Lottery winner lost contact with friend with whom he split £22 million years before his death

A PAIR of friends and business associates who won £22 million in a lottery jackpot win in 1995 eventually dropped out.

Glazing company owners Mark Gardiner and Paul Maddison struck gold in the famous victory and led very different lives with their part.

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The win was the biggest ever National Lottery win at £22,590,829, with the pair taking home £11 million each.

Maddison, 73, is believed to have died on November 28, just months after his wife Evelyn died this year aged 62.

Gardiner told MailOnline he was “shocked and saddened” by the untimely death of his former business partner, which he said was “too soon”, adding that he still had a “huge amount of money to offer”.

“He was a very nice man and we got along well. He could handle any job, no matter how big or small, and he was a great man to work with.

“When we won the lottery he decided to retire. He is a little older than me and he felt he had done enough for the Queen and country and wanted to try something different,” Gardiner said.

Maddison had lived the life of a recluse away from the spotlight living in remote places, while fellow winner Gardiner continued to work in the glazing business.

Gardiner could not say he had spoken to Maddison in a 2023 interview with The Sun and the pair had not seen each other since Maddison failed to show up at Gardiner’s fourth wedding in 2008.

Maddison, from Hastings in East Sussex, had moved to Perth in 1996 to enjoy a quieter life.

But his first wife left him for another man shortly afterwards.

After finding a new wife, a cleaner he hired, Maddison returned to Scotland and bought the 16th-century Robgill Tower near Dumfries for £650,000.

Locals in the nearby village of Kirtlebridge previously said they had rarely seen the couple leave the 40-acre estate.

Paul also had security cameras, remote controlled gates and an intercom installed immediately after moving in.

Gardiner said Maddison had converted to Jehovah’s Witnesses.

‘Everyone says he bought a castle, he didn’t buy a castle, he has a house with a turret at the end. Everyone said he bought a fish farm, but he didn’t, he has a river where you can fish.

“He’s probably skinny,” Gardiner said.

Maddison then sold the house in 2008 for £2.8 million and moved back to the Perth area where he reportedly spent his days.

Gardiner has been much more public about his winnings.

The glazier has not squandered his profits and owns two houses in Barbados and has an Aston Martin, a Harley-Davidson and two Mercedes in his garage.

He has also bought two football clubs, a £750,000 cruiser and a second boat and poured millions of pounds into businesses.

When he and his friend Paul Maddison won the enormous fortune, Mark thought his problems would disappear overnight, but despite his wealth, he regrets his victory in many ways.

Mark said in 2005: “There are days when I curse my victory and wish I had never been involved.

“But I think if I woke up one day and saw my rusty old van and bank loan and realized I had dreamed all this, that would be pretty scary too.”

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