30 July 2002

Londonderry man scoops £1.5m lottery jackpot

The Co Londonderry man who scooped a £1.5 million jackpot in last week's lottery draw has described how he "started jumping in the air" when he discovered the good news.

Thirty-five-year old Stephen Boyd described how he went into a newsagent on Saturday to check his numbers from the mid-week UK Lotto draw, when the cashier "told me I had won and I started jumping in the air".

The father of two celebrated his good fortune with champagne at a hotel in Limavady at the weekend, and mooted the idea of going to Disneyland in Florida for a family holiday.

On exactly how he will dispose of his £1.5 million windfall, Mr Boyd confessed that he will be in a position to afford a "few extra wee treats".

"It's a dream. You think of a new house, a car and a good holiday and a few extra wee treats," he said.

The lemonade salesman has said that he will return to work although it probably not be for the rest of the week as he comes to terms with his new-found wealth.

He said: "I am only a working-class man. I'll go out to work next week and see what the craic is from there."

Mr Boyd picked up his cheque for £1,456,675 from Belfast's National Lottery office on Monday.

(GMcG)