Town abuzz with Lotto rumours

Sue Disher (left) and Heather Jeffcoat celebrate selling the winning Big Wednesday Lotto prize. Picture / Amos Chapple

The red carpet is out, the champagne is on ice, and you could cut the air of anticipation in Thames with a knife.

Residents are all hoping the inaugural winner of Lotto's Big Wednesday is local.

And win he or she did: $11.2 million in cash, a Porsche 911 Carrera, $50,000 worth of luxury travel every year for five years, a Range Rover Vogue V8, an American Express Platinum card with $250,000 on it, a Mustang luxury launch, and a $500,000 holiday home.

The owners of the Martina Four Square and Lotto shop in the town find it mind-boggling enough that they were the ones to sell the golden ticket.

"I got a shock when my business partner Heather Jeffcoat rang me last night," said co-owner Sue Disher. "She said: 'Are you sitting down', and I thought the shop had been robbed, and I said: 'Oh, what's happened?'. She said: 'We've sold the Big Wednesday ticket', and I was, I was shocked."

The festivities at the shop began at opening time yesterday, as locals began sauntering in to let the Lotto machine work it out.

Don Dick and Sally Forde showed up after the lunchtime rush with their four tickets, none of which had been checked in front of telly.

"We don't know the numbers," said Don.

"The reason we bought the tickets is that Sally had a butterfly that flew over her when she was sitting in the sun. It went under her umbrella and it shat on her. It was a sign," he joked.

When they heard the prize had not yet been claimed, they approached the counter with a more serious look in their eyes.

It wasn't to be, but at least they had their 15 seconds of fun.

Lotto assistant Gayle Shegedin said the grapevine was already winding its way round town.

"One person I was speaking to knew of someone who reckons they knew who won it. They asked if the winner was local, and the answer was 'sort of'. So whether they're an out-of-towner with a beach house up this way or someone in the area - the rumour mill in Thames is great for that."

Down the road sitting in a pub were three older gentlemen sharing a drink. They knew it wasn't one of them - nobody had offered to shout.

A few doors down even the hairdresser hadn't cottoned on to anything.

The Herald called the three biggest employers in town - Pak'N Save, Thames Coromandel District Council, and the timber mill. None reported any unexplained absences.

Post Shop workers Fiona Webster and Jill Siddons said some had commented the prize would be too overwhelming to claim.

"There's something wrong with them," said Mrs Webster. "I hope the winner's a wealthy philanthropist who's going to shout the whole town.

"Maybe it was my father-in-law - he looked far too happy this morning."