Craig Haggie, a dad-of-four from Cornwall, popped out for a quick burger on his lunchbreak and returned a millionaire after casually grabbing a scratchcard along with his drink.
The 36-year-old made the most of the short wait for his food by stopping at a nearby Spar shop, picking up two scratchcards to go with his can of soda. But it wasn’t until he got back to the office of his family business in Tavistock that Craig realised he’d just made the decision of a lifetime.
“I went out for lunch and came back a millionaire,” Craig said, still trying to process his incredible luck.
What followed was complete chaos.
“Everyone in the office, especially my family, was jumping around and screaming,” Craig laughed. “My immediate worry was finding the safest spot for the ticket!”
In a classic dad-style move, Craig and his brother decided to tape the winning ticket to his body for safekeeping.
“Picture me spinning round and round while my brother tried to stick it to me with a roll of tape,” Craig joked. “But that didn’t last long—I got sweaty and the ticket wouldn’t stay put, so we opted for a saucepan on top of the kitchen cabinet instead. Definitely not my most logical moment!”
Craig’s wife, Zoe, 33, first thought the whole thing was just another prank from her husband.
“Craig loves a good wind-up, so I didn’t buy it at first,” Zoe admitted. “I was busy cleaning a client’s house and had to finish before rushing over. I’ve never vacuumed a carpet so fast in my life!”
When Zoe finally arrived at Craig’s office and saw everyone’s excitement, the reality of their win truly sank in.
“I just sat on the floor and cried. It means we can finally sort our home out and give each of our kids their own bedroom,” Zoe said.
The couple bought their two-bedroom bungalow at auction nine years ago, aiming to renovate and expand it for their growing family. But despite saving hard, it was still a distant dream—until now.
“This has changed everything for our family,” Zoe said enthusiastically. “I’ve already filled sketchbooks with plans for the house—it’s my absolute favourite thing to do. We’ll still keep working because we love our jobs, but maybe I’ll finally get a cleaner myself someday—how amazing would that be?”
Craig, managing director of family-run business WCL Storage Systems, bought his winning Cash Vault scratchcard at the Spar on Fore Street in Callington.
