Harlow Millionaire Street

A kind-hearted chef persuaded his wife to play People's Postcode Lottery - and doubled their winnings.

Jeff signed up to help charities then talked missus Marion into joining after he'd been playing for more than three years. Now the pair are celebrating after they each picked up a cheque for £90,909.

Jeff, of Harlow, Essex, said, "I signed up a while ago and said to Marion that she had to do it, too. We're helping other people, it's not just for us. I'm a man of little words, but this is just brilliant."

A Pair Of Crackers

The couple shared the £1 Million jackpot with nine neighbours after CM18 6QT landed our weekly Millionaire Street prize today. Each ticket was worth £90,909.

When their cheques were revealed, Marion screamed, "Oh my God!" She added, "This is a dream. It is going to change everything."

Now the Christmas-crazy couple are planning to travel - as well as helping their three kids and eight grandchildren.

Marion, an operating department practitioner in the town's Princess Alexandra Hospital, said, "We love travelling. We'd like to go to the Maldives and Australia and maybe look to take a bit longer with our holidays.

"I feel sick, excited and overwhelmed."

Marion revealed she's working on Christmas morning but will get the party started when she returns home.

She said, "We go to town on Christmas. We're close as a family and this is a family thing.

"I'll be working on Christmas morning, but when I get home it will be busy all the way."

Jeff, who's thinking of retiring next year as a chef in the clinical trials unit at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, said, "I always said I would win the lottery. Now I'm just speechless.

"This is going to go a long way to looking after us. We'll have a cracking Christmas."

Jingle Belle

Next-door neighbour Mandy knew she was a winner when she heard Jeff and Marion singing the People's Postcode Lottery advert theme tune through the wall.

Mandy also banked £90,909 and revealed that she hadn't even told hubby Luke she played.

Mandy, a special-needs teaching assistant in a primary school, said, "Luke's mum played the lottery and someone from her street won it. I just thought to myself, 'I might start doing that.'

"I signed up a couple of years ago, but Luke didn't even know I played. The first he knew was when I told him last Friday when I found out I'd won."

Luke, a contract manager with an asbestos removal firm, said, "We could hear the neighbours singing through the walls."

The couple are planning to finish landscaping the garden - and take their three kids to visit Mandy's sister in Adelaide, Australia.

Mandy said, "I'm literally shaking. I don't know what to say. This is amazing - days before Christmas. It's incredible.

"I honestly thought it would be £2,000 or £3,000 maybe. This makes such a huge difference. We'll finish doing up the garden and visit my sister in Australia."

Luke added, "We'll take the three kids. We've never been as a family."

Dream Campervan

Further along the street, winning next-door neighbours Jennifer and Debbie know what they're going to buy. Stansted Airport welcome host Debbie exclaimed, "We're going to go halves on the fence - finally!"

She has her heart set on a campervan to travel around Britain with technical design engineer hubby Richard and treat their family.

She said, "We've been wanting one for ages. Either a VW or a Talbot."

The mum-of-two added, "I got another four grandkids this year. We went from four to eight."

Mrs Christmas

Jennifer was getting her hair cut in her best friend's kitchen when she got a call to say she'd won.

And the first thing she'll splash her £90,909 windfall on? A Ninja Air Fryer - to cook chicken and chips. The mum-of-three explained, "There's two drawers, we can do both."

Now ambulance emergency care assistant Jennifer can't wait to celebrate Christmas with her family.

Wearing an Advent calendar jumper, she said, "I'm such a Mrs Christmas. My sister just flew home from Dubai yesterday. She lives out there, so we'll get to see her and the kiddies."

Jennifer is currently awaiting an operation after breaking her ankle in February, but her win has put a smile on her face again as she plans her spending with water-softener engineer hubby Michael.

She said, "I kept saying to my husband, 'Let's just sit at the thousand and anything better than that is going to be amazing.' I've got to phone him and he's going to be like, 'What?!'"

Dram Good

Retired Tony planned to break out the whisky with wife Pat to celebrate their £90,909 win. Now they plan to splash out on a new porch, windows, and a holiday.

Gran-of-four Pat said, "We're going to Jersey, hopefully in April."

Dave Rave

Shocked David is planning to take wife Amina on holiday to Zanzibar, off the east coast of Africa, with his new fortune - and buy a new motor.

Stansted Airport security officer David revealed his family went to work not believing he'd won.

The Zimbabwe-born dad-of-three said, "They will believe me now." He added, "My son is going to choose a car for me. He loves cars."

Gill Thrill

Gran-of-eight Gillian plans to take newly-retired box maker hubby David on a coach trip to Spain - because he won't fly.

The Primark worker said, "I'll give a little bit to my four kids and have a nice holiday.

"We went to Santa Susanna before and loved it there. My husband doesn't like flying so we can get the coach - perfect."

Charity Plans

The winners all know that by playing they're supporting charities too. And right on their doorstep, the Harlow-based Michael Roberts Charitable Trust (MRCT) was awarded £50,000.

Founded in 1997, the charity aims to help vulnerable people develop their potential and self-confidence and supports those struggling financially to break the cycle of poverty.

The charity also operates the Harlow Foodbank as well as the Bounty Club, which puts fresh food on the table at a reduced cost for those in financial hardship. Both services help over 6,000 families every year and save 300 tonnes of food from going into landfill.

Andy Thornton, Chief Executive Officer at Michael Roberts Charitable Trust, said, "We are overjoyed by the funding awarded to us by the Postcode Places Trust.

"This support will enable us to start a new outreach service - allowing us to visit those who are most isolated and may not be able to come into town to get help or food.

"It means a lot to be able to expand on what we do and make those struggling feel supported."

He added, "The Michael Roberts Charitable Trust is named after Michael, who was born with Down's syndrome and a heart of gold. He was an inspiration to the community, barely being able to speak but so kind and loving to everyone."

Other local charities to receive funding because of Saturday's Millionaire Street prize include:

• Mind in West Essex - £75,000 Mind in West Essex supports people affected by mental ill health, predominantly across West Essex, to make positive changes in their lives.

• Safer Places - £75,000 Safer Places is there 24 hours, 7 days a week to support thousands of people a year being abused by a partner or ex-partner or family member.

• Ideas Plus (Employ-ability) - £50,000 Ideas Plus supports people with mental ill health to secure and retain paid employment including work with employers to ensure successful job matching.

• Petals - £35,000 Petals provides a free specialist counselling service for parents who experience the loss of a pregnancy or the death of a baby.

• Rainbow Services (Harlow) - £40,000 Rainbow Services has been working for over 25 years to alleviate the effects of poverty and deprivation.

All funding was awarded by Postcode Places Trust (opens in a new tab).

Supporting Good Causes

Today's prize is part of a draw promoted on behalf of Postcode Planet Trust (opens in a new tab). Supported by our players, this trust delivers grant funding to organisations that work to protect and promote our environment and wildlife. Benefiting charities include WWF-UK, Marine Conservation Society and The Wildlife Trusts.

It's not just People's Postcode Lottery winners who benefit though. Our amazing players have raised more than £1.2 Billion for thousands of good causes across Britain and around the world. 33% of the ticket price funds life-changing projects which make a difference to people and the planet. Find out more about the range of charities and good causes our players support.

Want to know more about People's Postcode Lottery? Take a look at our How It Works page and check out all the fabulous Prizes our players can win every single month. Why not sign up to play today?