Folkestone Millionaire Street

A STUNNED grandad kept playing with his late wife's People's Postcode Lottery tickets - and quadrupled his winnings.

Malcolm and Carolyn had bought two tickets each when they first signed up years ago.

And he continued to play with their four tickets even after his beloved partner passed away in 2019.

Now the Army veteran - who served in the former Queen's Regiment in Belfast - is celebrating after pocketing a whopping £266,664.

Malcolm, of Folkestone, Kent, said, "My wife recently died. She had two tickets and I had two. I just decided to keep them on. She'd be over the moon and shaking right now.

"When I saw the first cheque, I thought, 'That'll do', then it came again, again, and again. I'm chuffed when I get a tenner."

Malcolm landed the windfall with 10 other neighbours after CT20 3NG won our weekly Millionaire Street prize today. Every ticket was worth £66,666, but Malcolm quadrupled his prize as he played with four tickets. Another neighbour doubled their winnings as they played with two tickets.

The win is a change in fortune for Malcolm as he recovers from breaking his right shoulder in a hot tub accident in April - years after breaking his back falling from a tanker when he was the manager of a Sainsbury's petrol station.

Now retired Malcolm - whose hot tub is housed in a gazebo nicknamed Malc's Tipsy Tavern - is considering how to splash his cash.

He said, "I was trying to get out of the hot tub. I was wet and going into the house. But I didn't grab the windowsill hard enough and fell into the garden. I've had grab rails installed now.

"First of all, we'll go out for a meal tonight and then I don't really know what else, to be honest. I'm doing the garden, so will get that sorted. I'm putting fake grass down."

The dad-of-two, flanked by two-year-old black Labrador Bear, added, "I might go on holiday. I like the Isle of Wight and Edinburgh. And I'll help the family."

At the opposite end of the street, excited Rebecca looked at her £66,666 cheque, grinned, then declared, "That is unbelievable. It's going to be spend-spend-spend, definitely.

"I'm going to have the best time ever and do some nice things with some nice people. We're going to have an amazing few years."

Probation officer Rebecca has a long wish list, including spoiling her son and daughter, treating her parents, holidays and house DIY.

The divorced mum-of-two - posing next to the shed she converted into a back garden boozer during lockdown - said, "I'll start by taking the family out for a meal to a Turkish restaurant. It means neither Mum nor I will have to cook. Tonight's on me, so that's going to be really nice.

"I'm going to a hen do in Malaga next month, so that might buy some drinks and maybe a new bikini.

"It's my birthday later this month and my son's is the day after mine, so he is already making a list.

"I'll spoil the kids absolutely rotten. My son is massively into Fallout, so I will be buying Fallout merchandise.

"My daughter wants to go to Walt Disney World in Florida and swim with dolphins, so we may do something like that.

"We've got a nice holiday in France with my parents later in the summer and I would love to take my mum to New York."

Rebecca added, "I can do some extra stuff in the house. My neighbour has just had the garage converted and it's amazing. It would be an extra room for visitors to stay and I could keep my sewing machine in there."

Along the street, dancing great-gran Shirley waltzed in her back garden with Presenter Judie McCourt after winning £66,666.

The bubbly widow - who goes to tea dances four times a week - now plans on buying a bigger car and treating her growing family.

Keen gardener Shirley - who has four grandchildren and three great-grandchildren - said, "Oh Lord Almighty! Never in my life have I seen a cheque that big. It's wonderful. It feels amazing. I think I'm going to cry. £1,000 I thought. I did, I did."

Shirley wants to upgrade her Citroen C1 Automatic to a C3. She said, "I might have a new car. I'd like to go up to something just a bit bigger. And I'll give all my grandchildren something. I'm nearly 84, I think I should treat myself. And I'll maybe have a party for my daughter. She's 60 this year."

Shirley has had to endure unbearable tragedies in her life after losing her soldier son Leslie during the Iraq War in 2003 - three months after her husband Jim died of leukaemia.

She said, "It is hard to bear, and it never goes away, but then I also think how lucky I am. My daughter, grandchildren and great-grandchildren keep me going."

Diagonally opposite, primary teacher Kendra said her hubby might get a new motorbike - if he finishes their house extension first.

Busy carpenter Simon started building a new garage on the side of their semi five years ago and had planned to covert the integral one - but still hasn't finished the project.

Now after winning £66,666, Kendra is determined to get her house knocked into shape - even if it means paying for it herself.

The mum-of-two said, "This is amazing, incredible. Thank you so much. The kids will probably ask when we're going on holiday. We need to spend it on some sensible stuff.

"We've had building work on the go for five years and I said that if we got £5,000 that's what I will be doing with it.

"You always hope you can win something, but it is also great for the charities, so it benefits everyone."

The couple have dreamed of returning to Adelaide, Australia, where they lived for a time before having their two kids.

Kendra said, "Many years ago we had a year in Australia and have friends there. We would love to take the kids out.

"Our son would like a PS5, and our daughter will start learning to drive soon, so she can have driving lessons."

She added, "I'm sure we will go and celebrate somehow. We'll let the kids choose a takeaway."

But petrolhead Simon still has his sights set on some new wheels - like a Porsche 911 or upgrading his Kawasaki ZX-9R.

He said, "I like the Porsche 911, there are so many variants. As far as motorbikes go, I like the MV Augusta F4. It's got four little exhausts. I love the styling of it."

Kendra and her winning neighbours all spoke of the reason why they signed up for People's Postcode Lottery - helping local, national, and international charities.

And because they won Millionaire Street, one local charity has benefited with The Sports Trust being awarded £75,000 by Postcode Community Trust (opens in a new tab).

The charity, based in the South East, celebrates sport as a powerful tool for social improvement and has been an integral part of the Folkestone, Hythe, and Romney Marsh community since 2013.

With the aim of creating a healthy and united society, The Sports Trust works across schools, sports clubs and the local community to dismantle participation barriers and give everyone an equal opportunity to participate in sport.

Chris Kent, Chief Operating Officer at The Sports Trust, said, "The £75,000 in funding we've received is going to be a game-changer for The Sports Trust. The money will allow us to carry out our plans to switch to solar energy in one of our main venues and, in turn, significantly reduce long-term running costs."

The charity proudly operates three dynamic sports venues, one of which is home to the world's first multi-storey skatepark spread across three different floors.

Chris added, "From climbing and boxing, to an array of sea sports, we are dedicated to creating safe, sustainable and inclusive spaces for people to love sport and exercise."

Millions For Good Causes

With People's Postcode Lottery, 33% of the ticket price goes to charities and good causes. To date, players have raised more than £1.3 Billion for thousands of deserving projects across Great Britain, as well as internationally.

What would you do with a big win? If you're not playing yet, learn more about how People's Postcode Lottery works and sign up to play today. There are Prizes announced every day and thousands of winners every week.