Blind ex-Royal Marine wins lottery thanks to late wife setting up ticket before her death

'She was the smart one. She's looking out for me.'

Alan Mizon called the £396,694 win - from a £3.2m prize - a "miracle" he put down to his late wife, Diana, who died of cancer on her birthday in July 2020. She was 73.

Alan's Chelmsford postcode, CM1 7RT, was announced as the full winning postcode in the monthly Millions prize – and he was the only ticket-holder. More than 540 others in the wider postcode area each won at least £4,477.

The 77-year-old said of the win: "Flipping heck - it’s a miracle! Di would be absolutely out of this world."

Alan, according to a report by ITV, continued: "She got my Postcode Lottery ticket all sorted out for me - she was the smart one. She’s looking out for me."

While delighted with his good fortune, the win was bittersweet for Alan, without his wife of 53 years.

He met the "love of his life" when he was a teenager and the pair would have celebrated 55 years of marriage this year.

Alan told ITV that he now hoped to go on holiday and revisit some of the places and and his wife enjoyed together, as well as donate to charity.

Alan, who is on the waiting list for a guide dog, said he'd like to donate to the Guide Dog charity, "to help others like me".

But first, Alan said he'd treat himself "to a nice whisky to celebrate".

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