EuroMillions: Adrian And Gillian Bayford Scoop £148.6m Lottery Jackpot

The Win Is Not Just For Us, It's To Share'
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Britain's second-biggest Lottery winners have said they want to share their £148.6 jackpot and use the money to help others.

Adrian Bayford, 41, a music-shop owner, and wife Gillian, 40, who works on a children's ward, said they had always worked hard to make ends meet and that the last month had been particularly "tight".

"This money has come at the right time for us and is going to benefit the whole family," Gillian said.

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Adrian was watching 'The Bank Job' when the results of the lottery were announced

"The win is not just for us, it is for us to share and everyone's life is going to be so much more enjoyable and stress-free.

"Children's charities are close to our hearts so we will be exploring how we can use this money to help those charities but it is too soon to say exactly what."

The couple, who have two children aged four and six, told the media about the moment they discovered they had won the jackpot, after they were revealed by Camelot as the winners on Tuesday morning.

"I had been watching the film 'The Bank Job' on TV while Gillian was out with friends," Adrian said.

"When she [Gillian] got back we decided to turn over and catch-up on the news.

"Scrolling along the bottom of the screen was the news that one person had won EuroMillions but Gillian confessed that she hadn't had time to get a ticket.

"As a joke, I also said neither had I when in fact I had five lines upstairs waiting to be checked.

"By now both of our children had woken-up so while Gillian was trying to settle them back to sleep, I went to check the numbers on my phone.

"Gradually the numbers seemed to match-up with those on my ticket and I just couldn't believe what I was seeing!

"I rushed back and turned on the main light at which point Gillian went ballistic!

"The kids really were awake by now. I was trying to tell her that we had won the lottery and she was telling me to keep the noise down!"

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Adrian And Gillian said they just want to make people happy

The couple, who have been married for eight years, spent the rest of the night on the internet deciding how to spend the huge jackpot, the result of 14 rollovers.

Gillian has worked in ward D2 at Addenbrooke's for three years but intends to leave the job.

Adrian co-owns the Suffolk Music Centre in Haverhill.

Recalling the moment he told his close friend and business partner, he said he told him to close the shop as "I was coming to pick him up.

"I didn't explain why but he knows me well enough to know I wouldn't mess him about.

"We went to his parents' home nearby and sat in the garden. He couldn't believe it but was really pleased for us.

"It was great to tell him - made it feel more real for me. We celebrated with a few beers. The shop didn't re-open on Saturday in the end!"

Reflecting on the win, Gillian said: "Neither of us can quite comprehend just how much £148m is.

"We have always worked and saved up for holidays or things that we need.

"We have lived within our means and been comfortable but we have been like ships in the night to earn the income we needed.

"It will be fantastic to spend more time as a family now.

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The couple said they would be able to spend more time as a family now

The lucky couple, who have a daughter aged six and a four-year-old son, scooped the staggering sum with the winning numbers 50, 21, 17, 48 and 11, and the Lucky Star numbers 09 and 10.

The jackpot - £148,656,000 - is just behind the £161 million landed by Colin and Chris Weir, from Largs in North Ayrshire, in July last year.

The Bayfords are the seventh big EuroMillions jackpot winners from the UK so far this year, according to Camelot.

According to The Sunday Times Rich List, they now have a fortune to rival Jamie and Jools Oliver (£150m), Sir Tom Jones (£140m) and Eric Clapton (£130m). Their £148 million win places them 516th in Britain's Rich List.

The couple were unveiled as the winners at Down Hall Country House Hotel, near Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, on Tuesday morning.