{"id":144459,"date":"2025-10-25T10:35:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-25T10:35:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/144459\/"},"modified":"2025-10-25T10:35:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-25T10:35:09","slug":"buncrana-artist-reveals-her-choice-after-brush-of-luck-in-donegal-lakeside-house-draw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/144459\/","title":{"rendered":"Buncrana artist reveals her choice after brush of luck in Donegal lakeside house draw!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sponsored Post, By Sonia Butterworth<\/p>\n

What. A. Journey.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Just weeks ago, Belfast\u2019s Magdalena Machowska made headlines when she turned down a spectacular Donegal Dream Home raffled by McKinney Competitions, opting instead for the \u00a3500,000 cash prize.<\/b><\/p>\n

That bold decision flung the doors wide open once again, giving one lucky person another shot at a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.<\/p>\n

That person turned out to be Emma Porter from Buncrana,<\/b> and her story is already the stuff of make-believe<\/p>\n

It all began on Sunday, October 5th,<\/b> when Emma, still in her pyjamas, checked her Revolut account and noticed she had just \u20ac14 left. After a moment\u2019s thought, she decided to take a chance and bought a ticket through McKinney Competitions.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The prize of the McKinney Competitions draw was a 5-bed home at Glen Lough OR \u00a3500k<\/p>\n

Later that morning, she attended Mass, where the priest gave a sermon about keeping the faith.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was talking about planting a mustard seed,\u201d Emma recalls. \u201cIt can be small, but you have to grow it with faith. I remember thinking, \u2018I really, really want that house.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

That evening, just as she was getting ready for bed, her phone rang.<\/p>\n

\u201cHello, is that Emma Porter?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, we\u2019re absolutely delighted to tell you\u2026 YOU are the WINNER!\u201d<\/p>\n

At first, she was speechless. \u201cOh my goodness! What?! That\u2019s wonderful!\u201d she exclaimed, live on Facebook as thousands of viewers celebrated alongside her. \u201cThat\u2019s fantastic\u2026 I don\u2019t even know what to say!\u201d she laughed, overwhelmed by the life-changing moment.<\/p>\n

It was one of the most anticipated live draws in McKinney Competitions\u2019 history. Logie and Peter brought their trademark humour and energy as fans affectionately referred to them as \u201cFather Ted and Father Dougal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bonus rounds saw ticket holders from across Ireland, from Carlow to Galway, pocketing hundreds in cash prizes before the tension built for the main event.<\/p>\n

Inside the Dungannon studio, the atmosphere was electric. At five past eleven, the team went live. Behind the scenes, the random number generator was quietly set. On camera, the banter flowed, the tension rose, and then the call was made.<\/p>\n

Emma\u2019s reaction was pure joy. Her phone lit up the next morning with messages of congratulations from family, friends, and even strangers she said!<\/p>\n

And now, the biggest news of all\u2026Emma Porter has officially chosen to take the Donegal Dream Mansion.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sitting with Logie inside the stunning property just days later, Emma was still in disbelief.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was just so stunned and still am,\u201d she said. \u201cThis kind of thing never happens to me. I kept going around the house, telling my son Jordan, \u2018I think I\u2019ve just won a house\u2026 or half a million pounds!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Emma Porter with Adrian Logan and family at the Glen House<\/p>\n

When asked when she bought the ticket, Emma smiled. \u201cIt was that morning,\u201d she said. \u201cI had only \u20ac14 left for the week. My son had gone and I transferred him a tenner, and I came back in and sat down and the McKinneys notification popped up and that was it. I didn\u2019t even have enough to buy the bundle so I bought just one ticket and I had \u20ac2 left for the rest of the week!\u201d<\/p>\n

Buncrana was buzzing with pride the next day. Locals have been quick to congratulate \u201cthe Belle of Buncrana,\u201d describing Emma as warm, down-to-earth, and utterly deserving.<\/p>\n

Then came the all-important question from Logie.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, Emma,\u201d he grinned, \u201cis it the money\u2026 or the house?\u201d<\/p>\n

Without missing a beat, Emma smiled. \u201cIt has to be the house,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople have just been so lovely,\u201d Emma added. \u201cEveryone\u2019s genuinely delighted for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

An artist by trade, she says the scenery around Glen Lough has already captured her imagination. \u201cIt\u2019s just to die for,\u201d she said. \u201cEverywhere you look, it\u2019s a painting waiting to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The stunning lakeside view from the Donegal Dream Home<\/p>\n

McKinney Competitions are renowned for their thoughtful follow-up calls to winners, and true to form, the team rang Emma the next day to make it all official. \u201cThat\u2019s when it really hit me,\u201d she laughed. \u201cIt was actually real!\u201d<\/p>\n

As the cameras rolled, Logie grinned and held out his hand. \u201cWell,\u201d he said, \u201cdo me one favour, shake my hand, so a bit of your luck rubs off on me.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was a perfect ending to a night no one will forget.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re delighted that Emma fell in love with the house,\u201d said McKinney Competitions Director Paul Gordon.<\/b>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was blown away by the setting, the d\u00e9cor, and all the attention to detail. It\u2019s great to see it go to someone who truly appreciates the magic of the home. That\u2019s what we\u2019re all about making dreams come true, improving lives, and giving back.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the Donegal Dream Mansion has now found its perfect owner, McKinney Competitions is already preparing for its next big draw, this time, a stunning villa in Portugal\u2019s Algarve.<\/b><\/p>\n

So stay tuned because with McKinney, the next life-changing moment is always just around the corner.<\/p>\n

Over the past few years, McKinney Competitions has become Ireland\u2019s fastest-growing premium prize platform<\/b>, delivering over \u00a365 million in prizes<\/b> to more than 22,000 winners<\/b> and donating over \u00a3550,000 to local charities<\/b>. From dream homes and luxury cars to massive cash giveaways, they\u2019re not just running competitions \u2014 they\u2019re changing lives<\/b>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Next up on McKinney Competitions\u2026 a Portuguese Villa!<\/p>\n

Buncrana artist reveals her choice after brush of luck in Donegal lakeside house draw! was last modified: October 25th, 2025 by Contributor<\/p>\n

Tags:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sponsored Post, By Sonia Butterworth What. A. Journey. Just weeks ago, Belfast\u2019s Magdalena Machowska made headlines when she…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":144460,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[75],"tags":[85341,18,117,19,17,85342],"class_list":{"0":"post-144459","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-donegal-dream-home","9":"tag-eire","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland","13":"tag-mckinney-competitions"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/115434365963813881","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/144459","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=144459"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/144459\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/144460"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=144459"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=144459"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=144459"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}