I’ve won £25k Mail jackpot ...just in time for our 25th anniversary!
TREASURE Hunt winner Alistair Hunstone says 25 must be his lucky number after he scooped £25,000 in the Daily Mail competition as his 25th wedding anniversary nears.
The former Household Cavalry guard won the cash by solving a series of clues all week and correctly guessing that the seaside resort of Cromer, in Norfolk, was the winning answer.
Mr Hunstone, 58, who lives in Southport, near Liverpool, admitted he had never visited the East Anglian resort, but got it right with ‘ a bit of guesswork and Google’.
And the equine trainer, who works for Greater Manchester Police’s mounted division, said he was thrilled to have won. The father of one said: ‘I’ve never won anything before in my life, so to win £25,000 in one go is overwhelming – it’s fantastic.’
Mr Hunstone had just returned home from exercising a friend’s horse when he received the call to say he had won. He then texted his wife, Jan, also 58, who manages a group of care homes, to break the news. ‘She texted me back to say: “Are you having a laugh?”’ he said. ‘ She couldn’t believe it either.’
The couple have a 23-year- old daughter, Alexandria, who is currently in the US.
Mr Hunstone said: ‘It’s our 25th wedding anniversary in a few weeks, so to win £25,000 – it must be our lucky number.’
The couple celebrated with some champagne yesterday and hope to splash out on a holiday. ‘ Our daughter is working in Orlando and we’ve been to see her twice since Christmas. We will probably pay those trips off, then there’s some jobs that need doing in the house, but hopefully we will still have enough to go on a nice holiday. We would love to go to Las Vegas or California and I also like the idea of Vietnam.’
All answers in our Treasure Hunt are names of cities, towns or places of interest in Britain. There is a picture clue in Saturday’s Weekend magazine, followed by riddles in the newspaper from Monday to Friday. Winners can choose to receive their prize in gold bars or cash, with Mr Hunstone opting for the cash.
Mr Hunstone, who has read the Mail since the 1970s, said he regularly enters our competitions, but added: ‘It’s the first time I’ve won, it’s incredible.’
He is the third Mail reader randomly selected to win part of the £100,000 jackpot this month.
About 190,000 people have entered the competition so far.
If you would like to get your hands on £25,000, don’t worry – you still have the rest of the month to take part. Just follow the instructions below.