Shop worker ran home with scratchcard in sock after winning £500,000 jackpot

08 July 2023 , 23:53

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John and Matt were in shock when the amount was confirmed

A shop assistant ran all the way home with a scratchcard in his sock after winning the huge £500,000 jackpot.

Matthew Harding bought the Pink Multiplier National Lottery Scratchcard from the shop he works in and was shocked when he scratched off the life-changing sum.

Matt said: “I treat myself to a scratchcard or two every month after payday and scratch them on my way home. I have seen a few customers in the shop winning £20 or £40 here and there so I thought I would give this particular one a go.

I have always been told to buy two in a row as you are more likely to win. There may be no real logic in that but that’s exactly what I do – I always buy them in a set.

“I had only got to the curb of the shop when I scratched off a ‘five’ and thought, ‘ah, it’s a fiver’. Then I scratched a ‘zero’ and then another ‘zero’ and then, to my astonishment, a ‘K’ at the end. I was in total disbelief.

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“I grabbed a random person off the street to confirm it was real and I wasn’t seeing things. They said ‘yes, it is £500K, congratulations!’. Holding the scratchcard as tight as I could, I ran straight back to work. I thought I was going to have a heart attack.

Matthew Harding bought the Pink Multiplier National Lottery Scratchcard

“I was shaking when I got back to the shop. I showed my boss the winning scratchcard and he told me to sign the back and call The National Lottery. So I signed it there and then, and shoved it in my sock, being sure not to crease it, and hot stepped it home!”.

Matt has always said to his long term partner, John Drabble, that John would be laughing on the other side of his face when he ‘dropped a big one’ on a scratchcard, but it was Matt who wasn’t quite laughing when he walked through the door as white as a sheet.

John said: “I thought he was having a heart attack. He was pale, clammy and shaking – he looked like he was going to pass out. He couldn’t speak at first, then he said he needed to get something out of his sock. That’s when he took the scratchcard out. We both just kept looking at each other, gasping ‘NO!’ in total disbelief.”

With the money now in the bank, the couple have started to think about the future

After calling The National Lottery to confirm the win, Matt and John started the celebrations immediately. Matt said, “We drank three bottles of champagne! I did not sleep a wink, not because of the champagne but because of the win. I was still in such shock.”

With the money now in the bank, the couple have started to think about the future. Matt said: “We aren’t sure what we want to do with the money yet. We have just had a holiday to Cyprus which has helped us try and process it all, let it sink in and think about what we want to do with it.

After calling The National Lottery to confirm the win, Matt and John started the celebrations immediately (Sally Hyam <[email protected]>)

“The most I have spent is £98 on a mobile printer for photos but that is about it. We want to pay off the mortgage and secure our future. We also want to get married. In the future we might look to buy a property abroad but I am not sure where yet. We did a bit of window shopping in Cyprus but didn’t come back with any keys.”

John said, “Matt has always been very generous, he is always doing lovely little things for people – Christmas is his favourite time of the year. He’s always been kind, lottery win or not.”

Matt added, “It feels really good to be able to offer help where it is needed, and without feeling the pinch thanks to our win.”

Matt bought his winning £500K Pink Multiplier Scratchcard at the Greasley General Stores, Eastwood.

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The £500K Pink Multiplier Scratchcard, also known as ‘The Pink One’, from The National Lottery offers a 1 in 3.86 overall chance of winning a prize. The Scratchcard costs £2 and prizes range from £2 up to the top prize of £500,000.

Neil Shaw