A couple who scooped a £1million lottery win will continue to work as police officers – after they were told they won the “life-changing” windfall while shopping in B&M.
Graeme White, 35, and his wife, Katherine, 36, first upgrade after winning the EuroMillions was buying a Nero’s instead of a Greggs coffee.
The couple, who have a five-year-old daughter and a three-year-old son, told their police bosses that they will continue to work but with shorter hours, adding that it was important to instill “a good work ethic.” their children.
Mr White said: “We are only young and we both enjoy what we do so we see no need to stop. But we have reduced our hours, which means we will have a better work-life balance.
“I also think it is important that the kids see that we are working on a good work ethic.”
The police officer said he thought “it must be a mistake” when the couple, from Cambridgeshire, found out they had won £1million, adding that the win was “life-changing”.
Speaking about the moment, Mr White said: “I play EuroMillions through the National Lottery app and every now and then I get a message saying I’ve won something.
“It’s usually a few quid, so when I saw the message I thought ‘fine, I’ll pay for that for a packed lunch at work tomorrow’.
“But when I opened the message it said I had £1,000,000 plus £3.30.
“It had to be a mistake, in my head I thought you could only win a few quid or the big jackpot – I didn’t know about the millionaire maker prize.”
Mr White said they went shopping the next day while waiting for a phone call to confirm the win, adding: “I wanted it to be true but couldn’t make myself believe it”.
He added: “We both laughed about our first little upgrade – as we treated ourselves to a Nero’s instead of the usual Greggs coffee.
“While we were absent-mindedly strolling through B&M, the phone rang. I took the call and the guy on the phone confirmed the win and even said, ‘Congratulations, you’re a millionaire!’.
“I looked at Katherine and she was screaming and then she welled up. I don’t know what the other shoppers must have thought of us!”
The police officer said the win “changes everything for us”, adding “it gives us breathing space both physically and financially”.
Mr White said: “We always wanted to live somewhere in the countryside with plenty of outdoor space for the children – so we could keep some chickens and goats – but we thought this would be something we would have to wait years for later when we could cut costs.
“Thanks to our great luck, we no longer have to wait, our dream house can become reality and we can start house hunting right away.
“It’s crazy to think, but our 20-year plan has now become our 12-month plan!”
In addition to a new house, goats and chickens, the family’s wish list also includes a trip to Disneyland for their children and a dog.
Mrs White said: “We are big Disney fans so a trip to Disneyland is definitely on the agenda for us.
“As closer to home as we were, along with the chickens and goats, we always wanted a family dog – but we just didn’t have the space or time for both to work – it wouldn’t have been fair to the dog .
“But now that that has changed, we are all excited to get a Labrador puppy, especially the kids.
“We’ve already started coming up with names, and there are of course some National Lottery-inspired options on the list, including ‘Lottie’ and ‘Millie’!”