Woman celebrates £10,000-a-month Lottery win with ‘virtual hug’

A woman who has won £10,000 every month for a year on The National Lottery during lockdown celebrated her news with a “virtual hug” from a friend.

Mo Reideman, a manager at a London art centre, discovered she had matched five numbers with her lucky dip ticket for the Set for Life draw on March 19.

Although the 54-year-old is unable to share her news with friends and family as enthusiastically as she would have liked, the coronavirus lockdown has not stopped her celebrating.

She said: “I told my colleague, who I trust, that I wanted her to check something in case I had read it incorrectly.

“I left my phone on the table, she looked and confirmed I had read it right. Mindful of the importance of the two-metre safe distancing – and the need to not alert the rest of the office – she gave a silent cheer and gave me a ‘virtual’ hug.

“In fact all of my celebrations so far have been virtual. My partner, Paul, is in the Merchant Navy and I won’t see him until late April at the earliest.

“When I text him to tell him the news he didn’t respond, in the end I had to call the ship’s phone to tell him to check his messages.”

With the win confirmed and her first £10,000 in the bank account, Ms Reideman is already making plans.

She said the win will be used to pay off her mortgage over the next 12 months and to refurbish the bathroom – something she described as a ‘silly money’ spend that she will always remember.

Ms Reideman added: “I know it’s a very stressful time for the whole country and I’ve felt that stress every day.

“All we can do is keep going, follow advice given – including washing our hands often – look out for each other and remember we can all do our bit to get it under control – it’s really important to remember we can get through this.”