Agent Richard Lowrey-Heywood started the New Year £24,000 better off by answering the winning question on a TV game show.

Richard appeared on BBC quiz show Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel on New Year’s Day and, with the help of celeb food critic Grace Dent, correctly answered the question: “Which of these battles took place at sea?” and scooped the prize money.

An emotional Richard said the money would be spent on having fun with his family, including taking his children to Florida.

Travel Gossip members congratulated Richard, who works from home in Carlisle as a contact centre agent for Jet2.com and Jet2holidays, with one posting on the site to say well done to ‘one of the nicest men around’ and another calling him a ‘genuine lovely, down to earth bloke’.

Another said: “So good to see a travel agent get a lucky break after what we’ve all been through,” while a fourth posted: “Brill. After the two years travel agents have just had, I can understand the emotion.”