On May 8, 2023, Dean Smethurst, a citizen of the United Kingdom, went to check, as usual, if his lottery ticket, the one he bought every week at Tesco, the English supermarket chain, had won. To his surprise, he found out that not only had he won, but he was also preparing to receive a massive amount of money. Obviously, he went all out and bought a trip to Barbados for his entire family after a sleepless night filled with excitement. Spoiler alert: he had won a measly 7 euros.
If you dream, lotteries
The story is a bit more complex, of course. It’s not that Smethurst didn’t have reasons to think he had hit the jackpot. When the man went to check his ticket at Tesco, the response was that he had won, but they couldn’t pay him right there. Instead, he would have to contact Camelot, the company responsible for awarding prizes.
On Camelot’s website, he discovered that such instructions are usually given only if you have won at least £50,000. So, our hero, who had been playing the lottery unsuccessfully for six years, called everyone to share the good news: he finally had money for all the whims he desired. Joy, excitement. But, as it was already late, there was no one on the other end of the phone at Camelot to confirm the exact amount of money he had accumulated.
He decided that the fortune would go to two things: first, fixing his house completely. Second, inviting his family on a luxurious trip to Barbados. He could have checked the numbers himself, but he decided to make impulsive decisions instead. The next day, he was told what he had won: three free plays worth… 6 pounds.
So, what actually happened? Well, it turns out he had bought two tickets for two different draws, and one of them was happening at that moment, so to avoid confusion, the machine sent that automated message. Well then. Let’s hope Dean has a good time in Barbados. He doesn’t have much of a choice now.
