Queue jump landed me £1m lottery win
A MAN who won £1million on the National Lottery has thanked a shopper who let him be served first as the draw was about to close.
Arron Walshaw, 32, and his fiancee, Ceri Hall, 23, from Ossett, West Yorkshire, can plan their dream wedding after they scooped the Lotto Raffle prize.
But had the other shopper at the Tesco Extra store not let him go first, Mr Walshaw believes he would not have had time to play.
He said: “We had a free Lucky Dip ticket from the previous draw to use and I knew it was only minutes until the draw closed. I popped in to a nearby shop, where me and another lady approached the same cashier.
“She must have seen that I was in a rush because she insisted I went before her.
“What a stroke of luck that turned out to be! I don’t think I would have been in time to buy my ticket if she hadn’t let me go first.
“We would love to meet her again and say thank you for changing our lives!”
That evening the couple were “chuffed” to discover they had £50 for a camping trip as they totted up what they had in cash. But though Mr Walshaw had bought another Lucky Dip ticket, it was not until they checked the National Lottery app the next day after work that they realised they were millionaires.
The self-employed plasterer said he has no plans to hang up his trowel just yet, but will reduce his hours.
He said: “We’ve got a wedding to plan and I want to make it the wedding of Ceri’s dreams.”
The couple will use the cash from last week’s win to buy their first house and car.
Ms Hall said: “This is just life-changing for both of us.”