Great grand dad's birthday bonanza

A great grand dad from Lymm, Warrington is celebrating after scooping the £500,000 Thunderball top prize just weeks before his 80th birthday.
Denis Wheat (79) from Lymm, plans to celebrate with a new car in addition to treats for his wife, Barbara (76) and their three children, eight
grandchildren and five great grandchildren.
Denis, who has been playing The National Lottery since it started and has had a few small wins on Lotto, said he couldn’t believe it when he matched five numbers plus the Thunderball in the draw on Saturday 25 May.
He said: “I just shouted out to Barbara I have got one number, I’ve got two numbers, three, four, five …. and the Thunderball. I just could not believe it. I was shaking!
“I was checking my numbers on the television and I had to look about four times – I could not believe what I was seeing! As I was matching the numbers my voice was just getting more and more high-pitched and louder and louder and then I just burst into tears.”
Denis always keeps the same numbers – the birth dates of family members – and plays Lotto and Thunderball every Wednesday and Saturday. He’s already got his ticket for tonight’s draw in the hope that his luck will continue.
“I certainly won’t be stopping playing now and I think I will also be getting a ticket for EuroMillions this Friday as I’ve got a chance of winning £1m every month for a year,” Denis said.
he news is still sinking in for the couple who have been married for 57 years – Denis previously worked on Warburton Toll Bridge in Lymm, and Barbara used to work in the local fish and chip shop.
Denis added: “Everything is still sinking in. A new car will be the first thing we will buy and I guess Barbara will also have a few ideas about how she would like to spend the money.”