500 Tambola Calls (Nicknames 1 to 90)
One of the most characteristic parts of playing a traditional housie game is the calling sequence. Experienced callers use rhyming nicknames, historical facts, and witty double-entendres to announce numbers. Using these calls makes the session feel like a professional club game! Here is our curated list of the best calls for numbers 1 to 90.
1. Highlights of Popular Nicknames
Some of the most famous visual and rhyming call combinations include:
- 1: Kelly's Eye / First on the Board / Butter Finger
- 7: Lucky Seven / Colors of the Rainbow / God's Number
- 11: Two Legs / Beautiful Legs / Pencils side-by-side
- 22: Twin Swans / Two Little Ducks / Quack Quack
- 55: All the Fives / Double Nickel / Five-Five
- 88: Two Fat Ladies / Snowman Stack / Wobbly Glasses
- 90: Top of the Shop / Santa's Sack / End of the Line
2. Complete Number Nickname Checklist
Here is a reference grid of traditional calls to help you host like a pro:
| Num | Call Nickname | Num | Call Nickname |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kelly's Eye | 2 | Kaana Raja (One-eyed King) |
| 3 | Cup of Tea | 4 | Knock at the Door |
| 5 | Fife's Symbol | 6 | Chocho / In the Mix |
| 7 | Lucky Seven | 8 | One Fat Lady |
| 9 | Doctor's Orders | 10 | A Big Fat Hen |
| 11 | Two Legs / Beautiful Legs | 12 | One Dozen |
| 13 | Unlucky for Some | 14 | Valentine's Day |
| 15 | Yet to be Kissed | 16 | Sweet Sixteen |
| 17 | Dancing Queen | 18 | Voting Age |
| 19 | Goodbye Teens | 20 | One Score / Blind 20 |
| 21 | Royal Salute | 22 | Two Little Ducks |
| 23 | You and Me | 24 | Two Dozen |
| 25 | Silver Jubilee | 26 | Republic Day |
| 27 | Gateway to Heaven | 28 | Duck & Fate |
| 29 | In Your Prime | 30 | Dirty Thirty |
| 31 | Baskin Robbins | 32 | Toothless |
| 33 | All the 3s / Dirty Gertie | 34 | Dil Maange More |
| 35 | Flirty Thirty-Five | 36 | Popular Number |
| 37 | Mixed Luck | 38 | Christmas Cake |
| 39 | Watch Your Steps | 40 | Naughty Forty |
| 41 | Life Begins at 41 | 42 | Quit India / Winnie the Pooh |
| 43 | Pain in the Knee | 44 | All the Fours |
| 45 | Halfway There | 46 | Up to Tricks |
| 47 | Independence Day | 48 | Four Dozen |
| 49 | Rise and Shine | 50 | Half a Century |
| 51 | Charity Begins at 51 | 52 | Pack of Cards |
| 53 | Pack of Cards + 1 | 54 | Clean Sweep |
| 55 | All the Fives | 56 | Was She Worth It? |
| 57 | Mutiny Year | 58 | Make Them Wait |
| 59 | Just Page 59 | 60 | Five Dozen |
| 61 | Bakers Bun | 62 | Turn the Screw |
| 63 | Clickety Click | 64 | Red Raw |
| 65 | Retirement Age | 66 | Clickety Click + 3 |
| 67 | Made in Heaven | 68 | Saving Grace |
| 69 | Anyway Up | 70 | Blind Seventy |
| 71 | Lucky Bachelor | 72 | Double Dozen |
| 73 | Queen B | 74 | Candy Store |
| 75 | Diamond Jubilee | 76 | Trombones |
| 77 | Two Little Shovels | 78 | Heaven's Gate |
| 79 | One More Time | 80 | Gandhi's Age |
| 81 | Corner Shot | 82 | Fat Lady with a Duck |
| 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 |
3. Hosting with our Voice Caller
If you don't want to call names yourself, our online tool features an automatic caller board that announces numbers using text-to-speech, letting everyone play without needing a manual announcer!