Wife who ignored husband becomes multi-millionaire

A woman who won a £4.5m house has joked the prize shows why she should never listen to her husband.

Nicola Dickinson, from Wiltshire, said her husband Martyn Dickinson had told her to stop entering a prize draw for expensive homes as she would “never win in a million years”.

The couple are now celebrating after bagging a Lake District home with a lake, woodland jetty, sauna, hot tub and gym.

Nicola, 59, said: “I’ve been entering for four years. Martyn has been moaning at me to stop – but I liked that even if I didn’t win, I was supporting amazing charities. But winning has shown this is precisely why I never listen to him, and thank goodness I didn’t – we’re multi-millionaires now.”

The couple’s new house comes mortgage-free, with stamp duty and legal fees covered. They can choose to either live in the house, rent it out or sell up – and were also given £250,000 in cash.

Nicola said she “didn’t think it was real” when she was called about the win.

“We celebrated with lots of bubbles over the weekend. Dry Jan never stood a chance,” she added.

The couple have three children, three grandchildren and have lived in the same house in Swindon for the past 30 years.

Nicola said: “We’ve worked hard our whole lives, not just for ourselves but for our family, and this win really does change everything for all of us.

“We’re looking forward to further supporting our children and grandchildren, to help give them the best possible start in life – the win feels like a generational legacy for our family.”

Nicola won the house after entering the Omaze Million Pound House Draw competition.

Omaze partnered with the RSPCA for the draw and said a £1m donation would go to the charity’s rehabilitation work.