I entered a newspaper competition years ago, answering a question about Rummikub, and was then drawn out to play against three other people in the window of our local W H Smith. I was so nervous as I’d never played and had to buy a set and learn the game beforehand.
Somehow I came second, and the two of us had an expenses paid day down in London taking part in the first national Rummikub championship, where I finished sixth. There were prizes for the top four, and the winner went on to the world championships in Israel. The rest of us went home with a goody bag. The event had a lot of press publicity, including a half page feature in the Guardian - the chap who beat me in the local event featured in it, as he had a very interesting background.
I haven’t played for years, but I’m going to dig my set out now and see if I can beat any of the grandsons!