I brushed off Postcode Lottery win for an Amazon voucher – turns out it was a life-changing £250,000
A POSTCODE Lottery player brushed off their win thinking it was just an Amazon voucher – but they’d won a hefty £250,000.
Yu, from Dartford, Kent, ended up jumping for joy after bagging a quarter of a million pounds in the latest Millionaire Street draw.
Her big win came just hours before she jetted off to China to see her parents.
The Chinese Mandarin teacher was packing her bags for the Far East trip with her two sons when her whopping windfall was revealed.
Yu said: “I’m flying to China tomorrow, so all the good things are coming together.
“I haven’t been back home for more than four years because of the pandemic.
“This has changed my life. I have no words to describe my feelings now.
“It is the happiest day ever. I’m so excited.
“I feel dizzy because I thought I was winning an Amazon voucher.”
Yu landed the windfall with three other neighbours in Dartford after DA1 4LR won this weekend’s Millionaire Street prize.
Every ticket was worth £250,000.
It’s the second time in eight months that players in Dartford have won Millionaire Street.
Five neighbours pocketed £200,000 each after DA1 4SF – less than a mile away from this week’s street – was announced as a winner last November.
Yu and her boys, aged twelve and eight, were getting ready for the long journey to Shanghai to catch up with friends, before heading to Guangzhou where eldest son Bojie will attend a summer camp.
Then Yu and her youngest son Hongyi will head to her hometown of Harbin, in China’s north east near the Russian border, where her parents still live.
One of her suitcases was crammed with biscuits, shortbread, chocolate and teas – and Yu hinted there could be more treats for the family.
She said: “I’m taking biscuits and tea. They love biscuits and chocolate, especially the children.
“They love Fox’s biscuits the best. I’ve also got English tea, herbal teas and shortbread.”
Yu added: “I can take my parents for a holiday. China is huge, so I can take them for a break there.”
How to play People's Postcode Lottery
People’s Postcode Lottery costs £12 a month to play and there are guaranteed winners every day.
People play with their chosen postcode and are automatically entered into all draws.
When that postcode is drawn, people holding the right tickets inside it win.
A minimum of 33% from each ticket goes to charity.
A daily prize of £1,000 is up for grabs, which can double to £2,000 if players have two tickets – and then people can triple winnings if they have three tickets.
Yu, who teaches Chinese Mandarin at Dartford Chinese School and GCSE Chinese at the local secondary, leapt onto her sons’ trampoline after being surprised with her cheque by Postcode Lottery presenter Matt Johnson.
She revealed she and husband Jingli have been looking for a new home as her family have outgrown their semi.
Her win could now accelerate plans.
But she also wants to take more holidays – with dreams of a return trip to Iceland and a vacation in America.
Yu said: “We have been looking to upgrade our house. It is getting to be a bit small for us now.
“We’ve been planning to move for the schools. My son is waiting for his GCSE results. It will depend on where he goes to university.”
She added: “I loved Iceland when I visited in the winter, so I would love to go back in the summer.
“I love the scenery with the volcanoes and the Blue Lagoon.”