EDINBURGH – Europe’s biggest lottery winners were last night celebrating their life-changing £161 million (€183.6 million) prize.
The record EuroMillions jackpot was scooped by husband and wife Colin and Chris Weir, from Largs in Ayrshire, who declared they were “tickled pink” by the sheer size of their fortune.
It catapults them into the Sunday Times rich list, not far from David and Victoria Beckham.
The couple, who have been married for 30 years and have two children, said they are looking forward to using their new-found wealth to travel the world.
Ms Weir (55), a former psychiatric nurse who does not usually drink, said the win was so immense it called for the opening of a bottle of wine. She said: “We were so full of adrenalin we couldn’t sleep. We couldn’t really do anything except sit. We talked to each other about how absolutely amazing this was. We were tickled pink with the whole notion of winning so much money.
“It got to about four o’clock in the morning, dawn was breaking – we have a great view from the back end of our house and we could see the sun coming up. It was just magical . . . We even opened a bottle of wine, and I don’t drink.”
Mr Weir (64), who worked as a TV cameraman and studio manager for 23 years, said: “When we first realised we had won, it felt like a dream. Everything went into slow motion. But it feels like a good thing, something we should not be afraid of but for us to enjoy with the children.” The lucky couple were unveiled to a blaze of flashbulbs at a press conference, where they relived their astonishment at winning the huge prize.
Mrs Weir said: “We are not flashy people. We are not celebrities and we hope that once we have shared our good news we will get some time to go back to being us.” They plan to visit the Great Wall of China, visit Uluru in Australia and take in the art galleries of Paris and Russia.
The couple have both had serious health problems in recent years and have been unable to work. Mr Weir suffered a leg injury and rheumatoid arthritis. Mrs Weir’s career in nursing had spanned 37 years before she stopped three years ago because of poor health. – (PA)