Edward Hutch, a nephew of former crime boss Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch, is in line for a big cash prize this weekend, as he is due to appear on Saturday night’s Winning Streak. Even stranger, however, is that the current Miss Donegal – Natasha McFadden – will be appearing on the exact same show!
“I got the phone call and I thought it was a joke,” Natasha revealed. “Even when I checked the website and read my name, I thought they had fixed the website.”
When asked about sharing the stage with Hutch, the Donegal beauty shrugged off any awkwardness. ““That’s grand. It won’t put me off,” she told The Star newspaper. “I’m going up to have a bit of fun and win as much money as I can.”
Edward Hutch (39) has 189 convictions for a range of offences, but will appear on the RTE gameshow and be in for a chance to walk away with anything between €20k-€500k. As with all contestants, Hutch could nominate another person to stand in his place, though a source said that “It seems he is planning to go on himself. It will be really surreal for viewers, because this guy could come out with anything.”
A leading charity for the victims of crime has suggested the convicted criminal should donate his winnings.Director of services at Support After Crime, Sally Hanlon, said Hutch should consider using his potential winnings to do some good. “With his winnings he might consider using them to restore the harm [he might have caused].
Hutch will have a one-in-five chance of spinning the wheel, and it’is expected that members of his family will also be in the audience on the night to cheer him on.
Whatever happens, Winning Streak promises to be a must-see show when it returns to our screens at 8.15pm this Saturday.