An Aberdeen pensioner has scooped more than £730,000 on the People’s Postcode Lottery.
Alexander Hardingham, 83, landed the prize after his Seaton community won a combined jackpot of £3.2m on Saturday.
The country music fan joked he was now “the most eligible bachelor in town” after the six-figure windfall and said he planned to buy a new guitar.
Mr Hardingham told STV News: “I still cannot believe it, I’m flabbergasted. I couldn’t speak, I thought I would maybe get £5,000 and that was a lot to me.
“Everybody said ‘Alec, you deserve it’. It was the complete VIP treatment, which I’ve never had in my life. You see it in the movies and the news. Little did I think it was coming my way.
“The girls from the lottery asked, ‘have you got a girlfriend?’. I said I had a few girlfriends, but not the way you’re meaning. They said, ‘oh, you will now!’.”
Seaton is among the most deprived areas in Aberdeen, but is now home to more than 100 people who won at least £13,000 at the weekend.
Alexander bagged a total of £733,648 after buying two tickets under the winning postcode – AB24 1.
He added: “It’s a terrific feeling knowing you can look in the shop window and buy anything you see. It won’t change me, though.
“I’d prefer if I was 40 years old and winning, but I’m not complaining.”
People’s Postcode Lottery presenter Danyl Johnson handed out the cheques to excited winners.
He said: “It has been such a special day here in Aberdeen and I have had a lovely time meeting our winners and giving them this great news.
“A massive congratulations to all the winners again and I hope they enjoy treating themselves and their loved ones with the cash.”
Great-gran wins more than £360,000
It was a lucky day for Alexander’s neighbour too – Tilly won £366,284.
She joked that she would spend her winnings quickly and said: “The money is going to go into my bank account soon, but it will go out quicker!”
When asked if she planned to buy anything for herself, Tilly said she wanted to treat her family with the cash.
She explained: “I’ve got a son and a daughter, two grandkids and two great grandkids. We’re just a family that helps each other.”
She then joked: “They’ll have it all spent!”
Tilly said she was happy that so many people in the community had won a prize, and was particularly pleased that Alexender had won big.
She said: “He’s my next-door neighbour so I’m very glad that he’s won, because he deserves it.”
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