Friday the 13th can be an unlucky date for some but for a group of 16 strangers it turned out to be anything but.
The ‘West Is Best’ syndicate group from Bridgend, south Wales, bagged a whopping £3,613,997 on the EuroMillions – the equivalent to £212,000 each.
The syndicate was founded by Rhian Owen, 44, while she worked with colleagues at Bridgend Council.
After she left that job she continued the syndicate and posted on Facebook looking for new members.
This is when it blossomed into an eclectic mix of people, including old friends, family members, and even her former rugby coach.
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Rhian is still at the heart of it all but most of the group have never even met.
She found out about the news on the Saturday morning and said: ‘My alarm went off and I checked my emails and saw I’d won a prize on The National Lottery – but I didn’t think much of it.
‘Then on the way to work, I stopped outside a shop as I had something in the back of my head nagging at me to check my account.
‘When I logged in, I saw it said “claim your prize” – and when I scrolled down and saw all the numbers matched, I was in complete shock! I immediately video called my sister, who’s also in the syndicate, and we just couldn’t stop screaming.
‘I still went to work because I didn’t know what else to do – but I ended up going home early as I was in a bit of a daze.’
Rhian then delivered the life-changing news to the rest of the syndicate via the Facebook group.
She knows already what she is going to do with the winnings and said: ‘I’m going to do up my house at last – it’s been on my list for years!
‘I’ve also booked a family holiday in October and we’re planning a bigger trip with all my sisters, brother and parents, it’s just incredible knowing we can do this together now.’
Andy Carter, Senior Winners Advisor at Allwyn, operator of The National Lottery, said: ‘Huge congratulations to the West Is Best Syndicate!
‘This win is not just a celebration of good fortune, but also a brilliant example of how The National Lottery brings people together – in this case, from all walks of life and corners of Rhian’s world.
‘I hope they all enjoy their winnings and make unforgettable memories with their friends and families.’
A lucky EuroMillions winner from County Cork managed to bag £208,000,000 in the largest draw ever.
The EuroMillions jackpot had been sat at £208million for two weeks after it reached its maximum size earlier in June.
The win was Ireland’s 18th winner of the EuroMillions jackpot.
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