Terminally ill grandad from Mablethorpe scoops £65k Pools win

A grandfather who was told he only had 18 months to live after being diagnosed with cancer five years ago is celebrating a £65,000 win on The Pools.

Gary Archer, 59, from Mablethorpe, scooped the prize after correctly predicting five numbers.

The self-employed gas engineer said he thought it was a prank call when he was told as he had forgotten about a direct debit he set up to play.

“It’s took a lot of pressure off – it’s amazing to be honest,” he said.

Speaking to BBC Radio Lincolnshire, Archer said: “I got a phone call, which I reacted badly to – I thought it was a wind up.

“But I checked my account and I was paying [for it].”

He said he planned to use some of the winnings to pay off his mortgage and to go on holiday with his family.

“It came just at the right time,” he said.

“Winning on The Pools takes the pressure off. I can’t work as many hours as I used to, with my cancer treatment making things difficult.”

However, he said: “They gave me 18 months to live and I’m still here, so the treatment is working so far.

“I’m a father of five – I lost one of my sons two years ago in a car crash which knocked me sideways,” he added.

Archer follows in the footsteps of his father, who won more than £5,000 in the mid-1980s.

“I remember we were all sat in front of the television, counting the score draws and thinking he’d won the big one – it just turned out that there were 50 winners that week.

“It was still a great week for us.”

Earlier this year, residents in Sutton on Sea celebrated after sharing a £12.3m People’s Postcode Lottery jackpot.

Archer, a Birmingham City fan who moved to the area in 2002, said residents on the Lincolnshire coast were “getting very well treated at the minute”.

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