James Wilson, 28, from Bradley Stoke had remained blissfully unaware of the hunt for the mystery winning ticket holder that had reached fever pitch with local newspapers, television and this website all appealing to locals to search their homes for the slip before they missed out on the prize forever.
Tickets for EuroMillions and Lotto must be claimed within 180 days of the draw or the money is donated to the Good Causes fund. By chance James happened to be clearing out his old wallet when he found the ticket and decided to check online to see whether it was worth anything. On finding out that he was a day away from throwing away an amount equivalent to roughly twice the average annual UK wage he tried to call the EuroMillions claimline only to be informed that lines were closed until the next morning. After what must have been a fitful night’s sleep James was relieved to discover that he had sneaked in at the wire and that the money was his.
Lucky James intends to use the win to put a deposit down on a house, buy his wife a car and return to cycle racing.
If you have any old tickets lying around the house then make sure you visit the EuroMillions checker at Euro-Millions.com to see whether you are due a big cash prize. Don’t delay - you don’t want to miss out on a big win!