Bongo’s Bingo is hands-down a cracking night out. Mix up some cocktail pitchers with a rave in a historical hall and you’ve got a recipe for success.
But it’s also more than your average Manchester event. Bongo’s Bingo is mad, unadulterated entertainment: A Year Six disco crossed with an office Christmas party. Only this time, boys and girls are not lingering in opposite corners and the teachers are stood on tables singing ‘Sweet Caroline’ – fuelled up on Woo-Woos and jaeger bombs whilst waving glow sticks.
With Rich Furness and his two hype-men dressed in drag headlining the show, Bongo’s cranks up the volume and turns Albert Hall into an absolute riot.
Rich Furness and his two hype men dressed in drag are experts in entertainment.
Bongo’s is always that night-out where ‘that crazy thing’ happened.
During the event we attended, a lad stopped the game and proposed – a gesture greeted by hoots from an auditorium of smashed strangers and awarded with a pat on the back from Rich.
ADVERTISEMENT
And that’s the best thing about Bongo’s – nothing is off-limits, and no one cares. Everyone is there for one thing and one thing only – to get smashed and have a cracking night out.
Oh, and to play Bingo, of course.
ADVERTISEMENT
Bongo’s version of bingo is on steroids – and so are the prizes.
Here’s a bit more about what’s involved…
It’s a game of chance, anyone could be walking out with a serious cash prize
The Game:
ADVERTISEMENT
Bongo’s version of bingo is split into five games with three rounds.
First round is won by crossing off just one horizontal row, the second is won by two rows and the third by getting a full house.
Huge numbers flash up on the screen and are read out seriously quickly, so you’ve got to be on the ball. But that also means the more tequila consumed by your competitors, the higher chance of winning the later prizes (just a tip from us).
Then, the steroids kick in. Bongo’s takes a pensioner’s hobby and makes it wild, verging on an X-rated Mad Hatter’s party.
One false call and the crowd shouts “D*ckhead!” repeatedly at you – public humiliation you won’t forget.
ADVERTISEMENT
Shout “Bingo!” at the same time as someone else, and you’re in for a dance off.
Coco Pops that were won were immediately sprayed over the crowd.
The Prizes:
Prizes at Bongo’s range from a box of Coco Pops (sprayed over the crowd) to a life-size cut out of Michael Bublé – that’s right, you could win the king of Christmas himself.
If you’re really lucky, you might even wheel home a new Henry Hoover or a huge set of Disney Princess Barbies. There’s even a karaoke machine up for grabs – if you’re willing to sing for it.
Lucky winners can take home £50, £200 and £1,000 – and all you have to do is get drunk and turn up.
ADVERTISEMENT
Everyone’s a winner at Bongo’s, though. Singing Take That whilst ordering in another round of shots… it’s a class night out.
Jersey Boys at Palace Theatre, Manchester – Oh, what a night
Amy Williams
20 years, 65 major awards (including Tonys, a Grammy, and an Olivier), and seen by over 27 million people worldwide – it could only be Jersey Boys, and now it’s back at the Palace Theatre in Manchester.
This is one of those shows where you realise just how many songs you know and love by Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, but may not know the story behind the band themselves. How they started, how big they became, how they fell apart, and how they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
It follows the four boys from Jersey (who each narrate their parts of the story), how it started as just Tommy and Nick and a range of different guys along the way, until they found the one who has a voice like an angel, Frankie Valli, and this started to change the direction of their success.
But they were missing a key part, a good song writer – enter Bob Gaudio, and the creation of The Four Lovers, who then became The Four Seasons.
Mixed with issues of debt, loan sharks, prison time and more, it wasn’t the smoothest of sailing for them, and as they said themselves, they didn’t create a movement like the Beatles. But The Four Seasons were for the factory workers, the dads, the working class people who could relate to them.
One thing we need to talk about, is just how INCREDIBLE the vocal performances are in this tour of Jersey Boys, staring Luke Baker as Frankie Valli, Carlo Boumouglbay as Tommy Devito, Lewis Kennedy as Nick Massi, and Toby Miles as Bob Gaudio.
Jersey Boys is back in Manchester, for a run at the Palace Theatre
A special mention for Luke Baker, because as iconic as Frankie Valli’s voice is, he very perfectly matched it.
The musical features some of their biggest hits including Sherry, Big Girls Don’t Cry, Beggin’, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, Walk Like A Man, and of course, December 1963 (Oh, What A Night) which had everyone up on their feet dancing at the end.
This show is incredible from beginning to end, and would recommend everyone go to see this.
Jersey Boys is running at the Palace Theatre in Manchester until Saturday 19 September, and you can grab your tickets HERE.
High School Musical at Lowry, Salford – a night spent reliving our childhood | Review
Amy Williams
What a night spent reliving our childhood.
Now, I don’t want to exaggerate or seem biased, considering this is one of my favourite film trilogies of all time, but this could be the best stage show I’ve seen in a long while.
We all know how High School Musical goes, right? Set at East High, we follow Troy and Gabriella (the star basketball player, and the geeky new girl) who meet over New Year, and then become ‘star-crossed lovers’ when back at school as they’re part of two different ‘cliques’.
The duo mess with the ‘Status Quo’ when they audition for the school musical. But will they stick to what they know? Or become stars of the stage? I’m sure you know the ending.
High School Musical is currently on stage at Lowry, Salford / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
From the costumes and the characters, to the memorable songs (there’s actually 52 songs in this production, including a mega mix at the end), they’ve kept right to the script of the films – and that’s exactly what we wanted to see.
Of course, the biggest throwback of them all is Kaycee Stroh – who originally featured as Martha Cox in the film trilogy – taking the role as Ms Darbus, and she was just as incredible as we expected her to be. And to see her do the iconic dance in the finale was unbelievable, 13-year-old Amy was screaming.
Also featuring Jason Donovan as Coach Bolton, Tobias Turley as Troy, Leonor Correia as Gabriella, Caitlin Tipping Sharpay, and Luke Bayer as Ryan, it was a proper impressive cast all round.
It’s a night to properly relive your mid-00s childhood / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
There was crowd interaction right from the off, as they taught the crowd a cheerleading routine to be included later in the show, plus for the finale, they had the lyrics on the big screen too so everyone could sing-along.
If we could go and see this show every single night, we would – it is absolutely brilliant.
Dolly Busby -
10th December 2021 
