A mum called the police when she was told she'd won a million quid.
Deborah Burgess had just become a millionaire without knowing it after missing a vital email sent her way.
Deborah, 56, had landed a cool £1 million from the National Lottery but the scoop passed her by after she was made to spend time in hospital.
Advert
The mum, from Leicestershire, spends her days as a Medical Records Administrator at Spire Leicester Hospital.
And it was there, in September last year, that colleagues told her she looked under the weather.
Deborah underwent some health checks and the results brought back a couple of issues; she had low iron levels and suspected anaemia.
Advert
Upon being admitted to Leicester Royal Infirmary it was eventually decided she was suffering from chronic anaemia.
She had to spent more than a week as an inpatient and had a blood transfusion as part of her treatment.
It was during this stay that the mum became a millionaire without knowing.
Deborah, who plays the National Lottery intermittently, said she 'buys maybe a month's worth of tickets online' when she does decide to have a flutter.
Advert
She did just this back in August, with one of the tickets landing her the jackpot.
She said: "I don’t check my account regularly and I was then poorly for a while, including time spent in hospital.
"I then had a holiday to help with my recuperation so it was months before I actually checked my emails."
Looking back at the exact moment Deborah discovered her huge win, she had the 'shock of her life' when she logged in to online account and found a million quid in her virtual back pocket.
Advert
She resorted to ringing the police before the National Lottery itself to confirm everything was legit.
The huge win saw Deb immediately show kindness to those she holds close, with her selling her car to best friend Louise Smith for just £1.
Deborah said: “I had finally got around to catching up on things after a tough few months and was checking my emails at home - there were so many after not going online for a while.
Advert
“I noticed I had one from The National Lottery with a reminder to check my account because I was a winner, so I checked my account with my mum there and then.
“I had the shock of my life when I did check my account.
“I asked my mum what she thought and, with neither of us able to think that clearly after such an incredible shock, she told me to call the police to check if there were any scams going around.
“I called them and they reassured me, so I then phoned The National Lottery and the man on the end of the phone confirmed the win was in fact real.
“Funnily enough, I still didn’t think it was real until a lady from The National Lottery actually turned up on my doorstep to confirm everything and pay me my winnings.
“So, I guess that the moral of the story is to regularly check your National Lottery account.
“I was a millionaire for months but didn’t know it.”
Deborah said she's 'not found the time to celebrate' properly due to her illness, returning to work, and then Christmas and New Year.
"But finally getting hold of that big cheque and spraying champagne like a Formula 1 driver has been well worth the wait," she said.
Hawaii awaits for Debs, now, as she enjoys her winnings following on from buying a new car and helping her son get settled after university.
Any money left will then be invested in the family's future.
The winning numbers were 2, 7, 17, 28, 31, 37 and the Bonus Ball was 8.
Topics: UK News, Weird, Money, National Lottery
Tom Earnshaw