Dad wins £3m dream house – plus a toaster!

ADAD has scooped a £3 million Somerset home in a prize draw – after his family told him he’d “only win a toaster”.

Michael Maher, 53, paid £10 for an Omaze ticket and now has the keys to a mansion and £100,000 in cash.

Omaze officials contacted Michael, from Luton in Bedfordshire, to say he had won a prize and his teenage daughter warned him not to get too excited.

She said he’d probably won a toaster but he had actually scooped a massive house in Timsbury – which ironically does come with a toaster in the kitchen.

The property is a spectacular countryside retreat with a tennis court and picturesque gardens.

Michael said: “I had a call from Omaze saying I’d won a prize.

“Obviously I was intrigued but my daughter was somewhat sceptical and told me not to get too excited as I’ve probably only won a toaster.

“Luckily for me it turned out to be a £3 million pound house.

“We went to the pub to celebrate and then on for a nice curry. It was your average Friday night really, apart from the fact we’d just become millionaires!

“When they told us we’d won the house in Somerset, the first thing my daughter said was that she’d had the best kebab in her life last time she was there, so she was delighted we now own a house in such a culinary hotspot.

“I thought she might be more impressed with the tennis court to be honest, but you can never tell with teenagers.

“I’m actually rubbish at tennis, but maybe I’ll improve as I’ve got no excuse not to practise now.

“My son and daughter asked us if they can quit their Saturday jobs now that we own a mansion. We said absolutely not, we want them to stay grounded.

“Going from a rented house in

Luton to owning a six-bedroom house in the countryside is just mind blowing.

“This house is truly spectacular in real life. The open plan kitchen and living area is spot on for us and the garden is just incredible. It’s so big we’ll have to put a bell on our dog otherwise we might lose him.’’

The house comes mortgage free, with all stamp duty and legal fees covered.

Michael is free to either live in the house, rent it out or sell it to become a cash multi-millionaire.

If Michael decides to rent it out, local estate agents estimate that the property could achieve a long-term rental value of £6,000-£8,000 per month.

Michael and his wife of 16 years Amanda, 54, have lived in their rented four-bedroom house on the outskirts of Luton for the past eight years.

The couple live at home with their two children, a son aged 19 and daughter aged 17, as well as a fouryear old cocker spaniel called Ludo.

Michael also has two sons, aged 32 and 27, and a grandchild aged two from his first marriage.

He has been working in the IT industry for the past 25 years and Amanda is an admin assistant at a school.

As well as making Michael a multimillionaire, the Omaze Million Pound House Draw, Somerset, also raised £3,500,000 for the RSPCA.

Omaze/SWNS > Michael Maher and his wife Amanda outside his new £3m home