I won £83k on lottery but brushed it off as a scam – I thought Ant & Dec would pop up saying ‘it’s a joke’
A WOMAN won £83,000 on the lottery but brushed it off as a scam thinking it was an elaborate Ant and Dec joke.
Georgina Riley, 39, said she almost fainted when she found out her Nottingham street were winners in the People’s Postcode Lottery.
Now she and husband Paul, 41, are planning to take their two kids on holiday to the Burj Khalifa and swim with dolphins in Dubai.
She said: “It feels surreal. I was waiting for Ant and Dec to leap out and say that this isn’t real.
“I changed my outfit four times this morning, I haven’t eaten anything and I almost fainted on the doorstep. Then I realised I hadn’t done my nails. It’s all been very stressful.”
Comedy duo Ant and Dec are known for their undercover pranks on their hit show Saturday Night Takeaway.
The stings see the pair pull a prank on a British celebrity and then jump out at the end revealing themselves to have been behind it.
The couple are also planning to get a new bathroom after the shower fell off the wall.
A whopping 11 residents on Violet Avenue in Nottingham’s Newthorpe won the lottery, with one neighbour taking home £166,666 after buying two tickets.
Several grans also struck lucky in the £1m prize pot after their Nottingham neighbourhood struck lucky.
Gran Margaret Chapman, 80, won £83,000 with her husband Barry, 86 and said she plans to treat the family.
While Dian Westley, 56, said she had been happy to win £10 in the past and had now taken home 8300 times that.
She said: “The first thing I bought for my husband when I knew I had won was a dryrobe. It’s overwhelming, unbelievable.
“I can’t take it all in. I’d like to go to Walt Disney World in Florida again. I’d like to do it with the whole family, it’s one of my dreams.”
Meanwhile Janice Noon, 72, said the cash would help her and her husband John have a better retirement.
She said: “I’m still in shock, my heart’s going! But it’s nice…a lovely feeling. The cheque will be framed and is going up in the toilet. It’s brilliant to win with our neighbours, it’s a brilliant community. The champagne is already on ice.”
How does the People's Postcode Lottery work?
ACCORDING to the official website, players sign up with their postcode and pay £12 per month.
They are automatically entered into every draw and prizes are announced every day of the month.
Tickets play for prizes every day of the week – from Monday to Sunday, a ticket could win £1,000 each day in the Daily Prize.
Tickets could also win a jackpot of £30,000 in Saturday and Sunday’s Street Prize draws.
People’s Postcode Lottery also offer a £3 Million Postcode Millions draw each month – and your ticket plays for a share of a £3 Million cash prize fund.
Winners are notified by email, SMS message, mail or phonecall depending on the prize they win.
Jackpot winners are visited by the lottery team in person.