A former milkman from Rotherham says his life has been turned upside down after scooping a £4 million Surrey mansion, along with £250,000 in cash, through a prize draw
David Roper, 58, learned of his win at the end of an ordinary working week, just as he was looking forward to nothing more exciting than a pint at his local pub. The call from Omaze, the company behind the sweepstake, left him doubting his own senses — he said the news felt so unlikely that he wondered whether he’d imagined it entirely.
The six-bedroom Surrey property comes loaded with extras: a heated outdoor swimming pool, a tennis court, stables, a barn, and roughly £170,000 worth of furnishings. For Roper, who currently lives in a bungalow with his wife Janny, 44, and their four-year-old border collie Rosie, it’s a dramatic change of scenery.
Roper admitted the shock was so overwhelming that he forgot to celebrate properly at first, showing up to the pub four hours late without even buying a round for the other regulars. He said he’d make up for it now that he’s seen the house in person and knows the win is genuine.
Omaze, a for-profit company founded in the US in 2012, runs celebrity-backed prize draws in partnership with charities, offering high-value homes as prizes. The company states that at least 17% of funds raised go to charitable causes. Roper said he had entered the company’s draws regularly for around four years before his win.
Before his career in engineering sales — a role he’s held for the past 14 years — Roper ran his own milk round for a decade, starting at age 21, before going back into education to study mechanical engineering.
Reflecting on the win, Roper said he isn’t sure yet what he and his family will do long-term, but that they plan to enjoy the property and host friends and family there. He hasn’t ruled out taking early retirement, saying the opportunities now open to him are ones he never could have imagined.
Just a week ago, he said, he was in an office looking at spreadsheets. Now, he has a swimming pool and tennis court of his own.
