William and Catherinette Mullarkey - known as Bill and Cath - won the seven-figure sum on Millionaire Maker on Tuesday 4th July after buying a EuroMillions ticket online. However, it took some time to process the news as they initially thought the email notification was an advert, or that maybe they had won £10,000 or £100,000.
Bill recalled: “When I called the National Lottery hotline on Wednesday to confirm the win there was a long silence and finally I was told I had won a million pounds. At that moment there was such excitement in the house and lots of screaming. We celebrated with a nice cup of tea and I didn’t sleep all night, it just wouldn’t sink in.”
Cath is originally from St Lucia and the couple were away on the island at the time of the draw on 4th July. They were visiting her nephew Messiah, who was left paralysed from the waist down after a motorbike accident a couple of months ago. Bill and Cath would now like to assist Messiah financially, as well as helping other members of the family including Cath’s four children and 11 grandchildren.
Bill and Cath, who met in St Lucia and now split their time between the Caribbean and Coventry, are looking forward to giving up work and enjoying a bright future. Bill added: “It is completely life changing and what I can’t get my head around is that we’re now debt free. We can clear the mortgage. I have to keep pinching myself!”
As Bill and Cath begin to make the most of their newfound wealth, EuroMillions players across Europe can also dream of becoming millionaires in the next draw. There is a jackpot of £32 million (€36 million) on offer tonight, and you can try to win by picking numbers online or going down to any authorised retailer. Good luck!