A MUM who scooped a £5.4 million lotto jackpot has revealed that she knew she would win after a spooky premonition in a dream.
Deana Sampson had just £7.64 to her name and was trapped in a loveless marriage when she raked in the cash in 1998.
Deana Sampson scooped the massive jackpot in 1998PA:Press Association
Deana, from Sheffield, Yorkshire, was struggling to bring up her two kids in a council house while on benefits when she bought the winning ticket.
Her brother, Glyn, had died just four months earlier and she was well and truly fed up with her life.
She bought a ticket every week, but the week before her big win, she says Glyn came to her in a dream and told her she would get lucky.
Now, she is living the life she literally dreamt of and doesn’t like to think of how her life would have panned out without the prize.
Deana told The Mirror: “I do believe someone up there was telling me something good was going to happen.”
She was even sitting in Glyn’s chair at her family home when she found out about the big win.
The lucky winner added: “First of all it’s pure shock – it’s not someone you’ve read about, it’s you.
“Then you panic – how will you deal with it?
“Then you feel relief that you can pay bills, pay off debts. Finally happiness came because I could help family and friends and make their lives easier, especially my mum and dad.”
She gave away £1 million to friends and family, as well as several charities, and took them on an all-expenses-paid trip to Jamaica to celebrate.
Five years later, she divorced her husband and, just a year after that, she met current partner Jason.
The pair own a restaurant and several bars in Chesterfield, with Deana still working six days a week.
On the decision to keep working, she said: “I work hard because I’m not really one for sitting at home.
“I like to keep busy and the idea of running my own business appealed to me.
“Most of all, I liked the idea of employing people and helping my community.
“It was for my kids, too. Seeing me sat at home lazing around all day wasn’t going to teach them anything.”
As well as a plush new pad in Sheffield, Deana owns a Porsche and a wardrobe of designer clothes.
However, she insists the win hasn’t changed her, joking that her feet are still “firmly on the ground”, just in better shoes.
It comes after a man who won £1.8 million revealed his future plans after blowing thousands on a music career.
Meanwhile, one lotto fan was left devastated when he thought he had won big, only for it all to come crashing down within seconds.
She says that she knew she would win after seeing it in a dreamNews Group Newspapers Ltd Read More