Telling your loved ones that you are suddenly mega-rich is bound to inspire a variety of reactions.
And this was certainly the case for the lucky lottery winners below whose family members had hilarious – and even controversial – responses to the good news.
Back to sleep
The latest example is James Clarkson, 20, who bagged £7.5m on the National Lottery earlier this month.
And the tradesman revealed the funny response of his girlfriend when he told her he had won the mega prize.
The Manchester City fan said: “I was at my girlfriend’s house and got up early to check on the snowfall when I saw a message saying I’d won on the National Lottery app.
“I opened it straight away but couldn’t see anything to begin with; then I scrolled down and saw I’d matched all six main Lotto numbers to hit the jackpot and that my prize amount was £7,533,329! I just didn’t believe it! I thought I was dreaming!
How would you react if your partner won £7.5m in the National Lottery
(Image: PA)
“It was only 7.30am so everyone was asleep. I woke up my girlfriend and showed her my ticket on the phone. She took a sleepy glance and said ‘no, you haven’t won’, turned over and went back to sleep!”
Adrenaline pumping, there would be no going back to sleep for James, who phoned his dad before calling the National Lottery Line at 9am to have the life-changing news confirmed.
And despite his girlfriend not taking him seriously at first, Carlisle lad James revealed he has since treated her to a Gucci bag with his winnings.
Ouch!
Stay calm and carry on was certainly not the motto Christine Jane adopted when learning she and her husband, Nick, had won the National Lottery.
Christine Jane is now thankfully back on her feet
Christine, from Launceston, Cornwall, scooped the £1m prize in 2022, but she initially thought her winnings was a total of £100,000.
After being asked by the operator whether she was sitting, Christine remembered: “The lottery people said, ‘congratulations you’ve won a millions pounds’ and I fell off the bed.
“We couldn’t believe it, my husband couldn’t believe it when he came from work. We had to show him the ticket… still now we can’t believe it.”
After recovering from her bonkers fall, Christine went on to buy a “nice big lovely house” along with some new cars.
But despite the sudden cash influx, she added: “We’re still the same people, loving people, caring people, money hasn’t changed us whatsoever.”
Call an ambulance?
Although father-of-four Dan Carter did not quite win millions, the reaction of his pals when he scooped £100,000 on the Lotto app was still funny.
The rumours are that a jubiliant Dan and Kayleigh Carter are still screaming
(Image: National Lottery / SWNS)
He had enjoyed a boozy night with his neighbours last year and was struggling to sleep when he played the £2.50 Monopoly Gold Instant Win Game on his phone.
Dan, from Bristol, was amazed when he immediately won and he woke up his wife, Kayleigh. The pair, still in PJs, began screaming.
He explained: “I kept looking and looking and then I started screaming ‘I have won! ‘ My wife Kayleigh then started screaming too, we just couldn’t believe it.”
And his response was so concerning that his pals thought me might need medical assistance.
He said: “I couldn’t speak properly and our neighbours didn’t understand what was going on.
“At one point they said, ‘just call an ambulance if you aren’t well?’. Kayleigh finally grabbed the phone and explained what had happened.”
Sharing is caring
While the reactions from friends and family in the above examples are amusing, one woman was far from pleased with what her mum said after she won the jackpot.
Well, this sounded like an uncomfortable phone call
(Image: Birmingham Live)
The 34-year-old, who told her story on Reddit, took offence to her mum’s question, and ultimately decided not to share her fortune with family.
She said: “I was ecstatic. The first thing I did was call my mum. She was excited at first, but then like a minute later, she started saying, ‘So, are you going to share it with the family?’ Like, before I’d even processed the news myself.”
And the woman, who said her winnings were not “hundreds of millions” but was significantly life-changing, explained how she received little family support when she needed help with her autistic son.
She added: “My brother and sister have always kind of been distant. When I had my son (he needs a lot of support), it was pretty much just me on my own. They didn’t offer help, didn’t check in much, and it hurt, honestly.
“I love them, but I’ve had to go through so much alone. My mum, too I mean, she was supportive in her way, but she was never really there in the ways I needed her.”
As they say, money is the root of all evil, and the mum’s lottery win caused huge fractions.
She revealed: “She got really quiet, then goes, ‘Well, that’s really disappointing.’ That hit hard. Since then, my siblings have been calling me selfish and saying I’ve let ‘money go to my head,’ and even my mum has hinted that I’m being greedy.
“She actually told me that my son ‘needs a strong family around him’ and that I’m ruining that with my attitude.”