Man wins twice on lottery after accidentally purchasing identical ticket

A lottery player has doubled his winnings from £12.5m to £25m after accidentally purchasing a second ticket.

The lucky Australian winner - who had played the same numbers for 30 years - became £25m richer in a single night when the man accidentally bought two identical tickets instead of one, for Tuesday's draw.

Lottery spokesman Matt Hard said: "What's remarkable about tonight's draw is that there were three division one entries, but two winners.

"The reason for this, the two Victorian entries are held by the one registered player."

The lucky winner - who is from St Albans in Melbourne - initially did not answer the call, however, when they eventually got through, the man couldn't believe his luck.

He said: "You're kidding! - am I seeing things?

"I just checked my entry online and I think I know what you're about to tell me.

"I'm speechless. I can't believe it. I just finished work for the night. I need time for the news to register. I might think about retiring. First maybe a new home or a holiday. I'll definitely share it with my family."

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