Jim is pictured with Winning Streak hosts Sinead Kennedy and Marty Whelan as well as National Lottery head of finance Declan Harrington.

Tullamore's Jim is on a Winning Streak!

Tullamore man Jim Martin was part of the line-up on last Saturday night’s Winning Streak game show. The biggest winner on the night was Vita Kairene from Meath, who won prizes to the value of €57,000. The €38,000 Jim took home, including a holiday to Spain, wasn’t to be sniffed at however.

Jim picked up his lucky lotto ticket at the XL shop in Puttaghaun. That allowed him to be one of five contestants who appeared as part of the 20th National Lottery’s Winning Streak show of this season.

Presented by Marty Whelan and Sinead Kennedy, the show saw its five contestants - from Offaly, Leitrim, Meath, Kerry and Dublin - take home prizes to the value of a whopping €212,000.

Jim will be a familiar face to many in Tullamore. Married to Frances for nearly 50 years, the couple have four sons, two daughters and 13 grandchildren.

Now retired, in the past Jim worked at Tullamore Yarns Woollen Mills and later at the county library. A lover of fishing, Jim is also a former cross country runner.

Jim wasn’t in front of the television when he was chosen as a contestant on the popular gameshow. With four of his grandchildren confirmed on the day, he was out celebrating with his family at the time and was given the good news by a neighbour on his return home to Connolly Park.

He’s said he has lots of ideas for what he’d like to get with his winnings, but no definite plans yet.

Winning Streak scratch cards offer players the chance to win instant prizes of up to €50,000, while five players are selected to appear on the television gameshow each week and one of those gets a chance to win up to €1m instantly on the grand prize wheel.