:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/OQW6S4QYIL7TQNWFO73QDUKETU.jpg)
Lightning has struck twice for a Co Limerick newsagent that has sold its second mega-million-winning National Lottery ticket.
In 2005 the G.O store in Gallyowen sold the winning €115 million EuroMillions ticket to Dolores McNamara. Now the shop has sold a winning ticket worth almost €9 million, with the winning ticket from Saturday night’s draw worth €8,970,934.
Ms McNamara’s win was at the time the biggest lottery win in the history of the State, only surpassed in 2019 by a family syndicate in north Dublin that won a €175 million jackpot.
In the G.O store there is an eight-metre-long banner in the shop that reminds shoppers that they sold that winning ticket to Ms McNamara.
:quality(70):focal(2366x1642:2376x1652)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/O5WHDMZFQNEWRF2SJBCKLXTUBE.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/DAHQDRRLFFHEZEM3J7RBVIK3BA.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/6NGGCHBVNNFZBJ3CX3FVIKYDD4.JPG)
:quality(70):focal(2308x1039:2318x1049)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/QIPCMHENWKHQQ5IINBM2WWGSQQ.jpg)
Store manager Tom Brosnan said they were informed on Monday morning they had sold the latest winning ticket but staff do not know who bought the ticket or when it was sold. All they know is the sale was sometime between Wednesday and Saturday last week.
The balloons and banners have gone up around the shop in advance of the media unveiling by the National Lottery this afternoon.
“I’d say we’d be the luckiest shop in Ireland,” he said. Along with the two jackpot winners, there have been quite a few people who have won life-changing sums of money – though not millions.
Mr Brosnan said he never knew Ms MacNamara before she won the huge jackpot in 2005 but that she was well known to staff in the store.
Ms McNamara has not been back to G.O Stores since then though Mr Brosnan said her win increased footfall to the shop for years afterwards. He is hopeful the latest win will have a similar effect on the shop.
- Sign up for push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
- Find The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
- Listen to our Inside Politics podcast for the best political chat and analysis
:quality(70)/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/irishtimes/365cc36e-0bb8-4fb2-871b-ed273b2b038f.png)