullhouse’.
  • The winner(s) win or share in a fixed prize of €10,000
  • Once there is a Fullhouse winner the game is considered over and no more numbers will be drawn.

Snowball

  • The Snowball prize is a bonus for players who achieve a Fullhouse on or before the 45th number, i.e. the Snowball number.
  • The Snowball winner(s) win or share in an additional €10,000
  • If there is no Snowball winner, the Snowball number will be increased by one number to 46 on the next show and €5,000 will be added to the Snowball prize. 
  • This process continues until there is a Snowball winner(s). 
  • Once the Snowball prize has been won, the Snowball number reverts to 45 and the Snowball prize is reset to €10,000.

Lucky Line

  • During the Telly Bingo TV Gameshow one of the five horizontal lines on the ticket is randomly selected. 
  • Players who match all of the numbers on the selected line win €5.
  • On each Telly Bingo ticket Line 1 refers to the top horizontal line and Line 5 refers to the bottom horizontal line. 
  • Vertical or diagonal lines don’t count for this game.

Phone Risk Card Number Game

  • On every TellyBingo ticket there is a unique six-digit card number printed directly below the 24-number grid. 
  • During the Telly Bingo TV show one of the card numbers is randomly chosen and announced by the presenter. 
  • The ticket owner with the corresponding card number has until 8pm on the following evening to phone-in to validate their winning ticket. 
  • The lucky player is then invited to participate in a Phone Risk game on the show where they are guaranteed to win a cash prize ranging from €1,000 to €10,000

 

Telly Bingo Advance Play 

Telly Bingo can be played with advance play for up to three draws in advance. Separate tickets for separate dates are issued. 

Odds of Winning Telly Bingo

 TellyBingo  
   Games       Approximate Odds   
 Corners  1 in 34
 X Game  1 in 558
 Lucky Line Prize   1 in 6
 Any Cash Prize 1 in 5  

 

Game Rules and Guides