IT is the dream prize that has captivated us for a quarter of a century. Since the National Lottery’s first draw on November 19, 1994, a staggering 5,500 winners have become millionaires.

The Sun has followed the highs – and frequent lows – of the lucky folk who have hit the jackpot over the years. Here, to celebrate the National Lottery’s 25th birthday, MIKE RIDLEY reveals some of the stories that prove sometimes money CAN help you find happiness.

Richard and Angela Maxwell - £53million

6 Richard and Angela regularly arrange community events Credit: Tommy Reynolds 2015 www.tommyreynolds.co.uk

IT was April Fools’ day in 2015 when Richard ­Maxwell and his wife Angela found out they had scooped the jackpot – but their commitment to helping ­others with their loot is no joke. The couple, both 71, immediately decided to plough millions into their community.

Richard, of Coningsby, Lincs, said: “It’s great to know we’ve helped hundreds of people that we’ll never even meet.” The couple bought a minibus for the community lunch club where Angela volunteered.

They paid for a new entrance and cloakroom for a local playgroup, and bought land adjoining the ­village hall and had it resurfaced so it could be used as a car park. The couple also paid £4,000 for three local school pupils to visit an astronaut camp in the US. After buying a bigger home, they decided to hold summer fetes in their grounds.

They also bought themselves a £2million summer house which contains a ­theatre and library. An electrician who worked on the building told Richard he knew an expert who had done light shows for the ­Disneyland theme park in the US.

6 The couple put on a Christmas light show for their village every year Credit: Doug Seeburg - The Sun

Richard said: “We thought it sounded fantastic – and decided it was a way to bring Disney to the village. Now we have a Christmas light show every year, with a giant tree, moving ­pictures in LED lights and synchronised music. We provide food and put the show on for five nights. Different charities run raffle tickets for each night.”

Richard witnessed his daughter Paula, 49, survive being hit by a lorry in 2010 while riding her motorbike, and now the couple offer every local person under 30 the chance to take a £250 advanced driving test for free.

Before winning the lottery, Richard took out a loan to buy £3million of commercial property – but he then had to put all his energy into fighting prostate cancer, which put his ­business into jeopardy.

He said: “That memory meant we wanted to help others. There are a lot of people struggling to get by on low wages.”

Irina and Mark Myatt - £1million

TRINA and Mark Myatt have two lovely daughters thanks to their £1million Lotto win on New Year’s Eve 2008. The couple, from Hemel Hempstead, Herts, spent a tenth of their prize on IVF treatment – hitting the jackpot with Darcey and Lexi, aged five – twin sisters for Ollie, 14, and Mark’s older son Alexander, 19.

6 Trina and Mark spent a tenth of their prize on IVF treatment so they could have Darcey and Lexi Credit: Tommy Reynolds 2015 www.tommyreynolds.co.uk

Trina says: “Every night when we check on our sleeping girls in the pretty bedroom they share, we have a moment when we think how lucky we are. There’s no doubt that without our Lottery win, we wouldn’t have been able to afford our IVF ­treatment.

“We had already gone through two rounds of fertility treatment before we won. Six months later, we continued our treatment. It was tough. I suffered miscarriages and an ectopic pregnancy which needed emergency ­surgery.

“One cycle alone cost us £15,000 and there’s no way we could have afforded it without our Lottery win. Darcey and Lexi were the best investment we ever made.”



Lesley Blackman - £800,000

AFTER hitting the Lotto jackpot in June 2014, Lesley Blackman renovated an old watermill. Lesley, 45, now lives in her dream property on a 14-acre estate in Clifton upon Teme, Worcs, with her 43-year-old fiancé Matt McCarthy.

6 Lesley now lives in her dream property along with her three pygmy goats

She said: “The one thing I don’t need to buy with my ­winnings is a hedge strimmer. I don’t need it, because I’ve the perfect answer to keeping the bank beside our old mill clear of wild brambles.

“That’s the job of our three pygmy goats – Milo and his best friends Freddie and Rose. We had always dreamed of having animals, and the Lottery allowed us to move from a two-bedroom cottage in Hertfordshire into the home of our dreams – which is called, appropriately, Hope Mill.

“The goats aren’t alone, because we also have Ella the horse, three dogs, two cats, three sheep and a dozen ­chickens. The latest addition is a lone duck. Together, they all make me so happy.”



Les Scadding - £45million

LUCKY trucker Les Scadding was £68 overdrawn when he won half of a £90million Euromillions jackpot in 2009. He later split up with wife Samantha – but met estate agent Dee Rogers while looking for a new pad in Wales.

6 Lee was £68 overdrawn when he won the lottery in 2009 Credit: Tommy Reynolds 2015 www.tommyreynolds.co.uk

They married in Barbados in 2017 in front of ten friends who knew nothing of their plans until Dee walked out in a white gown and a minister appeared. The couple now live on the Caribbean island near the beach in a dream home ­overlooking a golf course.

Les, from Caerleon, South Wales, also bought Newport County football club and was its chairman until 2015.

He said: “I had grafted for years as a lorry driver and my only reward was a bad back after working six days a week. Then I spent two pounds on my Lottery stake and my luck changed forever.”



Tina Freeman - £1.3million

GRANDMA Tina Freeman spent some of her 2008 win on a monster motorbike.

6 Gina spent some of her lottery win on a monster Honda motorbike Credit: 1 Wath Lane Cottage, Burton Grange, Humberton, North Yorks, England, YO612RY Tel: +447721

The 60-year-old, who lives in Ashby de la Zouch, Leics, with husband Kev, 59, said: “I never imagined that one day I’d be revving up with the smell of oil and the wind in my hair.

Richard Maxwell and wife Angela, both 71, from Lincolnshire, used much of their £53m EuroMillions win to help local community

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“When I won, my first husband Colin was on sick leave after working in the mines, and we had survived on £40 a week. Just seven weeks later, he died. I would have given every penny back to hold him again but I had to carry on.

“Life is too short and you have to grab happiness. I met Kev on a dating site in 2013 and we decided to marry a year later. Kev is a biker and I wanted to share his hobby. Now, my five grandchildren look at me and the bike and smile, because they know I will be roaring off. There’s no ­happiness like it.”

The winners’ photos shown here will be on display from October 30 to November 10 at Fulham Palace in West London, which received £9million in Lottery funding.