Dudley has been struck with Lottery fever.  A syndicate of fifteen from Brierley Hill pub ‘The Old Star’ are toasting their success after winning £1million pounds on the EuroMillions ‘Millionaire Raffle’ on Friday 11^th June, 2010.   And another ticket worth £1.1m has still to been claimed in the Dudley area.

Syndicate leader and pub licensee Garry Adams (51) couldn’t believe his luck when he got a phone call from a fellow syndicate member asking him to check the numbers.  He said: “it was Saturday morning, I was trying to think about the England match that evening, and here I was looking on Teletext and on my computer for £1million pounds.  I then saw a line of letters and numbers which is the EuroMillions Raffle code and the figure £1,000,000.  I was laughing and crying at the same time and knocked over my cup of freshly brewed tea in all the excitement.”

 Garry and his wife Annette (43) plan to give some money to their family but have no further plans at the moment.  The rest of the syndicate want to pay off their mortgages and debts with some buying cars, booking holidays or some home improvements.

 There are fifteen members of the syndicate each receiving £66,666 each.  The winning ticket was bought at Asda on Pearson Street, Brierley Hill.  The syndicate has been playing for over four years and play EuroMillions every week and Lotto on a Saturday.  This is their first large win and the winning EuroMillions Raffle code was VRK095315.

EuroMillions offers a greater range of prizes than any other National Lottery draw, with 12 prize levels in total. In the UK it also includes the Millionaire Raffle which guarantees to create a millionaire on these shores every week.  It costs £2 to play and tickets are available from over 28,000 National Lottery retailers across the UK, online at www.national-lottery.co.uk and via mobile phones using the Play by Text service.

 £1.1m Unclaimed Prize

Not only is there a million pound winning syndicate in Brierley Hill but an amazing Lotto jackpot prize of £1,197,899 has yet to be claimed in the Borough of Dudley, so National Lottery players are being urged to check and double-check their tickets for the chance to claim this life-changing prize in time.

 The search is now on to find the owner of the winning ticket, bought in the Borough of Dudley, who matched all six numbers in the Lotto draw on Saturday 29 May 2010. The winning Lotto numbers on that date were 2, 17, 36, 39, 42, 48 and the bonus ball was 41. The lucky ticket-holder has until 5.30pm on Thursday 25 November 2010 to make their claim. 

 If no-one comes forward with the winning ticket before the prize claim deadline, then the prize money, plus all the interest it has generated, will go to the Good Causes – adding to the £24 billion already raised through sales of lottery tickets since The National Lottery launched in November 1994. 

 A National Lottery spokesperson said: “We’re desperate to find this mystery ticket-holder and unite them with their winnings – this amazing prize could

really make a huge difference to somebody’s life. We’re urging everyone to check their old tickets again or look anywhere a missing ticket could be hiding. 

 “Try checking in the pockets of clothing, in wallets, bags and down the back of the sofa – someone out there could literally be sitting on a fortune! We have the champagne on ice and our fingers crossed that the lucky winner comes forward to claim their win.”

 To jog Lotto players’ memories, Nothing’ on You by Bob Ft Bruno Mars topped the UK singles chart at the time, while the Rolling Stones were at the top of the album chart with Exile on Main St.

 Anyone who believes they have the winning ticket for any of the National Lottery draws within the 180-day deadline should call the National Lottery Line on0845 910 0000.

 Anyone concerned about lost or unchecked tickets may like to consider either setting up a National Lottery Subscription, playing online at www.national-lottery.co.uk or on their mobile phone.  Numbers can be entered in advance and lucky winners are notified online if their numbers come up.  For further information call  0845 912 5000 or visit www.national-lottery.co.uk.