Grandmother of 8 wins lottery days after cancer operation

A Whiston grandmother battling cancer is 1 of 10 neighbours celebrating this weekend after winning ₤330,000 with People's Postcode Lottery. The cash windfall comes after the Merseyside postcode starting:- L35, was announced as a winner with the lottery, on Saturday, 19 February 2022. 9 neighbours living on the winning street of Banner Hey won ₤30,000 each, with a 10th bagging ₤60,000 playing with 2 tickets. Elaine Bailey scooped ₤30,000 just a few days after undergoing surgery for breast cancer. 3 days after leaving Hospital, the 66 year old found out that she'd won a huge cash windfall. Elaine said:- "₤30,000 will help out an awful lot after what I've been through. It's absolutely fantastic."

Elaine received 5 months of chemotherapy followed by a major surgery to remove an area of cancer.

The grandmother of 8 received the news alongside her friend and neighbour Lisa Smith (62) who also won ₤30,000. Elaine said:- "We've both been ill, I'm still off work now and I'm still sick so it certainly means an awful lot. It's fantastic; It's peace of mind, isn't it?"

On the same day Elaine was discharged from Hospital the lottery had tried to get in touch, she said:- "I've only just come out of Hospital on Friday, and I only found out on Friday that the lottery had been trying to get a hold of me. Lisa came round and told me, as I didn't know anything about it."

Lisa said the win was particularly meaningful for her as well after overcoming her own battle with cancer. She was left quite emotional after the realisation of her five-figure win started to sink in.

Since 2017, Lisa has been in complete remission after recovering from vocal cord cancer. After a few difficult years, the 2 friends said they are looking forward to the future with some ideas for their win. Elaine said:- "We're definitely going on a holiday, probably Disney in Florida with our grandkids. They'll be made up going to Disney, won't they?"

Lisa also had something special lined up for her granddaughter, she added:- "She's going to get a puppy, a dachshund puppy."

The pair intend to surprise their families with the news and start the celebrations by going out to a local restaurant. Elaine said:- "We'll open a bottle of Prosecco and probably go out for a meal with the family. My granddaughter is in School, and she can't wait to find out."

Lisa laughed and added:- "She wanted the day off School, didn't she?"

Dad of 4 Chris Lawson (40) couldn't believe his luck after pocketing ₤60,000. He netted a double prize thanks to playing with 2 tickets. Chris said:- "It's a brilliant day, absolutely overwhelmed. It couldn't be any better, just really happy to win that amount."

His wife Anita added:- "It really will make a massive difference. We have 4 children and we've been saving for years for a holiday to the Dominican, so we can pay that off and look at some excursions to really make it a holiday of a lifetime."

The couple are also hoping to extend their house to make room for their growing family, Anita said:- "As our boys are getting older and taller, we've been looking at an extension so that would be perfect. It's just massive."

Elizabeth Brown was another ₤30k winner on the street, she said:- "I'm absolutely over the moon, I couldn't be happier; I'm so shocked."

The 43 year old is now planning on treating herself and her family with the winnings. Elizabeth said:- "I can take my family on a nice holiday, treat myself to a new car and I can go shopping. A lot of fabulous shopping. I just can't wait!"

Andrea Watson (45) was left stunned after her ₤30k cheque was revealed, she shouted:- "Shut the front door!"

After Andrea was asked how she might spend the money, she said:- "I can treat my kids and go on a holiday to Spain or Disneyland Paris, as the kids really want to go there. Their birthdays are coming up soon as well."

Andrea was quick to share her delight about winning with 9 others on the street:- "It's lovely to win with your neighbours because they are all so lovely around here, it has brought the street together."

Derek Mercer (50) jumped up and down with joy after finding out that he'd just become ₤30k richer thanks to his lucky postcode.

Derek, who works as a handyman, is hoping to take a long awaited holiday with his family. "It was my 50th last year and we couldn't get away so now we can have a nice big holiday this year to make up for it."

Derek was joined by his wife Paula, who works on a Covid ward at the local Hospital, she said:- "It's been an awful couple of years; this is just amazing."

Another lucky ₤30k winner was Susan Kavanagh, she said:- "Oh my God! It's unbelievable; it just doesn't happen around here."

Susan and her husband Anthony said they plan to support their family with the winnings:- "We can help our 2 sons out, so everyone will get a share."

The 67 year old has lived on the street for over 40 years and said she was chuffed to see that so many of her neighbours had also won. Susan added:- "We brought our sons up here; it's a lovely community and we've got great neighbours. I just can't believe that so many have won on the street, it's amazing."

The other winners chose to remain anonymous.

People's Postcode Lottery ambassador Judie McCourt presented the winners with their prize cheques and shared her congratulations, she said:- "I'm absolutely thrilled for our 10 lucky winners in Whiston near Liverpool! It's been so special surprising so many lovely neighbours. It was such a joyous moment seeing all the winners coming together on the street. I hope they have a great time celebrating the win and spending the cash."

People's Postcode Lottery costs ₤10 a month to play and there are guaranteed winners every day. People play with their chosen postcode and are automatically entered into all draws.

Players of People's Postcode Lottery have helped raise over ₤850 million to date for thousands of good causes across Britain and internationally.

This draw was promoted on behalf of Postcode International Trust. The Trust has a mission to support the creation of sustainable solutions that alleviate poverty, hunger and enable food security. The Trust supports charities and good causes with those purposes through grant funding. Supported charities include Action Against Hunger, Action Aid and Oxfam.

Winners:-

► Elaine Bailey (66) - wears a black dress with a flowery design with short blonde hair.

► Lisa Smith (62) - wears a pink, purple, red and black dress with shoulder length blonde hair.

► Chris Lawson (40) - wears a black long sleeved polo shirt.

► Elizabeth Brown (43) - wears a black top with a yellow scarf and is sat in a pink wheelchair.

► Andrea Watson (45) - wears a pink top with a black leather jacket with a fur collar.

► Derek Mercer (50) - wears a light grey jumper and a brown belt.

► Susan Kavanagh (67) - wears a green quilted jacket with a fur hood and glasses.
 

Joe Pasquale To Head Cast Of Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em At St Helens This Summer
Photographs by Scott Rylander...

Hilarious mishaps and DIY disasters are bringing the house down; quite literally; as Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em hits the road with Joe Pasquale at the helm of the cast. Betty has exciting news for Frank, but he's preoccupied by possible new found fame as a magician. With guests arriving for dinner and crossed wires all round, priceless misunderstandings are on the menu. Based on the 1970's classic TV comedy by Ray Allen and directed by the award winning Guy Unsworth, Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em is the ultimate feel-good night out, washed down with lashings of nostalgia and Mother's prune wine.

The 2022 UK Tour is produced by Limelight Productions, it opens late March in Stevenage before touring nationwide throughout Spring and Summer, arriving in St Helens in early August. The production is designed by Simon Higlett, with lighting design by Matt Haskins, sound design by Ian Horrocks Taylor, and choreography by Jenny Arnold.

Joe Pasquale is a firm TV and stage favourite, and has delighted audiences with his stand up tours for more than 30 years. He has continued to win legions of fans appearing in all manner of entertainment from New Faces, Spamalot and The Producers, and was crowned King Of The Jungle in I'm A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here. A man of many talents, Joe has qualified as a pilot, and has also taken up boxing and running.

Sarah Earnshaw's Theatre credits include:- Yes, Prime Minister (Theatre Clwyd); The Argument (Theatre Royal Bath); The Nightingales (Theatre Royal Bath and UK Tour); Nativity! The Musical (Birmingham Rep and UK Tour); Spamalot (Playhouse West End and UK Tour); Wicked (Apollo Victoria, part of the original West End cast); and The Royal Variety Performance.

Susie Blake regularly appeared in the TV series and comedy specials of Victoria Wood, Russ Abbot and Stanley Baxter, and is perhaps particularly loved as the Continuity Announcer in Victoria Wood: As Seen on TV. She recently appeared in Silky Hotel (BBC iPlayer); Kate and Koji (Series 1 and 2, ITV); Not Going Out (BBC One); and The Real Marigold Hotel (BBC One). She played Bev Unwin in Coronation Street from 2003 to 2006 and again in 2015; and Hillary Nicholson in Mrs Brown's Boys. Films include:- Fierce Creatures and Nativity 3: Dude, Where's My Donkey?!. Theatre credits include:- Fisherman's Friends: The Musical (Dominion Theatre and Hall For Cornwall); My Fair Lady (Grange Festival); The Mirror Crack'd (UK Tour); Grumpy Old Women Live 2 and 3, When We Are Married (West End); Pygmalion (Chichester Festival Theatre); Wicked (West End); and Noises Off (National Theatre).

Moray Treadwell recently finished filming The Witcher: Blood Origin (Netflix). Theatre credits include:- No Man's Land (UK Tour); Hysteria (National Tour for London Classic Theatre Company); The Railway Children (King's Cross Theatre); The Beatles LOVE Show (Cirque Du Soleil, Las Vegas); Waiting For Godot (Italian tour); The Importance of Being Earnest (Vienna's English Theatre); and The Ruling Class (Frankfurt's English Theatre).

James Paterson made his London debut in the original production of The Phantom Of The Opera. During his long association with the show he played the title role when Michael Crawford was indisposed and also played M.Andre, and later became Resident Director for the national tours and the London production. Other Theatre credits include:- Sunset Boulevard (London Coliseum); Half A Sixpence (Chichester Festival Theatre); Cats (UK and International Tour); Cinderella, Dick Whittington and Snow White (The London Palladium). James most recently appeared in Cabaret (ARTS Aberdeen). Television credits include:- London's Burning, Close To Home, and Birds Of A Feather.

Ben Watson is an Actor, Writer, Director, and Comedian who recently starred in Around The World In 80 Days (Blackpool Grand Theatre). He regularly performs his own solo comedy show The History Of Everything In 60 minutes. Theatre credits include:- Aladdin (White Rock Theatre, Hastings); I Capture The Castle (Watford Palace, Bolton Octagon, Oxford Playhouse); Blue Brothers Party (UK and Japan Tour); The Jungle Book (UK Tour); and A Midsummer Night's Dream and Comedy of Errors (Cambridge Shakespeare Festival).

Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em runs at St Helens Theatre Royal between:- Tuesday, 2 August and Saturday, 6 August 2022. Telephone ticket booking line:- 01744756000, lines open:- Monday to Saturday, from:- 10am to 5pm. Also you can book tickets and find out more online at:- StHelensTheatreRoyal.Com. Find out more about Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em by visiting:- SomeMothersDoAveEm.Com.