An elderly couple are celebrating winning more than £100,000 on the Euromillions, thanks to the fact the husband forgot to bring his reading glasses with him when he went to put his numbers on.
Eighty-year-old Denis Fawsitt usually uses family birthday numbers when he puts on the draw, but after getting to the shop and realising he didn't have his specs he opted for a Lucky Dip instead.
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And it turned out to be a very lucky Lucky Dip for Denis and wife Ann, 75, because they scooped a £116,124 win after matching five numbers and one Lucky Star number in the draw on 16 March.
A delighted Denis said: "I realised I had forgotten my glasses and tried to pick my numbers, but I just couldn't.
"I went to pay for my papers and asked the lady behind the counter for a Lucky Dip. It turned out to be one of my best decisions ever.
"After what happened in the newsagent, I had this funny feeling we were going to win.
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"I said to my wife Ann that evening that I felt we were going to win big."
The next morning Denis popped back to the shops to pick up the newspaper and asked staff to check his ticket, where he was informed that he'd need to ring the National Lottery's operator Camelot because he'd won such a large amount.
Denis rang daughter Sally as soon as he got home and asked her to check the ticket for him.
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He added: "When I called Sally she thought I was being silly and had probably got things mixed up, especially as I told her I had forgotten my glasses.
"But I was right, I had won but because it was still only 7.30am we had to wait until The National Lottery hotline opened at 9am to call and check.
"Sally went to work and explained to her boss that she needed to pop back for a family emergency at 9am.
"She came back as planned, called The National Lottery people and we all went into shock upon hearing the news.
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"I hurt my back a few years ago so I haven't been able to tend to my garden as much as I would have liked.
"With a bit of landscaping, Ann and I can enjoy our garden even more, especially as the summer is not too far away.
"I still play every week and even though I won without my glasses I make sure I take them now as I am back to playing with family birthday dates."
Ann joked that although they were over the moon with their win, there was no dancing about the house when they got the good news.
She said: "Not at our age, especially with Denis' bad back. Denis had a drop of whisky and I had a small sherry.
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"We then put the lucky winning ticket in the living room cabinet for safekeeping before the people from The National Lottery were able to validate the ticket.
"When the win was confirmed, we did have a glass or two of fizz, and when this horrible Covid has gone away and it's safe, we'll have a big family party to celebrate."
Featured Image Credit: SWNS