British father, who says his last prize was a dead goldfish at a fair, wins a mortgage-free £4m North Yorkshire mansion and £250,000 cash after buying a £30 Omaze entry

A father of two has won a £4m mansion in North Yorkshire county along with £250,000 in cash after buying an Omaze entry worth £30. Malcolm Disson of Newbury, Berkshire, is now the owner of a six-bedroom house that comes with a lake and a tennis court. The 58-year-old says the only thing he had ever won before was a dead goldfish at a fete.

Disson owns an art business

Disson had co-founded The British Shop, a fine art and antiques packing and shipping company based near Heathrow, in 2004. He struggled to afford the payments for the first few years, saying the risk almost ruined him.


"I took a huge risk starting the business. I remortgaged my house and for the first couple of years I couldn't afford the payments. It almost ruined me, but I stuck with it," he said, according to the Daily Mirror newspaper. He said that winning the mansion "feels like a reward for taking that risk and working so hard."

Disson's Grade II listed residence is located in the village of Little Ouseburn. And the best part? The house comes free of mortgage, with stamp duty and legal fees covered, alongside furnishings worth a whopping £155,000.

'Still can't get my head around it'

Disson's winning entry cost him only £30. "I've never really thought of myself as a lucky person. For years, the only thing I'd ever won was a goldfish at Hampstead Heath fair - and when I opened the bag it was already dead! That set the tone for the next 46 years as I didn’t win a sausage after that," Disson said, according to the Daily Mirror.

"Then two weeks ago I won £8 on a lottery and thought my luck was finally changing. I thought I’d peaked with that - I certainly didn't expect to go all the way from a dead goldfish to a £4 million mansion with its own lake…full of fish that are alive and well!".

Disson, who has two daughters and a border terrier dog called T-Bone, is originally from North West London and currently resides in a semi-detached house. He has been living in Newbury for the last 18 years, the Daily Mirror reported.

Expressing surprise at his newfound luck, Disson told the publication: "I still can't get my head around it. I never imagined I'd have a place like this. I could afford to hang some of the artworks I move in this house now if I wanted, but it’s been done so nicely."