Coventry electrician hopes to realise boyhood dream with £1m win

Simon Waddup said he "kept hearing this voice telling me to buy a lottery ticket" before playing online

An electrician who has been unable to work for a year through ill health has won £1m on the Euromillions lottery.

Simon Waddup, 31, of Coventry, said he hoped the win meant he could realise his "dream" of buying and doing up old properties.

He said a rare blood disorder and faulty heart valve had "constantly held me back".

Mr Waddup added his daughter, 10, hoped the win meant she could go on holiday abroad for the first time.

"For as long as I can remember I have wanted to buy old properties, do them up and build my own portfolio," he said.

"Friends and family laughed at my dream, especially when I was a teenager."

He studied Design Technology, worked on building sites and trained to become an electrician with this ambition in mind.

However, he said ill health had meant he had "been in and out of hospital a lot over the last few years" and had been unable to work since last summer.

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Mr Waddup said he had played the Euromillions game for the first time this month and had been in "a bit of a daze" since the win.

"Due to coronavirus, I can't celebrate with my family and I can't wait to see people and talk about the win - I will definitely be treating my family," he said.

"I will also get a passport for my daughter and, when we can, take a trip abroad - she has already told me that she wants to go to Spain."