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Tambola Number Calls (1-90)
Tambola number calls are the funny nicknames a caller uses while announcing each number - like "Two Fat Ladies, 88!" or "Kelly's Eye, number 1". They come from classic 90-ball Housie and make the game livelier, help players catch numbers over noisy rooms, and are half the fun of a good Tambola night. Here is the complete list of traditional calls for all 90 numbers.
The complete list: 1 to 90
1 Kelly's Eye
2 One Little Duck
3 Cup of Tea
4 Knock at the Door
5 Man Alive
6 Half a Dozen
7 Lucky Seven
8 Garden Gate
9 Doctor's Orders
10 Prime Minister's Den
11 Legs Eleven
12 One Dozen
13 Unlucky for Some
14 Valentine's Day
15 Young and Keen
16 Sweet Sixteen
17 Dancing Queen
18 Coming of Age
19 Goodbye Teens
20 One Score
21 Key of the Door
22 Two Little Ducks
23 Thee and Me
24 Two Dozen
25 Duck and Dive
26 Pick and Mix
27 Gateway to Heaven
28 In a State
29 Rise and Shine
30 Dirty Gertie
31 Get Up and Run
32 Buckle My Shoe
33 All the Threes
34 Ask for More
35 Jump and Jive
36 Three Dozen
37 More than Eleven
38 Christmas Cake
39 Those Famous Steps
40 Life Begins
41 Time for Fun
42 Winnie the Pooh
43 Down on Your Knees
44 Droopy Drawers
45 Halfway There
46 Up to Tricks
47 Four and Seven
48 Four Dozen
49 PC 49
50 Half a Century
51 Tweak of the Thumb
52 Deck of Cards
53 Stuck in the Tree
54 Clean the Floor
55 Snakes Alive
56 Was She Worth It?
57 Heinz Varieties
58 Make Them Wait
59 Brighton Line
60 Five Dozen
61 Baker's Bun
62 Tickety-Boo
63 Tickle Me
64 Red Raw
65 Old Age Pension
66 Clickety Click
67 Stairway to Heaven
68 Saving Grace
69 Either Way Up
70 Three Score and Ten
71 Bang on the Drum
72 Six Dozen
73 Queen Bee
74 Hit the Floor
75 Strive and Strive
76 Trombones
77 Sunset Strip
78 Heaven's Gate
79 One More Time
80 Gandhi's Breakfast
81 Stop and Run
82 Straight On Through
83 Time for Tea
84 Seven Dozen
85 Staying Alive
86 Between the Sticks
87 Torquay in Devon
88 Two Fat Ladies
89 Nearly There
90 Top of the Shop
Why do Tambola numbers have nicknames?
The tradition comes from bingo halls, where callers invented rhymes and jokes so that similar-sounding numbers (like 15 and 50, or 17 and 70) wouldn't be confused. Some calls rhyme with the number ("Time for Tea, 83"), some describe its shape ("Two Fat Ladies, 88" - the two 8s look like two round figures; "Gandhi's Breakfast, 80" - he ate nothing), and some are cultural references ("Trombones, 76" from the famous song).
Desi-style calling
At Indian kitty parties and Diwali games, hosts often replace the classic calls with their own shayari-style lines, Bollywood references, or family in-jokes - announcing a number only after the rhyme is guessed. If you're calling numbers yourself, feel free to mix the traditional list above with your own desi twists; the only rule is that the number must be announced clearly after the call.
Let Tambola.fun do the calling for you
On Tambola.fun, numbers are called automatically with audio announcements, so nobody has to sit out as the caller. Host a game online with friends, or use our free Tambola number generator if you're playing offline with paper tickets and want a digital caller board.
Frequently asked questions
Q: What is called out in Tambola?
The caller announces random numbers from 1 to 90, one at a time, traditionally prefixed with the number's nickname. Players strike announced numbers off their tickets and claim prizes like Early Five, Lines and Full House.
Q: Are Tambola and bingo calls the same?
Tambola uses the same 1-90 calls as British 90-ball bingo, since it's the same game. American 75-ball bingo instead uses letter-number combinations like B-12 or G-52. See Tambola vs Housie vs Bingo.
Q: Why is 88 called Two Fat Ladies?
Because the two 8s side by side look like two round figures - it's one of the oldest and most famous shape-based bingo calls.
This document was last updated: July 21st, 2026.
