Lotto winners forced to cut out dough in Rome

WHEN in Rome, it’s recommended to do as the Romans do - but that’s hard without pizza or pasta.

The 42 couples, who are the latest Fame and Fortune winners, flew out for their dream weekend yesterday into the nightmare of a one-day strike.

Italy is the latest country to stage a nationwide protest against the euro. Shops and restaurants will stop selling pizza and pasta on Saturday, which is bad news for the lotto winners who were each given €1,000 to spend.

Last year, the Fame and Fortune tour to New York was cancelled in the wake of September 11.

However, this year there is more than enough on offer for winners to compensate for the absence for the Italian diet. They will stay at the five star Grand Plaza Hotel in Rome, which includes Robbie Williams and Andrea Bocelli among its former guests.

The five-day holiday will include tours of St Peter’s Basilica, the Sistine Chapel and the Spanish Steps. On Sunday, all the winners will be treated to an exclusive dinner at Le Grotte, an Italian restaurant.

Meanwhile, a Dublin man collected a cheque for over €1.6 million yesterday, his share of Wednesday’s €3.2 million jackpot.

The ticket was bought in Ticketron in the Jervis Street Shopping Centre in Dublin.

“I intend to make another dream come true and fly to New York on Concorde and do my Christmas shopping,” said the mystery winner.

The owner of the other winning ticket has not yet claimed the prize.