The first ever raffle was held in Abingdon, Oxfordshire in 1642
The winning prize was a pig!
( Two Hats 🎩🎩, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:03, 2 replies, latest was 14 years ago)

Gyles Brandreth's definitive history of raffles has been reprinted 13 times
and has outsold the Bible in DR Congo every year since 1986.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:05, Reply)

If all the raffle tickets sold annually were screwed up and thrown into the O2 arena
There would be enough to fill 14 double decker buses, FOUR times over....on the moon!
( Two Hats 🎩🎩, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:08, Reply)

'raffle' is an anagram of 'frafle'

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:11, Reply)

Who would have thought that there was so much Raffle-related trivia?

( Two Hats 🎩🎩, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:14, Reply)

Gyles Brandreth, for one.

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:17, Reply)

His interest in Raffles stems from the time he won a wooly jumper in one as a child
ever since he has been fascinated by their history and socio economic impact
( Naked Ape call me Caitlyn, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:21, Reply)

No it doesn't YOU IDIOT.

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:23, Reply)

In the original stories, the woodpecker in 'Bagpuss' was called 'Professor Raffle',
but they changed the name because it was also the brand name of a kind of cat food at the time.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:06, Reply)

In Shrewsbury it's illegal for a welshman to win a raffle,
but they can still enter.
(PsychoChomp, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:10, Reply)

In 1946 Mrs.Edith Button was the first person on record to die of "Raffle related complications"
When she accidentally ate a book of tickets, mistaking them for a pink wafer.
( Two Hats 🎩🎩, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:12, Reply)

During prohibition americans would secretly hold raffles in carparks.

(PsychoChomp, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:18, Reply)

An ostritches eye is bigger than most raffle tickets.

(PsychoChomp, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:20, Reply)

Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles had an irrational fear of small pieces of paper.
To this day all raffle tickets in Singapore are made from monkey skins.
( tangledupinblue hairy badge with moving eyes, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:21, Reply)

February 1865 is the only month in recorded history not to have a full raffle.

(PsychoChomp, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:22, Reply)

Never turn your back on a raffle, you must backaway whilst maintaining eye contact

( Naked Ape call me Caitlyn, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:23, Reply)

If a statue in the park of a person on a horse has both front legs in the air, the person won a raffle;
if the horse has one front leg in the air, the person took part in raffles;
if the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died during a raffle.
(PsychoChomp, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:25, Reply)

winna

( Naked Ape call me Caitlyn, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:25, Reply)

I think we've all had quite enough raffleabilia now.

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:28, Reply)

In Victorian time when there was deep interest in the occult
mediums would use raffles to entice spirits to their seances, however car had to be taken as if the spirit didn't win then they could turn violent and would have to be captured in a special "tombola"
( Naked Ape call me Caitlyn, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:29, Reply)

see above

( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Thu 17 May 2012, 15:36, Reply)