Gala High 5 winner becomes local hero
8th November, 2007
Margaret Ann Venables, a Gala Bingo member in Fenton, was a very popular lady last night as she won the Gala High 5 jackpot of £874,208, of which £437,104 was share between the 369 bingo players at the club.
The mother of four who plays bingo every Wednesday said: “My mother died two months ago and I was sitting in her seat, playing with my youngest sister – I really felt her presence with me all night. I’m delighted to win such a huge amount which I’ll be sharing with my sister. I feel like my mum who supported me when she was alive has made sure I’ll be ok without her. It’s amazing. This win has not only changed my life but has made a difference to the lives of all of my friends at the club. Everyone was coming up to me thanking me. I felt like Christmas had come early!”
She was playing with all of Gala’s members across the country, and when initially calling house, thought she had won the full house prize of £7,362, but because she called on the number 5 the win actually totalled £437,104. The club manager Chris Quigley said: “We’re delighted to have the first full jackpot winner of Gala High 5 in our club. The way the game works is very simple; if ‘house’ is called on number five, players can claim 50 per cent of the rollover jackpot, whilst the remaining 50 per cent is shared by all the other players at the club.”
The Gala High 5 game was introduced as a result of the new Gambling Act 2005, which has opened the door for bingo clubs to start running cumulative jackpots. Over the past two months, nearly £1.7million has been handed out as a result of the new game.
