Woman, 68, wins £3m home after 40 years in same two-bedroom semi

A woman who has lived in the same two-bedroom house for 40 years has won a £3 million home.

Marilyn Pratt, 68, won the four-storey property in Fulham west London via the second Omaze Million Pound House Draw, which also raised more than £1 million for the British Heart Foundation (BHF).

“My daughter has wanted to get on the property ladder for some time and I thought I’d try to win her a house,” Mrs Pratt said.

“My husband thought I was completely insane and said, ‘what a waste of a tenner’.

“As luck would have it I entered for £10 the night the draw closed, the rest is history.”

Mrs Pratt, who lives with her husband of 45 years David in a semi-detached house in south-east London, has two daughters, London-based Jenny, 42, and Maggie, 41, who lives in Singapore.

She said the Fulham property – which features three bedrooms, an office, a gym and a walled garden – was “absolutely beautiful” but that she would probably sell it.

“I think that would be fairest on everyone as I have another daughter too,” she said.

“The whole situation is totally surreal.

“It hasn’t sunk in at all.

“It makes me feel so happy that even though this has come at a later stage of my life, I know that my children are always going to be secure and that’s a really nice feeling.”

The draw also raised much-needed money for BHF to help fund its research and support work.

BHF chief executive Dr Charmaine Griffiths said: “Partnering with Omaze has been a vital way for us to raise crucial funds at a time when Covid-19 has devastated our income.

“The money raised is more than we could have imagined.”

Los Angeles-based Omaze has raised over £100 million, supporting more than 350 charities around the world.

Its third UK million-pound-home giveaway is already open to entrants, with a five-bedroom house in the Cotswolds up for grabs.