A RIBBLE Valley resident drove away from a Renault showroom this week with plenty of ‘joie de vivre’ after winning a brand new car.

Sally-Ann Thomason, who lives in Gisburn, picked up a sports car after winning a raffle during Renault’s inaugural Festival de Joie festival.

The event was held in the village as part of the Mégane Experiment broadcast on national television earlier this year.

The advert aimed to discover if a car could change a village and all started when a character called Claude travelled from Menton on the Côte d’Azur in France to Gisburn to carry out a culture comparison between the two villages.

During the experiment anyone who tested Claude’s Mégane Renaultsport 250 was entered into a free prize draw to win the car.

Beauty Therapist Sally-Ann, 48, who lives in the village with her husband Paul and son Jacob, said: “I’m really looking forward to driving it back to Gisburn.

"I think everyone in the village is also keen to see it, especially after all the attention they got from being in the Mégane Experiment earlier this year.

“I know it’s a very fast car from my test drive but I’m not the type of driver who gives it plenty of welly.

"My husband is dying to drive it though but I’ve already told him I’m the one with the keys.”

Jamie Grensinger, sales manager of the Renault dealership, said: “We’re delighted to be able to handover Sally-Ann’s Mégane Renaultsport 250 and know she’s going to love driving the car."