Man thanks recently deceased wife for lotto win

John Biddlecombe, from Ashbourne in Derbyshire, won £20,000 on the National Lottery on his 81st birthday, and says his late wife was responsible for the win.

The Derby Telegraph reported that Biddlecombe had played the same numbers for the last 20 years, but four weeks after the death of his wife Alice he finally got all eight numbers on the lottery raffle, and won £20,000. He told the Daily Mail: "I think she's looking down saying "I've made this happen now you enjoy yourself."

He plans to spend his windfall on a holiday to Cyprus, a trip to see a friend in Brighton, treats for his grandchildren and great grandchildren, and the solar panels his wife said weren't worth buying at their age.

Is it a sign?
It's a romantic story, and who knows what forces were at work in helping Biddlecombe to his win. But he's not the first to feel a lost loved one had been pulling strings on his behalf.

In July a lottery syndicate of Tesco workers in Plymouth shared £3.7 million, and the syndicate leader said seagull poo was responsible. She said her husband had died earlier in the year and said he wished he had left her in a better financial situation. So when he daughter was pooed on by the seagull she took it as a message from her late husband and asked her daughter to buy the ticket for the syndicate.

Back in March, a man in Georgia credited his late wife with a win. She had recently died of cancer, so he played numbers that represented her birthday and their wedding anniversary. After three months he scooped $78,000. He said he would use the money going to the places they had visited together.

Tragically a man in California lost his wife to a heart attack the day before he won $650,000 on the lottery. The 55-year-old said he thought it was a sign from above, showing him how he could still afford to take care of his grandchildren.

And last December a Canadian man didn't credit his wife with his $40 million lottery win. Instead Tom Crist pledged to give it all away to charities in memory of his late wife - who had recently died from lung cancer.

Unusual tales from the lottery
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Dream of winning the lottery comes true: but ends with a nightmare
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