Retired couple scoop EuroMillions win after husband forgets his glasses while buying ticket

A retired couple are celebrating a six-figure EuroMillions win after the husband bought a Lucky Dip ticket because he forgot to take his glasses to the shop.

Denis Fawsitt, 80, normally uses family birthdays for his weekly numbers but was forced to rely on the random selection when he left his spectacles at home.

The former builder and coal miner asked shop staff for a Lucky Dip ticket after he was unable to see the play slip properly due to his poor eyesight.

But his forgetfulness paid off when he and wife Ann, 75, scooped £116,124 by matching five numbers and one Lucky Star number in the draw on 16 March.

Mr Fawsitt said: “I realised I had forgotten my glasses and tried to pick my numbers, but I just couldn’t.

"I went to pay for my papers and asked the lady behind the counter for a Lucky Dip. It turned out to be one of my best decisions ever.

“After what happened in the newsagent, I had this funny feeling we were going to win.

"I said to my wife Ann that evening that I felt we were going to win big.”

Mrs Fawsitt, who used to work at KP Snacks in Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire, said there was no dancing around the house or champagne popping when they found out they had won.

She joked: “Not at our age, especially with Denis’s bad back. Denis had a drop of whisky and I had a small sherry.

"We then put the lucky winning-ticket in the living room cabinet for safekeeping before the people from the National Lottery were able to validate the ticket.

“When the win was confirmed, we did have a glass or two of fizz, and when this horrible COVID has gone away and it’s safe we’ll have a big family party to celebrate.”

After discovering they had won the huge prize, Mr and Mrs Fawsitt, of Hatton, Derbyshire, are now planning to treat themselves to a house and garden makeover.

Mr Fawsitt added: “I hurt my back a few years ago so I haven’t been able to tend to my garden as much as I would have liked.

"With a bit of landscaping, Ann and I can enjoy our garden even more, especially as the summer is not too far away.”

The couple, who have two daughters, two grandsons and a granddaughter, are also planning on giving some of their winnings to their family.

Mrs Fawsitt added: "We’ve had our time, it’s theirs now… this money will help them more than us.”

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