Kirkwall in Orkney, Scotland, is the luckiest town across the whole of the UK, while Scottish locations are disproportionately fortunate, according to new research. The study, conducted by Paddy Power Bingo, takes a deep dive into the results of millions of individual games of online bingo played by their customers, revealing Kirkwall boasts a 31%-win rate.
The Scottish town’s impressive win ratio is almost 50% higher than that of any other UK town or city, with Lymington in Hampshire and Isleworth in London rounding off the top three (both with 21% win rate). Paddy Power Bingo punters may want to move to Scotland for some luck, as four Scottish towns feature in the top 10 luckiest locations – massively outperforming Wales, with Maesteg in Bridgend the only Welsh representative within the list.
Top 10 UK towns by win rate
| Rank |
Town/city |
Country |
Win percentage |
| 1 |
Kirkwall, Orkney |
Scotland |
31% |
| 2 |
Lymington, Hampshire |
England |
21% |
| 3 |
Isleworth, London |
England |
21% |
| 4 |
Melksham, Wiltshire |
England |
20% |
| 5 |
Dingwall, Highland |
Scotland |
20% |
| 6 |
Larkhall, South Lanarkshire |
Scotland |
20% |
| 7 |
Lockerbie, Dumfries, and Galloway |
Scotland |
20% |
| 8 |
Wetherby, West Yorkshire |
England |
20% |
| 9 |
Maesteg, Bridgend |
Wales |
19% |
| 10 |
Wadebridge, Cornwall |
England |
19% |
However, while Scots are regularly celebrating a win, when it comes to the top 10 for amounts won, there are no representatives from north of the border. The English, despite winning less frequently, benefit from much larger pay-outs, with nine English towns ranking amongst the best for average pay out per game.
Despite just one representative in the top 10 for both win rate and largest average payout, Wales tops the charts for highest average winnings, with Ruthin (Denbighshire) being the most fruitful. Hebden, and Longfield, in West Yorkshire and Kent respectively, secure silver and bronze in the payout table.
Top 10 towns by average payout:
| Rank |
Town/city |
Country |
| 1 |
Ruthin, Denbighshire |
Wales |
| 2 |
Hebden bridge, West Yorkshire |
England |
| 3 |
Longfield, Kent |
England |
| 4 |
Ashbourne, Derbyshire |
England |
| 5 |
Pulborough, West Sussex |
England |
| 6 |
Bodmin, Cornwall |
England |
| 7 |
Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire |
England |
| 8 |
Shefford, Bedfordshire |
England |
| 9 |
Surbiton, London |
England |
| 10 |
Esher, Surrey |
England |
The largest ever individual win occurred in Doncaster, with one extremely lucky punter earning a whopping £20,570 from one game. Not to be completely outdone by the North, London has recorded the most wins over £1,000 (162) followed by Coventry (110) who are way ahead of the chasing pack. Surprising entrants into the top 10 include smaller areas such as Romford and Haverhill.
Wins over £1,000:
| Rank |
Town/city |
Country |
Number of wins over £1,000 |
| 1 |
London |
England |
162 |
| 2 |
Coventry |
England |
110 |
| 3 |
Leicester |
England |
70 |
| 4 |
Manchester |
England |
65 |
| 5 |
Romford, Essex |
England |
47 |
| 6 |
Haverhill, Suffolk |
England |
44 |
| 7 |
Liverpool |
England |
40 |
| 8 |
Bristol |
England |
39 |
| 9 |
Glasgow |
Scotland |
39 |
| 10 |
Stockport |
England |
36 |
A spokesperson for Paddy Power Bingo said: “Bingo requires a fair bit of luck, so we thought it’d be a good idea to get one of our boffins to analyse the results of over 700 million games to find out who does best. So, well done to the people of Kirkwall who seem to be far more fortunate than anyone else in the country.
“Given the strong Scottish representation amongst the luckiest locations, you may consider a move north of the border to bring good fortune. I’d stay well clear of Wales though. And it’s also not very lucky…”
