Falkirk man (76) celebrates £1 million Lottery win

John Wallman (76), who is originally from Cornwall, found out about his win from an early morning notification on his mobile phone after having played EuroMillions via the National Lottery app.

Still in utter disbelief over his big win, the retired construction manager – who now spends his spare time entertaining the public and raising money for charity as part of a barbershop chorus – is planning to move into a new house and enjoy a holiday getaway to celebrate his good luck.

John said: “I woke up in the early hours of Saturday morning and turned on my phone. A notification came up from the National Lottery app but I didn’t think anything of it until I sat down to breakfast later that morning.

“I read the notification and it said I had won £1 million, but I didn’t really believe it. I called the National Lottery Line and even when I heard those words – ‘congratulations, you’re a winner’ – I just couldn’t take it in.

“My wife came downstairs and when she saw me in tears on the phone she thought I’d been scammed or that something bad had happened.”

And John’s good luck did not end there.

He said: “I’ve played The National Lottery since it started and I normally buy Lucky Dips through the National Lottery app but I also had another ticket I’d bought on a

whim. I popped into the shop on my way to tell some family members about my win and won another fiver.”

John is a member of the Sweet Harmony Barbershop Chorus.

“I find singing so liberating and I love performing with Sweet Harmony,” said John. “We perform for all sorts of local groups and at events. All we ask is for a donation

then at the end of each year everything we’ve raised is split between six nominated charities.”

Now the news is starting to sink in, the first thing on John’s to do list is to book a holiday in the sunshine.

“It’s been such a rollercoaster and I get emotional every time I talk about winning so I’ve not really had a chance to think about what I am going to do with the money.

Booking a holiday, perhaps a cruise, is definitely the first thing though so we can relax, unwind and make some plans.

“A new house is on the cards too. In fact, that’s how I broke the news to my step-daughter. I said to her we’d decided to move house. Oh and by the way I’ve won the lottery too.

"She didn’t believe me for quite some time.”By playing any National Lottery game, players generate more than £30 million each week for National Lottery-funded projects. This money helps support everything from the local charity making a difference where you live through to helping our nation’s athletes win Olympic and Paralympic gold medals.

To date, over £45 billion has been raised and distributed to National Lottery good causes through more than 660,000 individual grants.