Natasha’s Million Pound Drop success

Natasha McVicker of Hamilton Park and her friend Clare Mullan of Castlerock appeared live alongside television presenter Davina McCall on last Friday and Saturday’s programme.

Not only friends but also colleagues at Waterside Dental Practice in Coleraine, Natasha and Clare were given 1million pound on the Friday night and were asked to answer and bet on eight questions to keep the money.

Natasha explained: “We appeared on the Friday nights show and did quite well - to our amazement. Although we didn’t know any of the answers we managed to carry some of the money through the whole night by getting the questions right. Unfortunately we ran out of time as the show is live and it had come to the end of the show. This meant we had £50,000 left and had to come back and do it all again on the Saturday night.

“Obviously we were delighted to be still in the contest but we were also devastated as we hadn’t known any of the answers so far but yet we’d got them right simply by guessing - we believed that it was our night and didn’t want it to end. However it was meant to be so we went away having a long and sleepless night again.

“Before we returned to the show the next night Clare and I decided that we would both go with our instincts and that once we had made a decision we were not going to change our minds.

“Never at any stage of the show did we see the bundles of cash as our money even as we were being asked the final question it still wasn’t ours. All we had to do was answer the eighth 50/50 question right - it was all or nothing.

“As Devina revealed the answer to that final question and the trapdoor we had placed the money on stayed shut, the excitement and joy started to creep in - we’d won £25,000 between us.

“It was only then that we could finally start to see them as bundles of our cash, our bundles of joy. It was ridiculous, we where in utter disbelief but at the same time filled with complete delight.”

Natasha’s husband, Richard, who was paralysed in a motorbike accident, was at home watching these nerve racking events unfold.

Speaking to the Times he explained: “It was a nail biting time and I’m so proud of them both. They kept their nerve. If it had been me answering the questions I would have come home with nothing, they did very well.”

Speaking to Davina at the end of Friday night’s show Natasha explained that her share of the money would ‘go towards helping her and her husbands’ life a lot easier’.

Natasha added: “After the show on Saturday night Devina was so delighted for us, she ran over and gave us a massive ‘mum hug’. It was very emotional and we couldn’t and didn’t want to pull away from each other. Davina is such a beautiful woman, she is really down to earth and just a genuine lovely lady. She knew that the money was going to help us both a lot.

“Clare is going to put a bit of money aside towards a deposit for her first home and my share will help Richard and I in so many ways. It is amazing to have won this money, it really is a weight off our minds. It means that we have extra money which we can depend on.”

Both Natasha and Clare would like to say a massive thank you to Waterside Dental Practice, Coleraine for giving them the time off to do the show and also a thank you to the staff and colleagues for all their support.