LOTTO LUCK
I thought I missed out on massive £1million EuroMillions jackpot…but when I double-checked my heart stopped
Despite winning the huge amount of money the pair still have simple tastes
A COUPLE who thought they missed out on a massive £1million lotto jackpot were stunned after they double-checked their ticket.
Retired HGV driver David Long and his wife Kathleen scooped £1million on the EuroMillions UK Millionaire Maker prize back in 2013.
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However, things could have been very different for them as David nearly missed out on the whopping jackpot.
David initially misread his numbers and thought he’d only won £2.70 and so threw the golden ticket in the bin.
In an incredible twist of fate, David dug out his EuroMillions numbers because he needed a newspaper he'd chucked away earlier.
He explained: "I had to fish the ticket out of the bin that time and found when I got to the shop that it was worth a heck of a lot more.
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"That win was fantastic and couldn't have come at a better time."
The Scunthorpe couple celebrated their win in 2013 and finally tied the knot after a 12-year engagement.
Kath splashed her cash on a hen do in Ibiza, while her husband-to-be enjoyed his stag night at the pub in which he'd proposed.
Despite bagging £1million, the newlyweds spent a modest £12,000 on their ceremony.
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However, they did rightly splurge on a new car, took early retirement and treated their family.
Two years later, David beat odds of more than 283 billion to one, and scooped the £1million prize for the second time.
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He revealed at the time that he didn’t feel guilty about doing the double.
David said: “There’s no guilty feeling at all. I always believed I would do it again.”
Although he didn’t play every week he said he knew that he would strike it lucky twice.
He won in the random EuroMillions Maker draw – a bonus raffle in which a computer generates a combination of three letters and six numbers.
The intuitive player even said he "had a feeling" he would bag the first jackpot.
David said: "I always knew I'd win, even the first time. I tend to play when I know there are lots of prizes on the go.
"Last time I knew I had a good chance because there were 100 prizes of £1 million."
Similar to his last experience, David thought he'd only scooped a measly £7.20 - but he learnt from his mistake.
"Then I checked the raffle codes- something I've learnt to do automatically since winning last time," he continued.
"After a few moments I very calmly called Kath in and said 'Have a look at this. It's there. Look. Read that line'."
When Kath double checked the numbers, she said: "You said you'd do it again and you have!"
David admitted "everything has been a blur since".
"It's definitely taking longer to sink in this time," he added.
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Despite winning the huge amount of money the pair still have simple tastes and were still living in their static caravan in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, even after their first win.
Even after his two big wins, David said he would continue playing the lottery.
He said: “I’ll keep on with it. And I’ve got a feeling I’m going to win again.”
It comes as other winners have nearly lost it all when they misread their results.
Ian Anderson, 77, and wife Marlyn, 70, thought they'd only bagged £1,000 - but had actually scooped £1million.
Meanwhile, another couple nearly dismissed their win as a meagre £2.50.
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Richard and Debbie Nuttall, both 54, from Colne, Lancashire, actually took home a whopping £61million.
But, the pair have been embroiled in drama ever since.
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