A retired taxi driver has said he will “sure as heck enjoy” returning to the road and travelling around the Scottish Highlands after scooping £1 million in a National Lottery draw.
Devon native Steve Glover matched five numbers and the bonus ball, and has already found the perfect motorhome to travel in having decided to revisit the place he fell in love with while based there with the RAF.
The 73-year-old, who has survived two heart attacks, will also invest some of his winnings in two barrels of prime Scotch whisky as he vowed to “enjoy every moment” of life.
“Life is short, you have to enjoy every moment and every spare penny, and I’m sure as heck going to enjoy this,” Mr Glover said.
“I’ve had my share of bad luck over the years, with two heart attacks and an injury (that) stopped me working and led to the demise of my business, so when the win was confirmed, I made a cup of tea – my answer to everything – and told myself not to start the celebrations just yet.
“(But) now the money is there, looks like the celebrations can start, just as soon as my mate is back from Fuerteventura and my ex-wife is back from her holidays in the Caribbean.
“It did occur to me that I could fly out and surprise either one of them but I think I’ll sit tight, with another cup of tea, and wait for their return.”
He said he would like the Highlands to be his permanent home one day and will live in the motorhome while in search for the perfect place.
“I don’t have a definite spot in Scotland that I want to call home just yet so I’m buying a motorhome which will be my temporary home,” Mr Glover said.
“I will spend some time travelling around and getting a feel for the place again.
“I’m after a nice little croft with a bit of land and when I see the right place, I will know it’s the one.”
Mr Glover only thought to check his lottery tickets while watching the darts on TV, having picked them up the previous night.
“I checked the Lotto results on my tablet and recognised the numbers instantly as I’ve always played the same numbers,” he explained.
“I didn’t dare to believe what I was seeing, so first I rang my mate and asked him to read out the numbers to me, and then I called my ex-wife who did the same and then said, ‘according to this Steve, you’ve won £1 million’.”
Mr Glover rang the National Lottery line as soon as it opened at 9am the next day.
After buying his winning ticket at McColls on Pinhoe Road in Whipton, Exeter, and discovering he had won, he also stopped to give the woman who served him, Delia, some flowers as a thank you.
He said: “I always get my National Lottery tickets at the same shop so I had to share my good news with the staff there as well as give a little something to the person who sold me my winning Lotto ticket.”
“I guess it’s just the way I’ve been brought up, they were all so happy for me, it was a really nice moment.”
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