What could a pillowcase and a fish tank have in common? This week has seen National Lottery players admit to hiding their tickets in the MOST unusual places!

National Lottery players from Mayo, Meath, Kilkenny, Dublin and Galway were thrilled to make the trip to the Winners Room this week to collect their prizes won over the last number of weeks.

A TellyBingo player from Co. Mayo claimed the TellyBingo Snowball prize of €65,010 from the 20th January draw. The winning ticket was purchased at the Post Office in Kilkelly, Co. Mayo.

Speaking about the win, the player said, “Would you believe I had the ticket ready for the bin? I thought I checked it already and that it wasn’t a winner. I said I’d double-check, scanned it on the app, and it turned out it was a winner! I actually thought I’d won €15,000, so when the Claims team confirmed it was €65,000, all I could do was laugh. I was like, ‘Where did this come from?’”

When asked where the ticket was kept, after narrowly avoiding the bin, the winner shared “The crib was still sitting out after Christmas, so I tucked it underneath for safekeeping!”

The Telly Bingo player is now looking forward to marking the occasion with a family celebration in the sunshine later this year.

A Meath woman popped into EuroSpar Duleek on the Main Street in Duleek, Co Meath and picked up a €10 Mega Money Multiplier on which she won an incredible €50,000.

“When I got back to the car, I decided to scratch the Scratch Card before driving away. I got the shock of my life when I saw €50,000! My phone was at home charging as well so I couldn’t even call any one to tell them. I drove straight home and got my sister on the phone, I just kept saying ‘Tell me I’m not dreaming!’ Ever since then, I have kept the Scratch Card in my pillowcase, so I have been sleeping on it every night.”

The winner is now looking forward to using this win as an excuse to visit somewhere sunny.

“I would love to do a cruise, especially with the way the weather has been lately. All I want is to see the sun soon!”

A Kilkenny woman claimed the top prize of €40,000 on the Bingo 90 Scratch Card, purchased at Centra on Ladywell Street in Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny.

“It was a very normal day. I had finished work and popped to the shop as I usually would. I picked up a Bingo 90 Scratch Card and when I got the shop assistant to check it for me, they handed back a slip that said, ‘Contact the National Lottery’, I really was so shocked. I just kept saying, ‘What is happening right now?’”

With the winning Scratch Card safely tucked away, sealed in multiple layers of envelopes and stored in a locked cupboard until she could visit Lottery HQ, the Kilkenny winner is now looking ahead to an exciting future.

“I’m looking forward to celebrating with family soon. I’m expecting my first baby, so I’ll be planning for their arrival and hopefully doing some home renovations in the future.”

A Dublin man was over the moon to reveal €25,000 on a €10 Mega Money Multiplier after he purchased his winning ticket at C&T Superstore at 191 Philipsburgh Avenue in Marino, Dublin 3.

“I went to the shop to buy a few rolls for lunch and just decided to get a Scratch Card as well while I was there. I went home and I swear my eyes went blurry with the shock – I just couldn’t believe it. I can tell you now, those rolls never got eaten!”

The winner admitted he kept the ticket in quite an unusual spot.

“The Scratch Card has been sitting on top of the fish tank ever since I scratched it. My partner was definitely worried about it being there, but it made it here safely so it couldn’t have been that bad!”

A Galway syndicate of two claimed a EuroMillions Match 5 prize worth €21,858 from the 12th January draw. The winning ticket was purchased at Applegreen M4 Enfield West, Martinstown, Cadamstown, Co. Kildare.

“I was up really early for work and decided to scan my ticket before hitting the road. I couldn’t believe it when the message popped up ‘You’ve won big!’ I was straight up the stairs to tell my partner the good news. We couldn’t believe it! We’ve always imagined how we would react to winning a prize, and we were so shocked. Both of us were totally distracted for the entire day – we were buzzing!”

The Galway duo plan to put their winnings towards upgrading their car. 

Meanwhile, National Lottery players hoping to be next to visit the Winners Room are reminded that this weekend, there are two huge jackpots on offer. Tonight’s EuroMillions jackpot is set to roll towards an estimated €30 million with tickets available ahead of the 7.30pm deadline for sales this evening. Saturday night’s Lotto jackpot is heading towards an estimated €8.8 million, and tickets can be purchased ahead of the 7.45pm cut-off time for sales tomorrow evening. Tickets for both draws are available in-store, through the National Lottery app or at www.lottery.ie.

Nearly 30 cent in every €1 spent on National Lottery games goes back to Good Causes in the areas of sport, youth, health, welfare, education, arts, heritage and the Irish Language. In total, more than €6.5 billion has been raised for Good Causes since the National Lottery was established 37 years ago. In 2024 alone, €239.3 million was raised for local Good Causes in communities across Ireland.                                Play National Lottery games responsibly, play for fun.