A LUCKY man who won £10k a month for 30 years says he knew he had hit the big time after the machine made a strange noise.
John Stembridge, 51, from Trowbridge, Wiltshire, scooped the whopping jackpot on The National Lottery‘s Set For Life game.
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John, who has worked around the clock as a plasterer for more than 20 years, says that his life “has been changed forever” thanks to the huge win.
John said: “It’s time to give up the trowels! There will be no more days of coming home covered in plaster dust and worrying about money and my family.
“All of our lives are now changed forever. It makes me so happy that I can now help and support my family and those closest to me and I literally have no more worries in that respect.
Speaking on the magic moment he found out about his win John said that the machine made a “strange noise”.
He said: “I was sitting in my van having a coffee after finishing a day of plastering and just noticed the ticket behind the visor – I was close to a shop so just thought I would pop in and get the ticket checked – just in case there was anything on it.
“When the store assistant put it into the machine to check, the machine made a really strange noise – something I had never heard before.
“The assistant then said to me I would need to call the number on the ticket as it was a winning ticket but she couldn’t pay me. I just thought I had maybe won £100.”
But John was soon in for a huge surprise and revealed he burst into tears after realising he had won.
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He continued: “I went back to my van and called Camelot. My heart was racing. It was quite surreal – a National Lottery advert came on the radio at that very moment, playing the telephone call of a winner…and literally as this came on the radio my call was answered.
“The lady on the end of the phone said to me, ‘are you sitting down?’ She then confirmed that I had won the top prize. I literally burst into tears and I cried my eyes out. I could not believe it!
“To be in the position where I get £10K every month, tax free, is just phenomenal – this National Lottery win has changed everything for me and those closest to me and I still just cannot believe it!”
John says he cannot wait to pursue his lifelong dreams with his two main passions in life photography and fishing.
In addition to becoming a professional photographer, John also has big plans to open a luxury fishery and build his dream home on the lake.
And while he searches for the perfect location, the almost retired plaster plans to buy a luxury camper van and go on a fishing adventure across Europe.
‘Set For Life’ is an exciting draw-based annuity game from The National Lottery that offers a top prize of £10K a month for 30 years when the five main numbers and the Life Ball are matched.
Players can also win £10K a month for a whole year by matching the five main numbers.
