Fortune favours the brave
Winning almost half a million pounds is always classed as life-changing, but for one Scarborough grandmother, the term was quite literal.
Greatest Hits Radio’s Gemma Atkinson delivered the epic news on Friday afternoon, in a phone call to Angela Wilson to reveal that £475,000 would be in her bank account within the hour.
Angela (53) was at work at one of her jobs as a carer for an elderly client when she got the news that nearly floored her.
She told us: “I had entered the competition a couple of times over the past few months, but something on Friday made me decide to go for it again. I had heard that the prize was £475,000 and I was daydreaming about what I could do with that sort of money whilst I was going about my jobs.”
The hand of fate was on Angela’s side, but she thought nothing of it when her phone rang and she almost missed the call.
She continued: “I heard the phone in the other room and was busy, so I only picked it up at the last minute. I just burst into tears and couldn’t take in what Gemma was saying for a couple of minutes – it was just complete shock. I’ve been crying ever since!”
With the amazing news now sinking in, Angela has begun to digest her good fortune and has had a little time to think about her plans.
“My head has been spinning because when you’ve never had any money, it’s a bit scary. I’ve got both my daughters and my grandchildren living with me, so I’m overjoyed that I’ll be able to help them with buy their own homes and also pay off my mortgage. I’ve been working in two jobs for nearly all my life, so it’ll be so nice to stop worrying about the future as much as I’ve got bad arthritis and was uncertain about how long I’d have to keep on working.
“Everyone keeps asking if I’ll be moving house, but I could never do that – I have the most wonderful neighbours and this is where I brought my girls up, so it will always be their home.
“The only thing I would love to do is build an extension as there’s twelve of us when we all sit down for meals, and I’d love a big dining room to fit us all in. Apart from that, the only other things I’d like would be a log burner and solar panels. I want to make sure I look after the money and make it work the best it can for me.”
One thing is for sure, Angela’s win has proved that the age-old adage is certainly true – good things happen to good people.