20100307_BOY006_e1_NWSNorth 26/02/2010 11:16 Page 6 DON'T play the Lotto. Even rollover jackpots can't tempt me. Not because I'm opposed to a flutter ­ I just never expect to win. Some people are lucky with Quick Picks, raffles and bingo cards. Others regularly stick a pin in the Grand National lineup and come away with a 20-1 winner. Then there are those, like me, who win nothing. Still, I believe in luck ­ I have a horseshoe on my back gate, and a fertility doll in my study. I always make a wish on rainbows ­ although never for a Lotto win. But I sometimes wonder about those who score big time: is it a blessing or a curse? So when a book containing the real life stories of lottery winners landed on my doormat, I dropped everything to read it. It was about British lottery winners, which meant I didn't get to read Dolores McNamara's story in her own words. I'd have liked to know how life is working out for the Limerick mother, a part-time cleaner when she scooped a record-setting 115m almost five years ago. To my mind, there can be too much of a good thing. I'd like to know if Mrs McNamara, with her unique perspective, agrees. Instead, I read about a student called Sarah Cocking, just 21 when she won £3.4m in 2005. How did she react? She abandoned her studies, and the first thing she bought was a boob job apiece for her two sisters. Later she moved into a fivebedroom house on her own. She must rattle round in it. She also lashed out on a Range Rover, before realising she couldn't park such a big vehicle and swapping it for a Mini convertible. Reading between the lines, her life seems dull and rather empty. If she'd stuck with her studies, she'd be a social Martina DEVLIN I swmag@sundayworld.com PEOPLE TALK ABOUT THE CASH BUT IT IS THE FREEDOM MONEY BUYS THAT IS THE IMPORTANT PART OF WINNING THE LOTTO worker by now, perhaps making a difference in people's lives. There's only so much shopping you can do, Sarah admitted ­ she said shops became boring when you went back every few days, to see the same goods for sale. (Maybe they should have a special shop for lottery winners, where the stock is replaced daily.) The syndicate of Glasgow hairdressers who won £418,000 each in 2007 had a better deal. They said their win was just enough it made them comfortable, but did not revolutionise their lives. They bought holidays and cars. They paid off mortgages and did fancy refurbishments. But they had to go on working, which kept them grounded. "People talk about the money but it is the freedom money buys that is the most important part of winning," said Elaine Thompson, winner of £2.75m in 1995. An early splurge made me smile. She and her husband went to a cash and carry, and bought selection boxes for every child in the state school attended by their young son and daughter. The assistant refused their credit card on company policy, so the new-minted millionaires had to scurry about looking for a cash machine. The lottery book is a Quick Read, one of 10 new titles published to coincide with World Book Day last Thursday. This is a major literacy initiative for adults new to reading, or who find reading difficult. Quick Reads ­ "short, sharp shots of entertainment," specially written by bestsellers and celebrities ­ help make books more accessible to everyone. Factoids listed in the one I read include top places to hide a winning ticket: in bras and under mattresses. And having won the jackpot on NAMA, it now turns out builders are more likely to carry off lottery prizes than any other profession. Some people have all the luck. 6 The mag