EXACTLY one year ago today, someone’s life changed forever as they scooped a massive £195m EuroMillions jackpot.
The UK ticket-holder pocketed the massive prize after it rolled over last July – but mystery still surrounds their identity as they never made their names public following the whopping win.
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The unnamed winner eclipsed the stunning wealth of Grammy-winner Adele – who is worth around £150million, according to the Sunday Times rich list.
The incredible prize of £195,707,000 was 5,009 times the average UK salary of £38,131.
When they first won, winners’ advisor Andy Carter said: “What an amazing night for one UK ticket-holder who has scooped the biggest-ever EuroMillions jackpot of £195M.
“This winner has just become the biggest National Lottery winner of all time, the fourth lucky EuroMillions jackpot winner here this year and the 15th UK winner of over £100M.”
And while they chose not to be identified, the massive cash injection surely changed their lives forever – just like other winners who have gone public to reveal their winners.
Here’s a full list of the UK’s biggest-ever lottery winners.
1. Joe and Jess Thwaite (£184million)
Joe Thwaite, 49, and Jess Thwaite, 46, decided to go public after winning a record-breaking EuroMillions jackpot in May 2022.
The Gloucestershire couple, who have been married for 11 years, won a massive £184million.
But when Joe got the email with the shocking news he didn’t even wake hairdresser Jess.
Jess said that Joe got up as usual at 5.15am to sort out the couple’s dogs.
She said: “Once the dogs were happy he checked his phone and saw the email from The National Lottery saying, ‘Good news, you’ve won a prize’.”
Joe added: “I looked it up and saw we’d won. I saw how much and I didn’t know what to do.
“I couldn’t go back to sleep, I didn’t want to wake Jess up so I just laid there for what seemed like forever.
“I spent some time searching for property with no budget limit, which was a novelty!”
The Sun revealed last year that the couple are ready to splash the cash – on a new fence for their neighbour.
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2. Anonymous (£170million)
This winner decided they would stay hidden when they bagged their £170million win in October 2019.
That massive jackpot made them richer than Adele, The Sussexes and Ed Sheeran.
Camelot announced that the winner would not be publicly named unless they decided to.
They matched all five main numbers plus the two lucky stars to secure their millions.
3. Colin and Chris Weir (£161million)
Colin and Chris Weir won £161million on the EuroMillions in 2011.
They splashed out on a stunning mansion and their humble first buys included a checked sports jacket, a computer and a tractor.
The Scottish couple initially bought Knock House near Largs, but they sold their mansion in favour of an even bigger pad in Troon.
They donated much of their money and set up The Weir Charitable Trust in 2013.
In April 2019, the pair announced they were filing for divorce and released a statement.
In December 2019, Colin died at the age of 71 after succumbing to a “short illness”.
He had invested in companies like Irn-Bru and Greggs, while also sharing around £40million of the win with friends and family.
He saved money to throw his friends a lobster feast at the funeral.
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4. Adrian and Gillian Bayford (£148.6million)
Adrian and Gillian Bayford from Suffolk won £148.6million, after exchange rates, on August 10, 2012 after buying a Lucky Dip from a convenience store.
When they realised they had won, they celebrated by taking their children out for pizza.
Just 15 months after the jackpot win, Gillian divorced Adrian.
Adrian used part of the fortune to set up his own music business and open a shop featuring the world’s largest collection of Lady Gaga memorabilia.
Adrian’s £6.5m mansion with 189 acres and pool was sold because close friends report it has too many memories of pals betraying him.
In February 2017 the wealthy winner’s home was raided in a £100,000 burglary and he has since settled in Perthshire not far from his ex-wife.
Meanwhile Gillian had a bit of strife of her own as her father blasted her saying he “only received £1million” from his daughter despite her claims she gave him £20m.
Dad Ian McCulloch said: “Gillian’s whole life is shredded with lies. Her life is a total mess – a fabrication.”
In August 2018, Gillian married convicted fraudster Brian Deans.
She had a baby at the age of 48 during lockdown and said she had always wanted another baby.
Adrian was recently forced to cancel a music festival after neighbours filed complaints.
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5. Frances and Patrick Connolly (£114.9million)
Just one lucky ticket matched all the numbers to scoop the £114.9million New Year’s Day EuroMillions jackpot in 2019.
Frances and Patrick Connolly, from County Armagh in Northern Ireland, celebrated the extremely lucky dip win with a cup of tea, after first thinking it was a scam.
Their exact prize pot was £114,969,755.70 shooting the couple towards the upper-half of lottery winners in the country.
The generous pair – a retired teacher and businessman – said one of the first things they did was sit down and write a list of 50 people they want to share the money with.
They bought computers for children stuck at home who had no means of accessing an education during Covid lockdown.
Frances, now 55, said she was addicted to giving after the pair blew through the amount they had planned to give away over the next decade.
Patrick, now 57, plans were to retire from his work in manufacturing, shower his wife with gifts, buy a Jaguar and take a trip to the Maldives.
They have three grandchildren, two boys and a girl, a 30-year-old daughter and twins aged 24.
Of their £114.9million fortune, it is thought they have given away around £60million to charities and friends.
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6. The Davies Family (£61million)
In 2016 the Davies family won £61million on the EuroMillions.
Stephanie Davies, then 23, reluctantly bought a ticket on Friday night after mum Sonia phoned from Florida and begged her to buy one.
Then 53-year-old Sonia was in the US having vital keyhole surgery to remove a cancerous tumour, and had a feeling she would go on a winning streak after the op was a success.
Sonia, who worked as an administration assistant, had cancer in the parathyroid glands in her neck.
The Welsh family said they were the “luckiest people on the planet” after scooping an enormous amount of cash.
This happy family couldn’t avoid controversy as it was reported father of the family Keith, 55, of Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, would share his cash with twins Holly and Abby, 23, and Natasha, 24 — his daughters with ex Mandy.
But it was reported that Keith’s partner Sonia’s estranged son Spencer Pugh would not see a penny of the £61million EuroMillions win.
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7. Bev Doran (£14million)
Bev Doran won £14million on the EuroMillions in 2017.
She struggled with the life-changing sum as she feared her ex would launch legal action to get his hands on a share of her £14.5million EuroMillions jackpot.
The single mum-of-four split from jobless Sean Priestley, 48, just seven months before her win, after 12 years and three kids together.
Pals explained how she was seeking legal advice amid concerns skint Sean would try to mount a case to stake a claim on her new-found riches.
One said: “He doesn’t deserve a single penny of it. She’s getting advice at the moment and that’s one area she’s looking at.”
Another said: “He should have stuck around a bit longer if he wanted some of the money. More fool him if he’s stupid enough to try.
“If it was me I’d tell him to f*** off. It’s not his money. It’s for her and her kids. She’ll get advice and deal with it.”
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8. Gareth and Catherine Bull (£40.6million)
Gareth and his wife Catherine joked they were the most “boring multimillionaires” when they won £40.6million the EuroMillions in 2012.
She said she wanted a new carpet for the six-bedroom home he had just built and have her hair done twice a year.
But he splashed out on a huge hospitality box at Old Trafford and another at Wembley.
They also bought a holiday villa in Tenerife. She gave up her job and he wound down his building company.
The couple split and Gareth started dating a woman named Donna Desporte who he seduced by telling her to “Google him” in a bar in Tenerife.
They had a nine-month fling – which has ended with him ignoring and avoiding her, according to 48-year-old Donna.
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9. Jane Park (£1million)
Britain’s youngest lottery winner Jane Park actually only won £1million on EuroMillions, but despite winning the least on our list, she’s definitely made the biggest splash.
At the young age of 17, she splashed out on cars, clothes and holidays as well as plastic surgery.
This was a dramatic change from her £8-an-hour job as an admin temp and the two-bedroom Edinburgh council flat she shared with her mum Linda before her win.
Jane warned that winning was actually a nightmare and that being a millionaire is stressful.
Speaking to the Sunday People, she said: “I have material things but apart from that my life is empty. What is my purpose in life?”
“I thought it would make [my life] ten times better but it’s made it ten times worse.
“I wish I had no money most days. I say to myself, ‘My life would be so much easier if I hadn’t won’.
She even reportedly considered suing Lotto for allowing people as young as herself to play and win such large amounts of money.
A spokesman for Camelot said: “We have been in touch with Jane from time to time since her win to offer ongoing support.
“It is always up to the winners as to whether they want to take up that support.”
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10. The NHS dinner ladies (£25million)
A group of NHS dinner ladies who call themselves the “Catering Girls” ditched their jobs after scooping a £25m lottery jackpot in November 2017.
The lucky six all quit the health service after scooping the EuroMillions prize of £25,476,778.30.
Winner Trish revealed in 2021 that she still lives in her council house and shops at Primark despite her big win.
The modest mum, from Rotherham, South Yorkshire, told The Mirror: “Being rich doesn’t make you posh or a better person.
“I don’t like showing off and bragging about money and I can’t be posh anyway.”
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