We haven’t heard much about rubber ducks in a while. Ever since their heyday in the 1970s, prompted by Ernie from Sesame Street’s musical odyssey through the realm of squeezable bathroom toys, they’ve drifted out of the public consciousness to be replaced by all manner of talentless ‘celebrities’, who if you ask me, are just famous for being famous. Back in the day, we had real stars with real talent, as you can see in this clip:
A better reggae song you will not hear, and who can fail to share Ernie’s boundless enthusiasm for his charming bathroom companion? Certainly not online bingo website Jackpotjoy, who have brought the rubber duck kicking and screaming back into the limelight by sailing a ginormous rubber duck down London’s River Thames. You can see a Twitter photostream of its landmark voyage here.
The stunt is part of Jackpotjoy’s new ‘Just for the Jackpotjoy of it’ ad campaign, starring Babs Windsor as the Queen of Bingo. The rubber duck ties in with the squeezy toy contraption used to perform a well-known classical ditty in this commercial:
As well as fronting the ad campaigns, Babs also appears in her very own bingo game, Bingo Royale, at Jackpotjoy. This is just one of the many exciting bingo games available on the site, which features several versions of classic 90 ball bingo and 75 ball bingo. As well as the bingo games, the site also hosts a variety of casino games and slots, including Peggle Slots, Wonderland, Slots Friendzy, Video Poker, and Deal or No Deal Slot. To entice new players, Jackpotjoy are offering new players a staggering £30 worth of playing credits in exchange for a first deposit of £10. While you can play many of the games for free in demo mode, signing up to play for cash unlocks the entire range of Jackpotjoy’s bingo, slots, and other casino games, and allows you to play for instant cash prizes.
So will Jackpotjoy’s duck stunt herald the dawn of a whole new era of rubber duck appreciation? Certainly, the limitless musical possibilities of these toys have been laid bare for all to see as never before. For musicians who haven’t had a new instrument since the invention of the synthesizer, squeezable toys might just provide them with the new sound we have all been waiting for!
