Scratchcard millionaires happy to spend staycation in Yorkshire
A COUPLE who won £ 1m on a scratchcard have had to defer their dream round- the- world trip this summer – and have enjoyed a staycation in Harrogate in their camper van instead.
Andrew and Paula Hancock bought the winning card after rushing out to buy pet food for their cat Shortcake last year. They planned to spend their winnings on taking their son Xavier, 13, to the Tokyo Olympics before the Games were cancelled.
Shortcake has now ‘ put on weight’ because the family have spent the summer at home instead.
“Before, we were out the house a lot of the time so he was out – but now, because of the lockdown, we’ve been at home and every time Andy stands up the cat goes to his bowl,” said Mrs Hancock, 44.
The couple, who live near Mansfield,
Nottinghamshire, said they had to cut Shortcake’s diet down after hearing a family member only fed their cat once a day.
Mr Hancock added: “We had a couple of holidays planned prior to May time – Cyprus and Barcelona with friends – but we also had tickets for the Olympics in
Tokyo. We were then going to fly from Tokyo to Bali, because that’s where we had our honeymoon, and then we were going to Darwin at the top of Australia and then further down into Western Australia.
“We were feeling a little bit down so we just thought, let’s go and make the most of it – there’s lots of lovely places here to go and see and we can do day trips.
“We’ve booked for Coniston Water in the Lake District, we’re going to go to Great Yarmouth or around that area, and we’re doing Harrogate next.”
During lockdown, the couple bought a pizza oven to make pizzas for their street to keep spirits high, having sold the catering business they ran before their Monopoly Millionaires jackpot win. They are also planning to go glamping, an upmarket version of camping.