A former coal merchant who spent weeks in intensive care last year with sepsis says he will never have to worry about how much is on the electric meter again after winning £185,000 on the Postcode Lottery.
David John Price, 65, says he's "never been a lucky man" and lost his sister nine years ago and son last year before being struck down with Covid-19 and sepsis.
His health became so bad doctors told his family to say their goodbyes as he lay unconscious in bed.
But now his life has been transformed after he scooped a share of a multi-million pound jackpot.
“It’s been bad - really, really bad,” David told WalesOnline from his modest home in Rhymney with his beloved pooch Charles and niece Emma Taylor.
On this quiet and unassuming street of ex-council houses just south of Merthyr Tydfil, which residents describe as “largely forgotten”, nine people have won a total of £2.8million on the Postcode Lottery.
“It’s about time something good happened for people here,” hollered neighbour Linda Greenway, taking a break from trimming the hedges of her well-kept front garden.
“They all absolutely deserve it.”
On May 28, 435 residents in the area each won a share of a larger £3.7million jackpot.
After what David has been through no one could begrudge him a dose of fortune and he couldn’t be happier. “
He said, "this is the best time of my life - definitely," admitting the news still hasn’t sunk in.
David added: “It’s been a hard time over the last few years.
"I’ve had a triple bypass, I’ve been in and out of the heart failure clinic at Mountain Ash, then I got the Covid and sepsis which they thought had killed me.
"I went in 20 stone and came out 13 stone.”
Niece Emma said: “We got the call to come in and say bye to him in intensive care.
"We’d all prepared ourselves for the worst. They told us how lucky he’d been when he came around from it.”
She described the moment he opened his envelope in front of lauding neighbours this week as 'absolutely amazing'".
"We were all there with him and everyone was out watching from both sides of the street,” she recalled, excitedly gesticulating outside.
“I was spraying him with angina spray and trying to keep him calm.
"He didn’t sleep the night before thinking about how much he might have won. I just cried the whole time when he was out there opening the envelope, I had to come in and have a break.
“Honestly, I didn’t think this could have happened to people around here. I’ll be putting mine on now and hoping New Tredegar comes out!”
David admitted to originally assuming the call about his lottery win was a scam.
He said: "I thought it was one of those scams - it was like someone was messing with me.
"I got my daughter-in-law on a three-way call with them to see what she thought.
“When she realised it was true she started screaming and I couldn’t stop shaking.
"They said they couldn’t disclose any more information until I opened the envelope the next day.
“When I saw them outside and all the people on the street I started really shaking then.
"I slowly pulled the card out of the envelope and saw 185 and thought I’d won £185.
"Well when I saw the three zeros, that was it. I just started crying to be honest.”
Prior to the win, David said he was struggling to make ends meet.
He said: “I’ve worked hard but I’ve never had a lot of money. I have one of those meters and put £20 on it at a time.
“I have to really think hard about putting the heating on. I would put it on for a bit in the evening at 8pm but it goes off then.
"The gas and electric has gone up by £700 - I was struggling.
“To think I could put £200 or even a thousand in that meter and not have to worry about it - it’s a lot to take in to be honest.
"I’ve never seen money like this, I’ve never thought about having money like this.”
Linda Greenway, whose sister-in-law and nephew also got £3,000 each, has lived on the street for 39 years.
She said watching her neighbours receive the money was a moment she’ll never forget.
“We’ve never known anything like this before - ever,” she said.
“By the time they were out seeing how much they’d won word had got around what was happening and lots of people were here watching, but no one realised how much money it was until they opened the envelopes.
"When Ted pulled the second one out I just thought: ‘Oh my God’.
“It was brilliant because Ted is such a nice, kind and hardworking person.
"As is everyone else who has won on the street. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer bunch of people.”
