Lucky winners: lucky buddha charms

Lucky Buddha aided winners
261 words
21 September 2007
Weekend Courier
1
5
English
Copyright 2007 News Ltd. All Rights Reserved

Newsagent Scott Calvert sold winning ticket. Picture: Jane Vann d252931

A SOUTHERN suburbs family say the secret to their $2.2 million win from Saturday s $20 million Superdraw, was buying their ticket from Seahaven News in Warnbro and rubbing it on their own lucky Lotto Buddha.

The couple who are in their 30 s, have been playing Lotto for about 15 years and always buy from the Seahaven newsagency before rubbing their tickets on the belly of a special Buddha that lives in their lounge, and then put the tickets underneath it for luck.

I know people must think we are crackers about the Buddha, but it s worked! said the man.

My dad and my grandad both missed out on big wins by changing their Lotto routines; their numbers or where they bought their tickets. I wasn t going to let that happen to me.

The man who runs his own business, has been working 12-hour days, seven days a week to build the business.

The win certainly meant that his family would have a secure future, he said.

But we just want to live a normal life and look after our girls.

Not be extravagant.

The latest multi-millionaire Division One winners joined four other Perth winners, including a work syndicate from Mandurah, which also won $2.2 million in the same draw.

The newsagency owners, Scott and June Calvert, said it was the third and biggest division one prize the newsagency had sold in the past 15 years.

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MOTHER SCOOPS £1M BINGO PRIZE AFTER LOSING JOB
352 words
22 September 2007
01:02
Press Association National Newswire
English
(c)2007, The Press Association, All Rights Reserved

By Joe Quinn, Scottish Press Association

A mother-of-two became Britain's first bingo club millionaire today - weeks after losing her job.

Margaret Shearer, 46, scooped the £1 million jackpot at lunchtime at a Mecca club in Glasgow.

She was only playing because she had lost her job at a biscuit factory three weeks ago.

And with her as she played was her mother - whose name is Margaret Money.

The win came just weeks after the gaming laws were relaxed to allow such huge prizes in clubs.

Ms Shearer, from the Ruchazie area of Glasgow, had worked at the McVitie's factory in Glasgow until she was laid off last month.

She said she was stunned at her win today, at the Glasgow Forge branch of Mecca.

'It's not sunk in yet,'' she said.

'I just haven't a clue what I'm going to do with the money.

'It's such a enormous amount that it's difficult to grasp what it really means.''

She said she had experienced hot flushes before she started playing the lunchtime session.

'I just felt something was going to happen.''

A spokesman for Mecca said she had been a member for 30 years and her mother was her regular playing companion.

'She is superstitious, and always carries a miniature Buddha figure in her handbag,'' said the spokesman.

Grant Munro, manager at the club, said: 'Her face was a picture of stunned silence, but the rest of the club went absolutely wild and they were all so pleased for her.

'It was just bedlam but right now she's the calmest person in the club.''

Mecca said the millionaire game was introduced on September 1 with the relaxation of gaming laws.

The spokesman added: 'This is the first time someone has been able to win this huge sum of money at a bingo club.''

The gaming firm had previously estimated that a millionaire would be created every 45 days, but today's win came on the 21st day into the game.