A 26-year-old bloke who scooped £1million on the National Lottery revealed his first and very humble purchase after winning the jackpot. Neil Leighton bagged the win on the lottery’s Instant Win Game in 2023 and decided to splash his new cash on a modest ham, cheese and salami Subway sandwich.
The Herefordshire man’s story was revisited as part of the National Lottery‘s 30th birthday as a bunch of other millionaire winners came together for a celebratory photoshoot with famous photographer Rankin. The shoot involved people who collectively bagged £190million over the years.
Leighton, a locomotive fanatic, only downloaded the National Lottery app a few days before becoming a millionaire and while his first splurge was extremely down to Earth, his next ones were perhaps not so much as he would go on to splash the cash on some far more luxurious purchases – including treating 13 of his mates to a top-notch £30,000 villa holiday in Greece.
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(Image: Getty Images)
“It cost £30,000 but it would have been wrong not to do something really fun before sensible Neil took over,” he said. Leighton then bought a four-bedroom house close to his parents’ home, but added his mum still cooks him dinner. Leighton detailed the moment he found out he’d become a millionaire: “I was in my man cave – otherwise known as the shed in the garden – having a very chilled evening, enjoying a drink and chatting to friends in the UK and the States.
“Having downloaded the National Lottery app just two days previously, I was also aimlessly playing the Cash Bolt Christmas Millionaire game on my phone. It wasn’t until all the spins had completed that I even looked at the screen where I saw a message ‘Congratulations You’ve Won £1million’. At which point I said to my friends ‘I’ve won a million’ and left the chat.”
The next day Leighton shared the news with his parents. He said: “I walked into the house and my mum and dad both jokingly said I looked far too happy, what had I been buying? When I told them I’d bought something, a National Lottery Instant Win Game and I’d won £1million, mum screamed, used some colourful language and then was convinced it was a scam.”
He said at the time of his big win: “If someone had told me two weeks ago I would be in a position to own a steam train I’d have laughed, but then if someone had told me I’d be a millionaire I’d also have laughed – it just goes to show, magic can happen!”
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