Charity volunteer and Premier Foods supervisor win £101 million lottery jackpot
The winners of a £101 million Euro Millions jackpot have been revealed as a food company supervisor and a charity volunteer.
It really was third time lucky for Dave Dawes, a shift supervisor for Premier Foods, and Angela Dawes, a volunteer for the British Heart Foundation, when they hit the £101,203,600.70 jackpot.
The couple, from Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, who share the same surname but are not married, had only played twice before, they revealed today. They are now the third biggest lottery winners in the UK.
Mr Dawes described today how they discovered their win.
He said: "We were watching TV and the EuroMillions draw show came on so we kept watching, not thinking we would win anything.
"We got our tickets out and watched in shock as, one by one, the numbers came up on the line I'd chosen.
"We couldn't believe it! It was too late to call Camelot so I kept the ticket on me all night until the morning but we didn't sleep a wink."
The jackpot had been building up after five draws produced no winners.
The cash haul made the winners the 703rd richest people in the UK, according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2011.
They will overtake David Bowie, who is the current 703rd richest person, and become richer than Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne, who have an estimated £95 million fortune. The couple will also be richer than Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin with a combined wealth of £48 million.
The winning couple said that they intended to share the massive windfall with their closest friends and family.
Ms Dawes said: "It's an excessive amount of money but we intend to make our friends and family millionaires."
She added that they had already broken the news to some of the people that they would be helping.
"They are absolutely gobsmacked, amazed. Obviously it's exciting for us and exciting for them," she said.
They are also hoping to donate money to a number of charities.
The couple, who have been together for four years, were planning to get married abroad next year so the windfall means they can now enjoy the wedding of their dreams - and a new engagement ring for Mrs Dawes.
They are planning to buy properties in London and abroad, and are looking forward to a trip to Las Vegas and a skiing holiday in Switzerland in the coming months.
But the windfall will also give them a chance to help friends and family close to them.
Mr Dawes is an avid Chelsea fan, having been a steward at the club in the past, so a season ticket is also on the shopping list.
He said: "I'm not worried about getting a box - I want to stand with the real fans and watch my team play.
"I'd also love to live near the ground and have Frank Lampard come over for a cup of tea."
With the money the winners could easily afford their own private island in the Bahamas at £47 million or they could buy four private jets at £25,250,000 each.
The winners could also simply live off the interest which is estimated at £11,068 a day, based on an interest rate of 4 per cent.
A National Lottery spokesman said they were looking forward to welcoming them to the millionaires club.
The winning numbers were 18, 26, 34, 38 and 42. The Lucky Star numbers were 8 and 5.
The latest EuroMillions win follows the biggest-ever lottery prize of £161 million won by a Scottish couple earlier this year.
Colin and Christine Weir, from Largs, Scotland won a huge £161 million prize in July in a EuroMillions draw putting their wealth just behind David and Victoria Beckham on the rich list.
