Grandmother, 70, scoops £3.8m lottery win days before Christmas

Diane Bate, 70, initially thought winning ticket may be a prank

Diane Bate celebrates with husband Michael (PA)

A grandmother from Wales is “on cloud nine” after becoming a millionaire thanks to a lottery win just weeks before Christmas. 

Diane Bate, 70, had her granddaughter check the ticket to prove it was not a prank and confirm she was the winner of the £3.8m Lotto draw jackpot.

“My granddaughters played a trick on me once and had convinced me that I’d won £1,000 on the Bingo, which nearly gave me a heart attack. The feeling of winning the lottery doesn’t even compare,” the retired social services professional said.

Ms Bate plans to have as normal a Christmas as possible with her family in Rhyl, Denbighshire, before deciding what to spend her fortune on in the new year, though she said she had everything she needs.

“We want to buy a bigger house locally as we love the area but, we don’t want a mansion or anything flashy,” she added.

The jackpot winner and her husband, Michael, 74, are keen travellers and plan to return to their favourite destination, the United States, which they have visited 15 times, when it is safe to do so.

Canada and Australia are also in their wish list, Ms Bate said, adding: “We will definitely be treating ourselves to first-class flights on our travels.”

Helping out family is also among the plans, and she intends to help give her granddaughter “an amazing wedding” in the US in 2021.

Ms Bate plans to have as normal a Christmas as possible (PA)

“Michael, who retired as a HGV driver some 15 years ago, has suffered from ill-health recently, so this win is a real pick-me-up for the both of us,” she said.

“Being able to help out our family brings us so much happiness – it isn’t just a win for me, it’s a win for them too.”

Ms Bate matched all six main numbers in the lotto draw on 12 December with a ticket she had bought at an Asda store on St Asaph Avenue in Flintshire.