Louth couple bag £1m Lotto win

But for Barry and Brenda Coupland, it took them a full week to realise they were millionaires, with the winning ticket lying un-checked on the kitchen counter.

Barry, (75), said plays two lines on the Lottery every week on a Wendesday and Saturday, but doesn’t check the tickets until he goes to buy his next ticket the following week.

He revealed: “I only get the tickets checked when I go to buy the following week’s tickets. This time when I handed my tickets over, the cashier told me that they couldn’t pay it out as we needed to ring Camelot.

“They said they could only pay up to £200 instore so I was rubbing my hands thinking I could surprise my wife with some flowers - £200 or £300 was going to be a real treat, it didn’t even cross my mind that it could be any more.”

It wasn’t until wife Brenda, (74), rang Camelot to discover in fact they had won £1m.

Brenda said: “I wish I could have captured the moment I found out we were millionaires. I think the colour must have drained from my face, I was just in absolute shock.

“I had one million pounds on my kitchen table for over a week and I didn’t even realise!”

The £1M win comes at a special time for the couple, as they celebrationed their 55th wedding anniversary just a week before their big win.

So where did the couple buy their winning ticket do I hear you say, well the Leader can reveal that Mr Coupland bought his winning ticket from McColl’s in Eastgate.

Mr Coupland added that it will take them some time to think fully about what to spend the money on, but said they will have their children and grandchildren to think about as well.

He said: “It’s fantastic that this win will change not only our lives, but also all our family as well.”

• To find out more about the couple and what they will be spending their money on, see next week’s Louth Leader where we will reveal what we said following our interview with the couple, out Wednesday, (August 8).