How Big UK EuroMillions Winners Spend Their Money
Last Updated: Wednesday 23rd September 2020, 14:03
After Tuesday night’s £123 million EuroMillions jackpot rolled, Friday’s top prize will be worth a mighty £136 million. If a UK player scoops the lot this week, they will bank the third largest lottery prize ever to come to these shores and their life will change forever. If you need some inspiration when it comes to spending a nine-figure fortune, take a look at how big UK EuroMillions winners splash their cash.
Chris and Colin Weir - £161.6 Million
When the Weirs, from Largs in Ayrshire, landed the UK’s biggest ever lottery prize in July 2011, they pledged to have “so much fun” with their winnings. The pair moved out of their modest £180,000 home in the coastal town and into nearby Knock House, a five-bedroom mansion on a country estate, boasting views of the Isle of Bute. Colin and Christine even used some of their cash converting an old potting shed at the house into a winery for storing and tasting their favourite tipple.
However, the lucky couple have since upsized to an even more impressive abode, snapping up the £3 million Frognal House in Troon, having viewed it for just ten minutes. Former owner Bill Costley joked he “walked out of the property with four pairs of underpants” after the EuroMillions winners made a deal to purchase many of the house’s contents too.
The Weirs have also plunged money into local football clubs Largs Thistle and Partick Thistle, donated some of their money to the SNP’s Scottish independence campaign and set up a charitable fund to help good causes in Scotland.
Adrian and Gillian Bayford - £148.6 Million
The Bayfords snapped up £148.6 million in August 2012 and, although they claimed they wouldn’t rush into any purchases, Gillian had her heart set on getting behind the wheel of an Audi Q7, whilst Adrian expressed his desire to buy a “beast of a car...a chunky car.”
The winners of the second-largest UK lottery sum moved into a £6 million, Grade II-listed pile in Haverhill, Suffolk, although they split up a little more than a year after their big win. Both have since started their own businesses, with Adrian now running a record shop in Cambridge, for which he purchased the world’s largest collection of Lady Gaga memorabilia. His haul included the singer’s shoes, a selection of stage costumes and some records too.
Adrian also allowed the Cambridge Rock Festival to take place on his estate a move that organisers say saved the event for future years.
Neil Trotter - £107.9 Million
South Londoner Neil Trotter is currently the UK’s fourth-biggest EuroMillions winner (the third-largest chose to remain anonymous). On collecting his giant cheque in March 2014, he told the press he would quit work to dedicate his time to following, and even participating in, the British Touring Car Championships. At the same time, he pledged to dump his Ford Focus for a fancy sportscar.
Trotter and his partner Nicky Ottaway also indulged in a gigantic new house, moving into the 400-acre, Grade II-listed Leighton Manor in Cowden, Kent.
How to Become the Next Big UK EuroMillions Winner
For your shot at Friday’s £136 million EuroMillions jackpot, you can pop in to any authorised retailer or join an online syndicate now. Good luck!