There will be few people in Britain who have not dreamed of winning the Lottery. But imagine how it must feel to suddenly have that dream realised - then just as quickly crushed. Nursery nurse Michelle Neale tells of the torment she has suffered since being cold-shouldered by her winning work syndicate - and how having a baby has made her determined to fight for her share

LYING IN bed listening to the radio, Michelle Plant suddenly leapt up with a huge grin on her face.

She had heard a news item about a multi-million pound Lottery win at Thackley First School where she worked and where she was a member of a syndicate.

The 23-year-old was elated - but moments later her smile evaporated as it became clear that she would probably not be receiving her share of the bumper £3.9 million payout.

The nursery nurse had been off sick since being involved in a car accident more than three months earlier - and her colleagues at the school had opted to exclude her, claiming she was eight weeks behind with her subscriptions.

Says Michelle: "I heard on the radio that the school had won and, understandably, I was over the moon. But then the programme went on to discuss whether or not "a woman" who had been off sick would be included - and I knew it was me they were talking about. I was absolutely stunned, it was the first I'd heard of the win, yet total strangers were debating whether or not I should have a share."

Michelle, who was preparing for what should have been the happiest day of her life that coming weekend with her marriage to fiance Kierran, rang the radio station to ask where they had picked up the news.

They directed her towards a national tabloid newspaper which had the story on its front page, saying a nursery nurse had been cut out and would not be receiving what would have been a £141,000 share.

Michelle, of Wibsey, who had worked at the school for more than two years, made a couple of phone calls and discovered that members of the 28-strong syndicate were having a meeting - about her.

She recalls: "I rang the house where they were meeting and was told that they were deciding whether to pay me. They said they would let me know within the hour. So I sat and waited, it was awful."

After an agonising wait, she learned her fate. Michelle claims: "I was told, 'Sorry luvvie, we've decided not to help you'."

Michelle, now 25, claims that of the 27 members, only seven were at the meeting. "I was told it was not even a majority vote.

"I think now that I should have gone round to see them all in person. It may have been better, but you just don't know."

Undeterred, five days later a radiant Michelle climbed into a horse-drawn carriage and travelled to Holy Trinity Church, Queensbury, where she and Kierran exchanged vows.

The young bride looked beautiful alongside her new husband, who stood resplendent in top hat and tails. But the heartache of the past few days lingered. Says Michelle: "To my mum and dad and to some friends what had happened made a big difference. There were a lot of press hanging around outside the church asking the guests questions. Some guests were visibly upset - there was a bit of a cloud over the day."

Michelle had invited some syndicate members to her wedding, but they had given their apologies before the win. The couple did, however, expect a few goodwill messages.

Says Michelle: "One lady sent us a gift picture in a frame and a card, which was really nice, but no-one else bothered."

Their stance puzzled Michelle, who had always got on well with the other staff. "Some of them had come to my engagement party. I can't understand it - I think of myself as a nice person and always thought everything was fine. Some of the people I worked with were lovely, I really liked them and to have to drag all this through the mud is dreadful."

Michelle admits that she was not fully paid up into the syndicate, which had no written contract, when their numbers were drawn, but disputes the fact that she was eight weeks in arrears.

Since the accident Michelle says she had been sending cheques to the school with her sick notes.

She says: "We paid in four-weekly blocks, and working backwards my contribution would only have been unpaid for two weeks not eight, as six of the weeks they paid for up-front hadn't happened."

She says that she had subbed for other absent members of staff in the past, adding: "The syndicate say they only paid for 27 lines not 28, but have never produced the tickets to prove it, and Camelot would not assist us."

She also feels that if she had been excluded from the draw, she should have been informed beforehand.

Kierran has ridden the storm with Michelle and has been a tower of strength, as have the many letters of support from strangers.

"We couldn't afford a honeymoon," says Michelle, "Then one couple contacted us offering their cottage in the Lake District for a week. Unfortunately we couldn't go, but it was lovely of them."

They will go in the future - when they can afford it. "If I'd won we'd have booked for the Seychelles," adds Michelle, "As well as paying off the mortgage on our house."

It took guts to return to her job. Says Kierran: "It demanded a lot of courage, but that's Michelle - she went back when a lot of people would not have."

But it was far from easy. Claims Michelle: "I was virtually ignored. The atmosphere was really bad, and I would go home really upset."

Eventually, she could stand it no longer and left. She now has another job in local education.

Such a predicament would have thrown many people into the pits of depression - but not Michelle, though she admits to having changed character - "I'm not as trusting as I used to be and definitely not so happy-go-lucky."

The couple do, however, have another reason to be cheerful - their daughter Megan. The five-month-old bundle of joy sits gurgling contentedly on the sofa of the couple's three-bedroom terraced house, while her parents smile proudly.

"She's gorgeous," says Michelle, "She's brought a lot of happiness into our lives."

And Megan is the reason Michelle has decided to fight for her share of the big win. She is taking legal action and is determined to see it through.

"Megan goes to nursery when I'm at work, but I'd love to stay at home full-time to look after her. I want to give her as good a start as possible in life. I think at the end of the day that's what everyone wants. She has given me a boost to go and fight."

l Ruth Lyons. the headteacher of Thackley First School, said: "The Lottery win was a private matter but what happened is that the school has been dragged into it and we do not want to harm the children or their families. "All we will say is that our view of the situation differs from Michelle's. We disagree on several substantial points but we cannot enter into a discussion because of the children - we have their interests at heart."

Michelle began legal action shortly after the syndicate hit the jackpot, but dropped it to avoid stress during her pregnancy. April Brett from solicitors Gordon's, Wright & Wright, who are representing her, said they were now looking afresh at the case.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.