Two neighbours in Nottinghamshire have scooped £70,000 in lottery prizes - and revealed what they are planning to do with the money. The winners each pocketed prize cheques for £30,000, as well as a £5,000 holiday after their postcode is Bilsthorpe was announced as a winner in the People’s Postcode Lottery on Wednesday, March 1.
Diane Yarwood, 70, and her husband Jonathan were ‘overcome with emotion’ after becoming £35,000 richer. The couple couldn’t believe their luck when they found out how much they’d won.
Mr Yarwood gasped and said: “Oh my God! Oh my God! I could cry. It’s been so tough the last few years for us, it’s been horrendous with my illnesses and everything else, so this is just phenomenal."
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He joked that the lottery win almost compares to his beloved football club’s long-awaited return to the Premier League : “This is almost as good as Forest getting into the Premier League.”
After years without a holiday, the couple are now planning to set sail to Greece. Jonathan said: “We went on one cruise years ago after my mum sadly passed away, she left us a bit of money and we thought we’d spend it on a nice holiday.
“We loved the cruise, but we thought we’d never be able to afford another cruise. But with this money, we can go on a nice cruise in Greece.”
Mrs Yarwood was delighted to hear her neighbour had also won. She said: “It’s a fantastic community in this old mining village, we’ve been here 17 years and we love it. It’s great that our neighbour has also won.”
Helen Worker, 42, is one step closer to her dream purchase, a holiday home in Spain. She said: “We’ve been saving up for an apartment in Alicante, so this is a big chunk towards it. I can’t believe it.
“All the family will be able to use it, it’s been our dream for years.” Helen’s partner, Lee Worker, said: “We literally never win anything, and you always think nothing like this will ever happen to us.”
The pair, who have lived in Bilsthorpe all of their lives, also had another purchase in mind, Mrs Worker said: “We do need a new toilet upstairs, an ensuite.”
She is planning on celebrating the win in the local pub, she said: “We’ll head to the pub for some dinner and get everyone round. My sister has been really excited for me.” Her husband added: “They’ve been more excited than us.”
Postcode Lottery ambassador Judie McCourt said: “Congratulations to our two winners in Bilsthorpe. I had lots of fun surprising Diane and Helen with some whopping cash prizes. I hope they both enjoy celebrating tonight, spending the cash and have a great time on holiday.”
Everyday throughout February one postcode will be announced as a £30,000 prize winner. All the players in the postcode will win £30,000 and an additional £5,000 for a holiday for every ticket they hold.
People’s Postcode Lottery said that the players have raised more than a billion pounds for thousands of charities and local good causes. This draw was promoted on behalf of Postcode Animal Trust, which supports charities including Dogs Trust, PDSA and Cats Protection.
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