Aylesbury man returns from holiday to discover he won thousands via lottery draw
A man from Aylesbury returned from holiday to be greeted with news he had won thousands of pounds through a lottery competition.
The Postcode Lottery revealed that David Lewis ignored correspondence claiming he had won £30,000. He was on holiday relaxing on the Greek isle of Corfu when his win was confirmed.
David and wife Jackie, 63, were lying on sunbeds by their hotel pool at a resort near Corfu Town when they got an alert from the lottery, it has been revealed.
It was when they came home at 1am that they finally saw confirmation of their winnings, the same day the lottery team held its presentation. David said: “It was the best coming-home-from-holiday ever. We had a message abroad and didn’t believe it was a real thing. We were lying on a sunbed at the pool.
“We literally just found out when we got back really early this morning. A neighbour had spoken to our daughter, and she filled us in on the way home that something might be happening.”
They were among 11 neighbours who pocketed windfalls after HP21 7AL won the lottery’s £30,000 prize, awarded to winning postcodes every day in June draws. Every ticket was worth £30,000, but one player doubled theirs with two.
David, a roofing contractor, told the lottery he was planning on retiring in a few weeks but the windfall may accelerate the start of his post-work life. He added: “I was going to retire in September. This may be the little push that I need.”
The dad of two daughters added: “Holidays are important in retirement. And I’m sure the kids will get some benefit.”
Emma Matthews, 46, who won alongside her husband, told the Postcode Lottery that he had only entered the competition one month ago.
Car hire firm boss Emma questioned Craig, 52, when he revealed that he’d joined the Postcode Lottery – because she had already been playing for years.
But the British Gas engineer’s decision meant the couple are now celebrating a cool £60,000 payday.
Emma said: “I’ve played for a long time, and my husband came home and said he had joined last month. I said, ‘why have you done that? I’m already in it’.
“Neither of us can believe it. We don’t win anything. We have very normal lives, and it doesn’t happen to people like us. It’s a surprise and so lovely. It will make such an impact.”
Emma was with a friend watching a tennis match at The Queen’s Club in London when she got a message to say she had won, the lottery revealed. She laughed: “I missed half the tennis match. I didn’t think it was real and I got in touch with my husband to tell him to let me know if he got a call, too. He called back and said he’d also won.”
Now the mum-of-two said they will help their daughters, aged 24 and 21. She said: “We’ll save some for our girls’ future. It’s lovely to give something to their futures.”