A bus driver revelled in a £1million National Lottery scratchcard win by treating himself to a doner kebab. Steve Goodwin decided to pick up a scratchcard after ducking into his local supermarket to buy some bread. He scratched the card outside the Holsworthy Co-op in Devon, while waiting for his doner kebab to be ready, which he ordered before going into the supermarket next door.
Steve, 51 and originally from Leicester, said he cried with happiness upon realising he was quids in.
After winning his cash prize, he is now planning to get on the property ladder for the first time and treat his girlfriend, also 51, to a luxury getaway.
Reflecting on his big Easter Monday win, Steve said: “I needed some bits and bobs from the Co-Op.
“But I went into the kebab shop next door first to order a donner.
“I then shopped in the store for some bread and stuff and got to the till to pay.
“I decided to buy a scratchcard and scratched it when I got outside. The final number on the card was 73 which I hoped meant I had won big.”
Steve hurried back into the supermarket, and staff told him needed to contact The National Lottery.
He added: “I had been a bit longer than I thought so I went into the kebab shop, got my doner, and drove home.
“I can’t remember much of the journey, as I was a bit emotional. I am not embarrassed to say I shed a tear.
“I sat in the kitchen and tried to eat my kebab, but I couldn’t. In the end, I just put it in the bin.
“I told my landlady that I needed to make an important call and asked if I could use her landline, and I rang the National Lottery people.”
As the realisation dawned on Steve that he was a millionaire, he got on the phone with his mum and Heidi to share the scarcely believable news with them.
He said: “No one believed me, I had to take a photo and send a picture.
“I couldn’t really believe it. I just sat there looking at it, holding it tightly.
“And that night I put the scratchcard in an envelope and put it under my pillow for safekeeping.”
Steve moved from the east Midlands to Devonshire to enjoy a slower pace of life and be closer to his parents who live in the south west.
He now drives for Go Cornwall bus company, after re-training to become a driver.
Despite his jackpot joy, Steve still turned up for a shift the next day, travelling between Launceston and Plymouth.
Clearly amused at the idea of being a millionaire bus driver, Steve said: “As the people hopped on, I was chuckling to myself.
“There I was a bus driver, with a load of passengers on board, and nobody knows I’m a millionaire.
“I’ve never had much, ever. I’ve always rented, just throwing my money away on a roof over my head.
“The win will change everything. We’ll have a home for the first time ever, with no mortgage and still have enough for retirement.
“I will continue working, so will Heidi but we plan to have more holidays.
“We are now both debt free which is unbelievable and it’s a wonderful nest egg for our retirement. Life is pretty good.”
