The stars had aligned, says £1m scratchcard winner

A factory worker has said the “stars aligned” for him to win £1m on a scratchcard during a trip to the shops for a loaf of bread.

Luke Harris, 34, from Canterbury in Kent, said: “I keep thinking someone is going to take it all away from me and tell me it’s a prank.”

Mr Harris, who lives with his fiancee, Alison Coke, and their four children, said the couple had already purchased a new family car and were looking at booking a wedding venue.

He said the winning number he scratched off was 31, which is the couple’s lucky number after they had their first date on 31 August 2020.

Mr Harris said it was “just your average Wednesday night” when he won the jackpot.

“Whilst I was in the shop buying my loaf of bread, I decided to buy a scratch card on a whim. I scratched it as soon as I got in the car,” he said.

“I looked at it about 10 times, and kept saying to myself, ‘This can’t be real’.”

The couple went to the same school but reconnected years later on social media.

“We got engaged last September but had to put it on the back burner as the house was the priority,” he said.

“It took some persuading, but she finally agreed to go on a coffee date with me and now we’re now engaged to be married."

Mr Harris plans to take his family to Lapland and hopes to use the money go back into education and start his own business.

Ms Coke said they had to “contain themselves” after finding out about the win and opted to carry on their regular evening routine with their children before celebrating as a family with a game of bowling and dinner.

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