(Emeritus Professor) Jim Orford will feature on The Channel Four TV show Dispatches on the subject of gambling. The special interest just now is in the types of gambling machines, new in the last 10 years, which allow people to play virtual casino-type games on machines to be found in high street betting shops. A lot of money can be lost very quickly on these machines, known as Fixed Odds Betting Terminals, and they seem to be particularly addictive. Dispatches were very interested in results from the 2010 British Gambling Prevalence Survey, recently accepted for publication in International Gambling Studies, in which Jim and co-authors estimate that approximately 25% of all industry profits from these machines are contributed by people with gambling problems. The programme is due out on Monday 6th August. Jim hopes it will also include mention of the campaign group, Gambling Watch UK, which he and others have recently founded in order to question the expansion of gambling which has been occurring – see the website at www.gamblingwatchuk.org.
Please note:
The programme was originally due to air on Monday 9th July, but is now due to air on Monday 6th August. Please check the Dispatches website nearer the date for details of times. You can also watch online on 4OD.