A 45-year-old care home manager has won close to £1 million. Hannah Leggat was one of 115 lucky people in Cardiff’s Bay area to win a share of this month’s £3.1 million Postcode Millions prize from People’s Postcode Lottery.
Hannah and two other Watkiss Way neighbours struck it big thanks to playing with the full winning postcode, CF11 0SD. Each winning a massive £310,000 for every ticket played with. Hannah, who plays with three tickets, trebled her prize winnings to £930,000 – one of the top amounts ever won by a Postcode Lottery player.
Hannah said: “I think I’m in a dream right now. It’s overwhelming. It means a new home to us, we’ll be able to buy a bigger place now. I just need to let it sink in.”
Husband Matt, 47, a chef, said: “I’m astonished. There’s no doubt about it that this is life-changing, it will let us do so many things and make so many memories.
“We’ll book a ski holiday to Canada. The Maldives is also on our list of places we’d love to see. Hannah has always had her heart set on an ocean-side villa holiday and I’ve always wanted to go to New York and have a proper American Thanksgiving experience and now we’ll be able to do all that, and so many other wonderful things.”
The good news follows a tough year for the couple, who’ve been married for over 20 years, with both Hannah and Matt losing a parent. Hannah said the win will mean she can buy a headstone for her mother who passed away from pancreatic cancer earlier this year. She also plans to give some of her winnings to a pancreatic cancer charity.
Hannah’s friend and care home co-worker, Karen Grapes, 58, was among the CF11 0 postcode sector winners. Karen, who picked up a cheque for £11,742, said: “It’s fantastic that we’ve won together. We’ve all been friends for so long and it makes it extra special. I’ll definitely be putting it towards a sunny getaway to the Maldives. It’s been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember and now I’ll be able to go there!”
Cardiff Rugby operations manager, Rhianon Griffiths, 36, won £310,000. She was with her husband Gareth, 36, when she found out. Rhianon said: “What a surprise for a Friday afternoon. I’m speechless. It’s been a crazy two years for us. I was pregnant at the start of lockdown, he’s now a year old, and we got married just four months ago. We’ll now be able to go somewhere special on honeymoon together as a family.
“You never think it’s going to happen to you. It’s massively life changing for us.”
Other prizes ranged from £11,742 to £46,968, depending on the number of tickets played with.
Accountant Jamie Beynon, 25, won £11,742. The cash couldn’t have come at a better time as he and his girlfriend, Kasey, 26, are planning a big purchase in the near future. He said: “We’re first-time buyers so this will really be a big help towards us getting our own place. It’s a lot of money.”
Kasey, a graphic designer, added: “We’re all about the travelling and have always wanted to see Canada and Japan. We can’t wait to start planning a trip away.”
Welsh television personality and People’s Postcode Lottery ambassador, Matt Johnson said: “It’s my absolute pleasure to be back in Wales and delivering some fantastic news to our lucky winners in Cardiff and in my old neighbourhood. All our amazing CF11 0 Postcode Lottery players now have thousands of reasons to celebrate this weekend. Llongyfarchiadau!”
Players of People’s Postcode Lottery have raised more than £800 million for over 9,000 charities and good causes since 2005.
National Museum Wales is one good cause to benefit from players’ support. It’s received over £2.3 million. This funding is supporting work right across the organisation’s many visitor attractions and helping engage more people with its collections and the stories they tell.
October’s Postcode Millions draw was held on behalf of Postcode Children Trust. This trust funds good causes working to support children and young people, including Young Lives vs cancer, Whizz-Kidz and Girlguiding.
