HAPPY birthday National Lottery!

The nation's favourite gambling game, which has millions of punters on tenterhooks every week, is celebrating its second anniversary on Thursday.

And in an exclusive interview, Mystic Meg - famous for her accurate predictions on the National Lottery - has revealed that the odds are high for Lancashire to remain a Lottery-lucky county.

The Accrington-born astrologer said of the county, which boasts the biggest single winner of £17.5 million: " I think there is a definite psychic strength in Lancashire, especially the towns close to the moorlands, that makes people very intuitive. That's important when you're picking numbers."

The stargazer predicts that January will be a particularly lucky month for Lancashire punters and a care worker called Maureen, who lives outside Blackburn, is in line for a windfall.

She said: "Lancashire will continue to be a lucky county and January 1997 looks very good."

Meg promised to send her lucky "fluence" to Lancashire folk. She said: "I'll certainly be trying to send some lucky vibes to Lancashire - today."

Mystic Meg has become a household name since the numbers game began but the secretive star likes to shroud her personal life in mystery.

In a rare interview, Mystic Meg lifted the lid on her career and personal life.

The star - whose real name is Margaret Anne Lake - once lived in a terraced house in Russia Street, Accrington, and is proud of her Lancashire roots.

She said: "It's a definite advantage to grow up among people who are naturally warm-hearted and yet never go in for false flattery.

"I was born in Accrington but left soon after. Most of my childhood was spent in various Lancashire towns. I remember a great uncle who was passionate about Accrington Stanley football team. "I like to go to Blackpool in the winter to watch the sea," she said. Meg works with runes, crystal ball, I Ching, tarot and numerology and was asked to make predictions for the first-ever Lottery show.

She said: "My prediction matched one of the winners on the first show so they asked me back again. I work on my own the rest of the week, so its good to be part of a studio team on Saturdays."

The clean-living astrologer, who abstains from drinking or smoking, is a health freak and takes a herbal remedy also used for race horses!

She said: "I haven't had a cold for years. I think taking echinacea helps deal with viruses before they take hold. I found out the other day that race horses are given it, too."

The mysterious Lottery lady has the same hopes, dreams and concerns as the rest of the population.

She worries about wrinkles, is conscious of her weight and keeps promising herself that she will sign up at a gym club tomorrow. "For the last 10 years, my weight has been eight stone," she said. "I am glad my weight is in the normal, healthy range for my height. I would like to have more physical strength and, like many people, I always intend to start going to the gym again."

Mystic Meg may share her birthplace with Lancashire folk but she definitely doesn't care for the county's traditional food. Lancashire hot pot is definitely off the menu for the healthy star.

"I try to stay with a vegan style of eating and luckily live near a very good take-away," she said. "I try to avoid all animal products. I think about nutrition. I've noticed that when I visit vegetarian shops, none of the customers are overweight."

The health-conscious star, who has never been in hospital and has routine check-ups with the doctor, takes a daily cocktail of vitamins and minerals.

"I take a multi-vitamin, vitamin E, wild yam capsules and co-enzyme Q10. I also take herbal drops, echinacea to boost the immune system and gingko biloba to protect the memory." A large bottle of moisturiser features prominently in her beauty regime..

"I know that I am very pale and not at all healthy looking," she said. "But my skin is well-behaved. I average one spot a year. I clean my face carefully and perhaps overdo the moisturiser."

Meg, who lives in London with her seven cats, has just released her latest book Mystic Meg's Lucky Numbers for Love, Life and the Lottery, published by Warner Books, priced £4.99. She said: "Lots of people ask me to give them lucky numbers, so for those people I don't get to meet, I've put all the techniques you need to find your own lucky numbers in one book."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.