Publicans say EuroMillions win down to carpet cleaning

The landlord and landlady of a village pub will be calling last orders on their 100 hour working weeks after scooping £1 million on the EuroMillions.

Nick and Zoe Hoare are still reeling from their win but put their new millionaire status down to their beloved pub carpets.

The couple, who have run the White Horse Inn in Quidhampton, near Salisbury, Wiltshire for the past three years, plan to give up the tenancy.

Mr Hoare, 53, a part-time farrier, said: "In the pub game there is always another job to do and last Monday - although it was our day off - was no different.

"We had hired a rug cleaner to do the carpets and when we took it back later that day I decided to pick up a couple of EuroMillions tickets.

"I put them in my wallet and thought no more of it. Had those carpets not needed a spring clean, we wouldn't have been in the shop, buying a ticket from a machine which dispensed the winning code. Who knew cleaning could be so lucrative?"

It was not until a day after the draw on May 9 that the pair, who have been married 11 years, discovered they had become millionaires.

Mrs Hoare said: "We had just finished the lunchtime shift and were in the office finalising plans for our beer festival which is taking place in a couple of weeks.

"While I was checking orders I heard Nick gasp and looking around I saw him standing there with the lottery ticket in his hand, saying 'these match'.

"I thought he'd made a mistake so took a look myself and when I saw they did match and it was the Millionaire Maker code, I couldn't believe it and just said 'well that must be wrong then'.

"It was only when I scanned the ticket with my National Lottery app and it pinged that we started to believe it was time to call the number on the back of the ticket."

Once their win had been confirmed they took their dog for a walk in the woods to try and comprehend their wealth before opening the pub at 6pm.

"Some people have asked us why we didn't shut the pub that day but it and our locals mean so much to us," Mrs Hoare said.

"We wouldn't let people down like that. Plus it's been quite good fun pulling pints and keeping it business as usual, secretly knowing this utterly bonkers dose of good luck has just landed in our laps."

They have decided to relinquish the pub tenancy in six months' time but are hopeful for the White Horse's future and what the couple plan to do next is very much to be decided.

"This is such an amazing opportunity for us," Mrs Hoare said.

"While we will certainly buy a new home, probably travel a bit and maybe treat ourselves to new cars at some point, for me the best bit about our win is the free time we will be able to enjoy.

"The pub has been a blast but working 100 hour weeks doesn't leave much time for catching up with friends and family, so when we finally say our farewells to Quidhampton, there'll be lots of very leisurely long lunches and pots of coffee enjoyed with those near and far."

Mr Hoare bought the LuckyDip ticket at Waitrose in Salisbury.