The smoking ban has be- devilled the whole leisure sector, particularly bingo hall operators.
Locally, Manchester-based Buckingham Bingo has suffered, and its private equity owner, Alchemy Partners, has handed control of the business over to its bank after a slump in trading conditions.
Rank beat the worst fears of the City with pre-tax profits of £17.6m in the six months to June 30 - but this was still 53 per cent below last year's £37.3m, and Rank said the outlook remained `challenging'.
Chief executive Ian Burke said: "Over the course of recent months we have experienced a slight weakening in the group's performance."
The group, which owns the Grosvenor Casino chain, is also being hit by a double taxation regime on its bingo revenues, although it should benefit later this year from eased restrictions on the number of high-jackpot gaming machines in its clubs.
Rank's response to the downturn has seen it improve its food and drink offering and introduce outside gaming areas to accommodate smokers, with facilities now present in 46 of its 103 Mecca clubs.
But this failed to prevent a 13 per cent fall in admissions to 7.8m in the first half, with operating profits dropping by nearly a third.
The group has bingo clubs in Spain - also in the grip of an economic slowdown - although the strength of the euro over the period masked weaker trading.
Rank said it was on track to make around £15m in cost savings this year, but also warned of a £5m hike in its utility bills, as food, rent and staff costs also rise.
Grosvenor saw a 13 per cent fall in admissions across its 32 casinos. Operating profit fell 31 per cent.
Betting website Blue Square grew half-year revenues by three per cent to £27m, but Rank said there was a `marked deterioration' during the second quarter, as average stakes declined.
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