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People living in a part of Kent will wake up with a smile on their faces after scooping a share of £1 million.
Today, dozens of residents in part of the county were revealed as the winner of the Postcode Lottery’s weekly Millionaire Street prize.
Those in ME7 3TG in Shepherd's Gate, Hempstead, Gillingham, were this week’s lucky winners and took home thousands in prize money.
Elsewhere, players in part of Deal are also set to expect prizes of up to nearly £400,000.
The staggering sum – £11.2 million in total – has been swept up by the lucky players as part of the lottery’s millions competition.
Medway dad-of-two Ashley got a call from Postcode Lottery to say he’d won £83,333 as he was about to take a class at a local secondary school where he is a science teacher.
The 32-year-old said: “I was just about to teach a lesson when I got the call and I came running out of the class.
“We love living here. This is my family road, I’ve lived here since I was a kid. The whole family is going to be buzzing.”
When he found out, he called his football coach dad Adrian Pennock, 52, who lives on the other side of the same road, to discover he’d bagged the same prize.
“To win as a family, I can’t believe it. To share this experience with them when they’re getting the same thing, it is just amazing,” he said.
Ashley and travel agent wife Josie, also 32, plan to extend their end terrace home and take their two kids on holiday.
Josie added: “We make the most out of everything. This will make us have even more fun.”
Ashley’s mum Tania – who shares five kids and six grandchildren with Adrian – is also planning a house extension.
The care company manager said: “This is incredible for me and Adrian, but I’m so made up for my son and his wife. We’ve been sharing the anticipation together for the past week. It’s been such fun.”
The father and son shared the £1m prize with nine neighbours. Every ticket was worth £83,333, but one neighbour doubled their winnings thanks to playing with two.
A few doors along, Craig Billington and his fiancée Tamsin Burling’s also won – but Craig admitted he’d previously tried to talk her out of signing up.
Seven months pregnant Tamsin, 33, works in a credit card firm’s financial crime section.
She said: “I got a letter through the post to join Postcode Lottery a couple of years ago and wanted to play. He said ‘no’, but I did it anyway.
“We’ve got another baby on the way after Christmas. This is the best feeling.”
Risk manager Craig, 32, said: “I’m eating my words a bit now. These things don’t usually happen to people like us.”
They plan to build a new bedroom above their semi villa’s garage and use some of the money for their wedding.
Another winner is Mike Pearson who said he plans to use the money for his dream holiday to Las Vegas to renew his wedding vows with wife Sharon, 54, on their 30th anniversary next year.
The 56-year-old said: “We’ve got a close group of friends going out with us, which will be lovely.
“I did say to my wife that we’ll get Elvis to do the vows, but she’s not up for that.
“My daughters will be overwhelmed. This is unbelievable. I’m shocked. I was expecting £1,000, but this is amazing.”
Andy Baker was in a fishing competition when he got the call to say he’d won – he then went back to the water and came second.
The 67-year-old and his wife Kim, 62, will use the money to help their two daughters and two grandchildren.
He is also planning a family holiday to Turkey next year.
The retired car sales worker said: “Never in my wildest dreams did I think the prize would be anything like this.”
Retired Tony Saunders, 74, ended up winning £166,666 because he plays with two tickets.
He said: “This is amazing. All of this for a postcode. We’re going to sort our son and daughter out – and the grandchildren.”
His wife Jackie, 74, added: “This is a bonus for us.”
Medway-based charity AMAT UK have also been awarded £50,000 by the Postcode Society Trust.
People’s Postcode Lottery costs £12 a month to play and people play with their chosen postcode and are automatically entered into all draws. A minimum of 33% from each ticket goes to charity.
Every Saturday, £1 million will be shared by one postcode.