We won £1000 on a scratch card after craving a sandwich… we wouldn't have gotten anything
A HUNGRY husband's sandwich cravings have led to his family winning a life-changing lotto jackpot.
The prize-winning couple couldn't believe their luck after initially thinking they only had £6 in their pockets.
Nigel Frater couldn't wait any longer after licking his lips at the thought of his favorite sarnie – a Tesco's Pigs in Blankets cap – and decided to head to Tesco to buy one.
He was accompanied by his wife, Rebecca, 54, and they shot to their local branch in Ingleby Barwick, Stockton, to bag the meaty treat, reports TeessideLive.
When they got there – and perused the store's sarnie selection with great care – Rebecca spotted some Jolly 7s National Lottery scratch cards and bought a few to take home and hand out to the family for some extra fun on the day.
Rebecca said: “It always adds a little extra excitement and anticipation and it's great fun to see everyone scratching their scratch cards.
“We agreed at the beginning of the dinner that we would scratch them all at once and if anyone won, we would share the prize.”
After scratching out six of the cards, they had won a total of £6 – and thought that was the end of their luck.
My son thought it was just a trick, but I knew it had to be true.
Rebecca Frater
But the very last scratch card to be chiselled fell into the hands of Rebecca's mother-in-law, Kathleen, 76.
Thomas Warrington, 28, the couple's son, his girlfriend Chloe Mennell, 30, Isaac Frater, 21, the couple's son, Rebecca's sister, Angela Lathan, 62, and Kathleen couldn't believe what the scratch card showed them.
Rebecca continued: “When my mother-in-law finally scratched her scratch card, she had a look of complete confusion on her face.
“She said, 'I don't understand this, I have a seven? What does this mean?' We quickly realized that this meant we had won the grand prize.
“My son thought it was just a trick, but I knew it had to be true. The whole moment, when I think back on it now, was just quite surreal.”
Knowing they had just won the top prize – £100,000 – they ran as fast as they could to the shop to confirm the win, and jumped for joy when they heard the “sound” that every lotto player wants to hear when he gets his hand in scratch cards.
COCKTAILS ALL
After realizing they had won the prize, they all started planning how they would celebrate the win, and Rebecca's daughter-in-law Chloe – who “doesn't drink” – wanted to celebrate the occasion with a cocktail.
Rebecca said it was 'all champagne and cocktails' as they started celebrating – and said the win was down to her hungry husband's sandwich cravings.
She explained: “We don't normally go to Tesco but Nigel had seen their special Pigs in Blanket sandwich and was really keen to try it.
“The Jolly 7s Scratch Card caught my eye so I bought a selection of these for Christmas dinner.
“If we hadn't gone to Tesco that day for a festive sarnie, we wouldn't have bought the scratch cards and we certainly wouldn't be celebrating being a £100,000 winner today.”
Rebecca was already thinking about what to buy and said she had her eye on a Mulberry bag she saw in New York, where she had recently visited.
And Hubby Nigel bought a top of the line set of bowls.
OTHER WINNERS
Rebecca isn't the only person to have had a bit of financial luck in recent months, as this woman has made a whopping £86,000 from a lottery ticket she found while clearing out her house.
And less than a week ago a retired foster mother deposited £83,000 into the People's Postcode Lottery,
Susan Dodds, 66, who is also a former hospital worker, said she was looking forward to updating her Whitley Bay home of 40 years.
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