A GRANDMOTHER who was a EuroMillions winner for just ten minutes has revealed her devastation at going home to her “damp and mouldy” flat after the near-win.
Margaret De Micheli, 72, was overjoyed when her local post office handed her a ticket saying she’d won something on the lotto.
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But, when the gobsmacked nan double checked her numbers at a nearby Tesco in Swiss Cottage, North London, all her hopes came crashing down.
The staff member said her ticket didn’t have the winning digits – and the National Lottery confirmed she was given the slip by mistake.
Now, devastated Margaret has revealed what life is like after her near-win – as she mourns what could have been.
Instead of sunning it up on a holiday in Italy and buying a swanky new flat by the seaside, Margaret and her parking warden husband, 78, are still living in their damp and mouldy flat.
She told the Sun: “We’re back to normal. My husband is back at work, I wanted to win something so he could afford to retire.
“He’s weary – he gets up early in the morning. He usually gets up at 3.30am – he starts at 5am sometimes. He’s amazing, I couldn’t do that job.
“My aim is still for him to retire from work. That’s my main goal.
“It’s why I still do the lottery, I do the Set For Life, the normal lotto and the EuroMillions. I did the EuroMillions today.”
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Margaret said returning to her damp and mouldy flat in London was crushing.
She said: “We’d like to be able to move out of the flat. It’s due for refurbishment this year, they’re putting new windows.
“It’s very, very hard. We would like to move out of the flat to somewhere by the seaside.
“I think Poole in Dorset is somewhere my husband would like to go.”
“I’ve managed to brush all the mould off the windows now.
“The windows above us all have mould – there’s no protection against the elements.”
But, despite her devastating loss, Margaret is still hopeful that she’ll win one day.
“I wasn’t expecting millions, maybe £25,000 or something like that,” she said.
“It was a disappointment, but you get back into it. No crying over spilt milk.
“I know my turn will come.”
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