A PENSIONER has scooped £1,000 in a competition run by The Northern Echo.

Marian Tubman, 74, from Hazeldene Avenue, Hartburn, Stockton, said that she was “thrilled” to have won the March competition, which involved collecting tokens from the paper.

As regular readers of the paper, Mrs Tubman and husband Michael, made a point of collecting the ‘£1000 cash giveaway’ tokens that appear in the paper every day.

Their interest was sparked because they both love doing the puzzle page.

“Michael is the genius. He does the main crossword, while I do the quick crossword,” she said.

Mrs Tubman, who is disabled and uses a walking stick, said that she was now faced with a nice choice: “We will either spend the money on a new garden or on a holiday.”

If they spend the money on their garden, they plan to spend it on replacing their lawn with a surface that is easier to walk on.

Originally from the Midlands, Mrs Tubman said that she may well visit her son in Surrey, or possibly take a short break by the coast.

“The money is a chance for us to get away for a while,” she said. 

Mrs Tubman last won a competition back in 1969 when she won £100 with Typhoo Tea. This also involved collecting tokens.