Lad, 20, wins £7.5m lottery and divulges 6 merchandise buying checklist as he makes work choice
We’ve all asked ourselves what we’d do if we won the lottery but few would probably make the same choice regarding work as this hard-working 20-year-old from Carlisle
A 20-year-old trainee gas engineer cannot believe his luck after winning the lottery. James Clarkson’s Lotto numbers on Saturday January 4 returned him the staggering life-changing sum of £7,533,329.
Incredibly it was winning £120 in the Lotto Christmas Day draw which funded five more Lotto tickets – one of which, proved to be life-changing.
Despite becoming a multi-millionaire overnight and eyeing up a few flash purchases, James is keeping his feet on the ground and refuses to let his explosive bank balance go to his head. Working for his parents may or may not have something to do with his down to Earth attitude but it won’t stop him having a bit of fun on the side.
James from Carlisle, Cumbria said: “I know people might think I’m mad to still work but I want to and, of course, there’ll be some nice holidays in-between.”
As he continues to earn his trade qualifications, James has booked a luxury holiday, bought designer treats and is gearing up to pay off his parents’ mortgage.
James 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!
“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! I wasn’t so sure, so called my dad as I knew he would be awake. He calmly told me to come home and we’d have a look.”
Along with his mum, dad and brother, James ended on the corner of his parent’s bed waiting for the National Lottery Line to open at 9.00am. James explained: “We called dead on nine and chatted through the ticket details and who I was. They eventually confirmed mine was the winning ticket. I think I just started laughing. I thought, ‘this is mad!’
But it was back to reality on Monday morning as James had work commitments to fulfil alongside his dad, Stephen, 47, carrying out property maintenance. “I was out in the cold fixing blocked drains the day after I found out I had won. It was a bit grim but that’s reality. I’m not going to stop working, I’m too young. I want to qualify as a heating engineer and then go from there. I need to have a purpose in life, plus Dad wouldn’t let me not work anyway! He says there are plenty of millionaires out there that still work and you need a reason to get up each day.”
James’ Shopping list
- Parents’ mortgage
- Gucci bag
- Two designer jackets
- Audi car
- Manchester City season ticket
- All-inclusive holiday to Cape Verde
James added: “I’m not really a fan of shopping, it’s not my idea of fun but a new car, that would be massive! If you drive a cold work van all day, going from job to job, you’d understand. The comfort, the steering, the heated seats. I realise how jammy that sounds. Not many people my age can afford the car insurance let alone a car like that to drive.”
With a large extended family James is working out how to help them. “I’ve been thinking about it a lot, it’s what I want to do. I told them last night and they seemed really overwhelmed. We are close and they have always been there for me. This win isn’t just for me, I want to make sure we all benefit.”
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