2 months ago
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An accountant and a civil engineer this morning went public as the lucky winners of a £61million EuroMillions jackpot - admitting 'we thought it was a scam'.
Richard and Debbie Nuttall, both 54, from Colne, Lancashire, came forward to reveal they had won a staggering £61,708,231 share of the £123 million jackpot prize.
Their numbers came in during the draw on January 30 when they were on holiday in Fuerteventura, celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary.
And when they received an email alerting them to the enormous win they had initially thought it was a scam before getting their daughter to check it in the UK.
When she confirmed it was real the pair went berserk in their car celebrating the windfall.
The massive sum catapults them into the sphere of celebrities' wealth, with them now holding a fortune bigger than Dua Lipa or Stormzy.
And now both of them have quit their jobs and intend to splash the cash on luxuries including a indoor golfing room, new house and dream holiday.
Richard has already bought a new BMW X5, worth £128,000, which was selected for its extra large boot, big enough to transport his golf clubs.
Richard and Debbie Nuttall, both 54, from Colne, Lancashire, (pictured) have won a staggering £61,708,231 share of the £123 million jackpot prize from the draw on January 30
The couple revealed their identity to the media today at Mitton Hall Hotel in Clitheroe this afternoon
The couple were on holiday when they first received an email to say they had won, but when Richard logged on to his account it initially said they had won a total of £2.60
Mr Nuttall revealed their story to the media at Mitton Hall Hotel in Clitheroe this afternoon.
The couple have taken the 29th spot on The National Lottery Rich List.
They are the 39th UK winner to bank a prize of £50M or more on EuroMillions, and join the more than 7,000 millionaires created by The National Lottery since 1994.
The winning numbers in the EuroMillions draw on Tuesday 30 January, were 05, 10, 19, 27, 30 and the two Lucky Stars were 05 and 06.
The jackpot prize was £123,416,462, which was shared between two ticket-holders, one in the UK and the other in Spain.
'It was the second day of our holiday and I had got up early to finish off a bit of work. I noticed the email from The National Lottery stating that there was 'exciting news about your ticket'.
Richard (pictured) received a second email telling him to check his account again, to which it said the couple had won over £61 million
The couple have now taken the 29th spot on The National Lottery Rich List
Richard (pictured) is a bookkeeper and management accountant with a number of clients. He is now in the process of informing them that he doesn't plan to work beyond the end of this tax year
At first the couple thought they had won £2.60 and went about their day thinking nothing else of it, until they received another email urging them to check their account again.
'It was early afternoon when we spotted another email saying we should check our account. I thought it was odd and there must be a glitch in the system to get a duplicate email but I logged in again to my National Lottery account to check. We were totally stunned, it said we had won over £61M!'
'We just couldn't make sense of it. My first thought was it must be a scam or there was some mix up. I know it sounds crazy but we couldn't think straight.
'I tried calling The National Lottery's number but my mobile phone signal was poor and the call just kept dropping. So I WhatsApped the family chat group asking for one of our daughters to call us urgently.
'My youngest came back quickly and we asked her to log into our National Lottery account from the UK and double-check,' explained Richard.
'She put in my details and then just kept repeating 'oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!!' It must be real, this was the official National Lottery website we were all looking at.'
They called the National Lottery twice more but the calls kept dropping due to the poor signal in the hotel.
The couple couldn't wait any longer so grabbed the hire car keys and started driving around the island to find a stronger signal.
Richard said: 'We must have looked a right sight, Deb was holding the phone as high as she could, checking the number of bars as I drove! She started shouting 'stop here, stop here!' and I pulled over on a verge.
'We finally got through to The National Lottery and we were in the middle of answering security questions when unbelievably there was a man tapping at my window.
'We were politely trying to tell him to go away, pointing at the mobile phone to indicate we were busy but he kept on tapping.
'Frustratingly, he wanted to park his bus in our spot on the verge and wouldn't give up! By this point my stress levels were through the roof.'
Richard and Debbie quickly drove to Fuerteventura in Portugal to get better signal so they could call the National Lottery and confirm their win
When they eventually got through to National Lottery, the employee told Richard and Debbie they were the winners of £61,708,231.
'By this time me and Debs are going mental, jumping up and down in our car seats, punching the air, thumping the dashboard, the car must have been rocking,' said Richard.'
Back at the hotel the pair quickly came to the conclusion that they would fly home and found a flight heading back to the UK the next day.
Before heading home, however, the couple headed out for a celebratory dinner, although they discovered they had completely lost their appetite.
Once back on British soil, and as The National Lottery security checks and validation process took place, the couple began to plan how they might enjoy their new found fortune.
Top of the list for Richard and Debbie is a new family home, still in their beloved Lancashire, where they can host big family Christmas get-togethers. The couple are also planning for a holiday home in Portugal and hope to visit soon to start their search.
Richard and Debbie said they were jumping up and down and punching the air when they'd found out they'd won
But, it's early retirement that is going to make the biggest impact on the pair's lives in the short term. Debbie has already handed in her notice at her civil engineering job where she works as a Bidding & Estimating Support Assistant.
Meanwhile Richard is self-employed, having run his own accountancy business for more than 20 years. As a bookkeeper and management accountant with a number of clients, he is now in the process of informing them that he doesn't plan to work beyond the end of this tax year.
Richard says, 'Obviously I am not going to leave anyone in the lurch - my clients have been fantastic and loyal to me and I will of course do their payroll if they are stuck. They are being very understanding but I am looking to wind things up as soon as possible and finally take it easy.'
The couple are also looking forward to enjoying their new found free time.
Richard is planning to play more golf, both in the UK and abroad, and even has a 'Golf Swing Room' on his wishlist at the new house; whilst Debbie hankers after a bigger garden, a greenhouse and extra land for Monty the dog to enjoy.
The couple went for a celebratory dinner after finding out they had won, but soon discovered they had completely lost their appetite
Richard reflects, 'It's crazy to think that just five weeks ago, we had been looking to downsize to a small bungalow to live out the next few years. We even found one nearby that needed a lot of work and were considering an offer. Now we are very much upsizing, with plenty of land for Debbie and the dog to enjoy.
'Our lives are going to be so different. We have worked hard all our lives and we are now very much looking forward to taking life a bit easier. But not just that, this win will also change the lives of those closest to us, and hopefully the next generation after that too.'
Andy Carter, senior winners' adviser at the National Lottery, said earlier this month: 'This is absolutely incredible news and we're delighted that we've received a claim.
Back at the hotel the pair quickly came to the conclusion that they would fly home and found a flight heading back to the UK the next day
'This is the first UK EuroMillions jackpot win of 2024, following on from an incredible 2023 which saw six UK EuroMillions jackpots won, including a £111.7 million win by an anonymous single ticket-holder in June.
'Our focus is now on supporting this latest lucky ticket-holder through the process and helping them start to enjoy their truly life-changing win.'
The couple are now richer than celebrities including Dua Lipa and Stormzy.
The rapper Stormzy has a reported net worth of £25 million, while singer-songwriter Dua Lipa has seen her net worth double in the past three years to an estimated £60 million.
Richard and Debbie have a charity close to their hearts, for which they are ambassadors and plan to continue to support, called BK'S HEROES.
The charity was set up in their nephew, Ben King's, memory after he died of a rare condition, Tubular Interstitial Nephritis and Uveitis, at age 27.
BK's Heroes was set up in Ben King's name (pictured) after he died of a rare condition, Tubular Interstitial Nephritis and Uveitis, at age 27
His uncle Richard said that Ben was 'incredibly brave and positive' and an 'inspiration' to all of the family
The whole family support the charity which aims to raise awareness of brain cancer and kidney disease as well as raising funds for research into prevention and treatment of these illnesses.
Richard said: 'This charity means so much to our family and we are all involved. It was originally set up to raise funds for the ward where Ben was so brilliantly cared for but we have gone on to raise much more. Ben was such an inspiration to all of us.
'He was incredibly brave and positive throughout his treatment and it was his wish for this charity to be set up to do what it can to help lives in the future.'
Richard has been playing EuroMillions for eight years, buying one Lucky Dip line each Tuesday and Friday by Direct Debit through the National Lottery website. Whilst he has landed a few smaller wins, he admits he never dreamt of landing such a huge prize.
By playing any National Lottery game, including EuroMillions, players generate £30million each week for National Lottery-funded projects.
Players can buy and check their tickets online by downloading the National Lottery app or at national-lottery.co.uk. T
Players can buy and check their tickets online by downloading the National Lottery app or at national-lottery.co.uk. They can aso
Players can buy and check their tickets online by downloading the National Lottery app or at national-lottery.co.uk. They can a
Players can buy and check their tickets online by downloading the National Lottery app or at national-lottery.co.uk. They can also check their tickets by going into a store
Players can buy and check their tickets online by downloading the National Lottery app or at national-lottery.co.uk. They can also check their tickets by going into their local store.
Playing online via the app or website means that your ticket is checked, and you get an email notification if you win a prize. You can also scan your retail tickets on the National Lottery app to check if you're a winner.
Who is the biggest ever UK lottery winner? Two couples and a former car mechanic top list
Here are the ten previous UK winners of the EuroMillions draw so far
1. In July 2011, Colin and Chris Weir became Europe's biggest lottery winners when they scooped more than £161million.
The couple, who have been married for 30 years, said they were ‘not scared’ of the wealth because they were going to have ‘so much fun’ with the money.
The pair, a retired TV cameraman and a retired psychiatric nurse, from Largs, in Ayrshire, said their children Carly, a photography student, and Jamie, a call centre worker, would be bought their own homes and cars.
The family made a £1million donation to the SNP shortly after winning.
Colin and Chris Weir became Europe's biggest lottery winners when they scooped more than £161million in 2011
2. Adrian and Gillian Bayford, from Suffolk, took home more than £148 million in August 2012.
The marriage ended just 15 months into their new jackpot winning lives, citing the stress of the money as the reason they needed to split.
At the time, a spokesman for Mrs Bayford said: 'Gillian Bayford confirms that her marriage to Adrian has broken down irretrievably and they have separated.'
It came after Mrs Bayford was forced to deny she had an affair with the couple's gardener, Chris Tovey.
Adrian and Gillian Bayford, from Suffolk, took home more than £148 million in August 2012
3. An anonymous ticket-holder took home £123m in July
4. Patrick and Frances Connolly from County Armagh scooped the entire £115million EuroMillions jackpot on New Year's Day 2019
5. An unnamed ticket-holder claimed just over £113million in October 2010, and chose not go public.
6. Neil Trotter, from south London, won nearly £108million, going from former car mechanic to multimillionaire in March 2014.
Neighbours in Croydon described he and partner Nicky Ottaway moved out ‘almost overnight’ after they scooped the EuroMillions jackpot last March.
Mr Trotter admitted at the time that he was like his namesake, Del Boy Trotter from Only Fools And Horses.
Neil Trotter, with partner Nicky Ottaway, won nearly £108million, going from former car mechanic to multimillionaire in March 2014
7. Steve Thomson and his wife Lenka, from West Sussex, became the UK's biggest EuroMillions winners when they claimed a prize worth £105million in November 2019.
8. A couple from Cambridgeshire, Dave and Angela Dawes, won more than £101million on their third go on the EuroMillions draw in October 2011.
Mr Dawes said he 'didn't sleep a wink' the night of the win, as it was too late to call Camelot after the couple checked their numbers.
Last year, the couple were taken to court by his son, an Afghanistan veteran, Michael Dawes, 32, who said he was 'ungenerous in spirit'.
But a judge ruled the millionaire father does not need to keep bailing out his son, who burnt through £1.6million in two years, and came back for more, failing to heed his stepmother's advice to stop eating at the Ritz and go to McDonald's instead.
Dave and Angela Dawes won more than £101million on their third go on the EuroMillions draw in October 2011
9. A UK winner got a £93 million payout in June 2015, but decided to remain anonymous.
10. The Davies from Wales family won £61million on the EuroMillions in 2016
Stephanie Davies, 23 is said to have 'reluctantly' purchased the ticket at the time after her mother Sonia called her from Florida begging her to go out and buy one.
Keith Reynolds, Sonia Davies, Stephanie, Courtney Davies and Steve Powell all scooped money on the jackpot and said they were the 'luckiest people' on the planet to have won.
