Bookies expect to be busy despite no UK horse racing on Good Friday

The move follows last year's Gambling Act which allows bookies to trade every day except Christmas Day.

At least 4,000 bookmakers' shops opened, including almost all branches of Ladbrokes and Coral, despite there being no British horse racing.

The Church of England had called for bookmakers to donate some of the profits to anti-gambling charities.

Demand expected

They joined with a number of other Christian groups who asked people not to bet.

In a statement the Church of England said: "We would encourage operators to keep their shops closed on Good Friday.

"But those who insist on opening will, we hope, undertake to donate a decent portion of their profits towards programmes of education, research and treatment aimed at checking the growth in problem gambling."

A spokesman for the Methodist Church said they would prefer people to think about the day's religious significance rather than placing bets.

I wouldn't want to moralise about how people spend their leisure time Ciaran O'Brian, Ladbrokes

But Ladbrokes defended its decision to open, saying the new law only brought betting shops in to line with other retailers who can already open on Good Friday.

Spokesman Ciaran O'Brien said: "You can bet online any day of the week, any time of the day. That's another reason why the shops should be able to compete."

He added: "I wouldn't want to moralise about how people spend their leisure time."

But John Heaton, chief executive of The Betting & Gaming Consultancy and ex-head of the Tote, told Radio Five Live the bookies were unsure if it was a good idea.

'Business as usual'

He said: "I think, for the operators themselves, time will tell.

"There's no horse racing, so how many punters will be in the shops today I can't really tell.

"From the staff's point of view they are used to working lots of bank holidays ... for them this is no different."

A Department for Culture, Media and Sport spokesman said there had been a wide-ranging consultation before the gambling laws were changed.

The spokesman said: "During the lead-up and passage of the Gambling Bill through Parliament, consultations took place with a wide range of stakeholders, including industry associations, faith groups, trade unions and charities."

Before the act came into force in September casinos and bingo halls were allowed to open on all public holidays except Christmas Day, but arcades and betting shops were not.

Gambling in betting shops had been banned since the Betting and Gaming Act of 1960.

Ladbrokes said it expected a heavy demand from customers and opened 1,900 of its 2,200 shops.

William Hill opened one in 10 of its shops and said those staff working had volunteered to come in.