Billingham Millionaire Street

A grandad won £200,000 with People’s Postcode Lottery - on the day he’d been due to go into hospital for hip replacement surgery.

Barry Cook had originally been pencilled in for the op on the day of his win until medics cancelled the procedure.

He shared a £1 Million pot with four other neighbours in Billingham after TS23 3PR landed the lottery's weekly Millionaire Street prize. Every ticket was worth £200,000.

Barry said: "Bloody Hellfire, I can't believe that! I've never been as emotional in my life. I didn't expect anything at all like this. It's just blown me away.

"There’s our girls; we'll see them alright and take it from there."

Dot added: "It’s there if we need it now. As long as the family’s alright. We’ll sort them out and take what’s left."

But there may be a few treats in the pipeline for the pair. Dot wants a particular home improvement, a trip to Wimbledon - and a well-earned holiday.

Dot said: "I want a new front door. I like the tennis and would like to go to Wimbledon if I can."

Barry added: "We haven't had a holiday in a long time, so I think we'll have to push the boat out; have a nice week somewhere, fed and watered."

Two doors up, Kathleen Slee was able to focus on her £200,000 win - a day after getting a cataract removed in her left eye.

Kathleen said: "This is a dream. I always say when the advert comes on the television, ‘you’ve never been to my door yet, have you?’ It’s not real, I’m in a daze."

She added: "I want to treat the family to a holiday. We’ll let them all pick. We'll have a discussion and see where they all want to go. It would be nice to go somewhere we've never been."

But first there'll be a big family party this weekend to celebrate the win - and the karaoke machine will be out.

Kathleen said: "John's song is Valerie, and I like to sing Spinning Around by Kylie."

Across the cul-de-sac, great gran May Arnold took one look at her cheque and immediately said: "Well, I’m not cooking dinner tonight."

May whirled in her garden as she revealed plans to hit a local restaurant with her family after scooping £200,000 - and said she'll help out her son, daughter, five grandchildren and eight great grandchildren

May added: "I've got grandchildren and great grandchildren. I won't see much of this, but the family will. It'll be an absolute godsend to a lot of them. They're all starting out in life and I'm sure it’ll go a long way to sorting them out."

All the neighbours joined the lottery to support local, national and international charities.

And they were thrilled to learn that their wins mean vital funding boosts for a string of local organisations.

One of those charities is Butterwick Hospice which has been awarded £50,000.

The hospice has been providing compassionate care across Teesside and County Durham for more than 40 years.

They help children and adults who are facing life-limiting conditions and offer holistic support for their loved ones.

Their services include an Adult Inpatient Unit, Day Services across Stockton and Bishop Auckland, a Home Care Service, Bereavement Counselling Services and a dedicated Children’s Hospice.

Amanda Baker, Corporate Partnerships Manager, said: "This incredible funding award will have a huge impact on the provision of care we can deliver, supporting our sustainability and ensuring we can continue to be there when we’re needed most. It literally couldn't have come at a better time."

"We can only continue to provide care for those in our community during their darkest times, with the continued support of local people, business and supporters like People's Postcode Lottery."

Amanda added: "We are incredibly grateful - and we can't thank players of Postcode Lottery enough!"

Other charities include:

• Neo Angels - £15,000 A charity supporting families of sick and premature babies on local neonatal units at the University Hospitals of North Tees and James Cook. Their range of services include financial support, travel costs and bereavement support.

All funding was awarded by Postcode Community Trust.

Deserving Projects

Today's prize is part of a draw promoted on behalf of Postcode Education Trust. Supported by our players, this trust has a mission to provide education particularly in emergency situations. Benefitting charities include Book Aid International, Right To Play UK and Save the Children.

Players aren't the only ones who benefit from People's Postcode Lottery. A minimum of 30% of each ticket price goes to charities and good causes. Thanks to our fantastic players, more than £1.5 Billion has been raised for thousands of deserving projects.

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