Millionaire winner to hear good news

The winner, who has not been named, will receive a knock at the door from Agent Millionaire, who personally delivers the good news on behalf of the bonds scheme.

The man has £29,999 worth of Premium Bonds, £1 short of the maximum allowed, and bought the winning bond in August 2002.

In the East Riding alone there are 132,143 Premium Bonds holdings worth more than £271m.

Nationally, there are 735,000 unclaimed prizes worth more than £40m, of which 2,200 prizes worth more than £119,000 are owed to winners in the East Riding. Most of those who have not been traced are believed to have moved without informing the scheme of their new address.

Premium Bonds were launched in 1956 by the then Chancellor Harold Macmillan with a range of promotional posters boasting “thousands of prizes” each month. They offer tax-free prizes with odds of winning of 24,000 to one.