A £123 million (US$140 million) EuroMillions jackpot win has been successfully claimed by a UK ticket holder who has chosen to remain anonymous, Camelot said.
The operator of the National Lottery confirmed the £123,458,008 prize won in the draw on June 11 had been validated and paid out.
It is the third biggest amount ever to be won in the UK and the fourth EuroMillions jackpot win this year.
Andy Carter, senior winners' adviser at The National Lottery, said, "What an amazing win — the third biggest ever in the UK. We look forward to supporting this ticket holder as they start to enjoy their life-changing prize."
Camelot said it had a duty of care to protect the anonymity of all National Lottery winners and that it would not release further details about the ticket holder's claim.
The single UK ticket holder's newly won fortune will catapult them into the Sunday Times Rich List of the 1,000 wealthiest people living in the UK or with British business links.
In the New Year's Day draw, Patrick and Frances Connolly from Northern Ireland won the £114.9 million EuroMillions jackpot.
Ade Goodchild landed a £71 million prize in March, while another anonymous ticket holder bagged £35.2 million in April.
The biggest ever UK lottery winners are Colin and Chris Weir from Largs in North Ayrshire, Scotland, who won £161 million in July 2011. The Weirs were forced to go into hiding when they became overwhelmed with people begging them for money.
Thanks to dannyct for the tip.
Staying Anonymous as much as possible is the way to go. Especially when you win big!
There are so many stories of past winners who had wished they claimed anonymity. Now they are constantly being begged for help from strangers.
How many more deaths will it take to change the States that require a full press event?
Being forced to go into hiding should not come with winning the lottery.
New safeguards can be invented which will protect the game from illegal actions. Spend some of that money on this objective.
Congrats on the win sir/ma'am. Kudos for remaining anonymous !! Have a wonderful debt free life
another anonymous winner .....
heres to Virginia's first anonymous winner
As it should be ...............
Lol lol
Anonymity...the way to go.
Now just get the Italian Lottery won so Powerball can be #1 in the world for highest jackpot.
Congrats to the winner.
All the US states with lotteries that do no allow winners to remain anonymous and talk about the importance of transparency need to read this until it sinks in.
Camelot said it had a duty of care to protect the anonymity of all National Lottery winners and that it would not release further details about the ticket holder's claim.
One of the many disadvantage of publicity of lottery winners' identity is, some media outlets will reprint your story when they are reporting subsequent lottery stories. As happened in the above article.
👴🏻wise words that fall upon blind eyes and deaf ears
In Australian State Lotteries, winners have the right to remain anonymous. The vast majority choose to remain anonymous. Also, all prize money is tax-free.
Congratulations to the winner of $140,000,000.00
These are the size of jackpots that I play to win. I would be a one percenter.
Can you even imagine how your life will change?
Same in the U.K. If given the choice between one or the other, I'd opt for tax-free. If you win $100 million cash value on a lottery, you could surely buy plenty of security for much less than $37 million bucks.
"So many stories"? I've only read of a couple of UK winners who came forward when they did not have to and only one had regrets. Others "outed" themselves and got a lot of negative press, but that was because of what they were doing w/ their new found fortune.
How many deaths were caused by full press events? You have spoken several times about WANTING to do a press conference even after I and many others told you there was zero upside to doing them. AFAIK, only a few states require the press conference and the rest that release the winner's names allow them to request minimal publicity. I forget who it was, but just a week or so ago in another thread some wag mentioned some funny ways to get that press conference cut short.(although that also could bring about more attention than one would normally get) Many people wear masks. Get a lawyer, have them make the public statement and any further questions to be sent to their office. (and I believe you've said as much before)
"Constantly" being begged for help from strangers? Constantly? You don't think the attention would die down after a while? Like Nancy Reagan used to say about drugs, "Just say no." works a treat for other things, too. As I have proved in here many times before, a winner has much more to fear from their family or friends than they do strangers.
No one has ever been forced into hiding because of winning. If someone isn't smart enough to take simple, logical steps to protect themselves after winning, then it's a wonder they were smart enough to fill out a play slip. That said, if your state does not provide anonymity, then you have to deal with it...or better yet, just stop playing, problem solved!
If your state does not allow for anonymity, then the only recourse you have is to try and change the policy. Write/call/email your state legislator and plead with them to help change the law, to introduce a bill allowing anonymity. Get your lottery playing friends to do the same. That worked here in Texas. Whining about it on a message board doesn't seem like it will change a thing.
If given the option to remain anonymous and a winner doesn't take it I'd guess that their main motivation for not doing so is being an attention whore monger. Just my $.02 but why oh why would someone blow their chance to remain anonymous?