A MAN who won a £1million jackpot says his dad knew before he even checked the ticket.
Mal Duggan believes he owes the life-changing lottery windfall to his father Tony – and is splurging the cash on a new car to say ‘thank you’.
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The unsuspecting binman entered the lotto at a Co-op in Ilsham Road, Torquay, but forgot about it shortly afterwards.
When the draw came around, on December 2, Tony recognised his son’s numbers – 2, 4, 11, 23, 26 and 40 – as they appeared on screen.
“My dad knew my numbers off by heart, and he knew they were winning numbers,” said Mal.
“He didn’t want to say congratulations, in case I had forgotten to play.
“He called me and just asked, ‘Mal, did you play Lotto last night?’ – fortunately I had.
“Sometimes you do forget but I would have been heartbroken if I wouldn’t have done that night.
“At that point, I hadn’t checked my numbers and my dad said, you may just want to go online and check. I couldn’t believe it when we did.
“My jaw just dropped and I screamed, ‘OMG – we are millionaires’.”
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The lucky punter revealed he wants to splash the cash on his family and make sure they are looked after.
With the eye-watering jackpot Mal can now also afford to buy a house for himself and his girlfriend.
“We all currently live above a shop with my girlfriend’s family, which is obviously fine, but all we’ve ever wanted is to own a home of our own – something which we never believed would be possible,” he explained.
“We’re just taking our time and letting the news sink in – our very own dream home is definitely top of the list, together with a new car for my dad – and, of course, our very best Christmas ever.”
Another priority will be nabbing tickets for every Everton home game as the footie mad winner already treks 544 miles to and from Goodison Park.
Mal continued: “Even though I live in Torquay I love to come back to Goodison whenever I possibly can. I hope to get one of those beautiful boxes.
“The best seats at Everton for every home game will also be a must. I still travel to as many games as possible.”
Even weeks after hitting the jackpot, Mal still can’t believe his good fortune.
“The win is totally life-changing and it actually all still feels surreal,” he said.
” I keep thinking I’m going to wake up from a dream and discover I’ve totally fantasised this once-in-a-lifetime moment.”
This comes as another lucky punter who scooped a life-changing jackpot has revealed what he will buy first – and it’s not for himself.
Myke Brooke, from Pensett, Dudley, had given up entering the Postcode Lottery when his dad became ill and every penny had to be saved.
But by chance, Myke decided to enter the draw and ended up winning a whopping £90,909.
Meanwhile, one lotto player who won an eye-watering £76million said he owed it all to his niece.
Humble builder Andy Clark, 51, also jackpot shocked listeners with his very British reaction upon discovering the win.
Plus, a winner who nabbed a £107million jackpot has revealed why he went public with the news.
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Neil Trotter was faced with a huge decision whether or not to remain anonymous.
But it was hard to hide after the 45-year-old splurged the cash and filled his driveway with a Jaguar and a Porsche.
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