Which are the Youngest Lottery Winners in the UK – From Millennium Until Now

You are to meet some of the youngest lottery winners, some of which are not that young anymore, others are not that rich anymore. But no matter what, their stories are amazing and real proof of how one jackpot could change your entire life and make you a whole new person. Of course, not all those lucky people were able to achieve that, some spent their fortunes too quickly, leaving them with the mesmerising memories of being rich.

Who Are They Today? What Did They do with Their Money?

To be more interesting, we will start this chart from past to present time showing you details about each young lottery winner separately. Have in mind that in this article the focus will fall over the normal National Lottery because if we include online casinos and lotteries the list will be enormous because online platforms usually distribute bigger and more frequent prizes. Alright, no need to delay it more, it’s time to meet the winners.

In 2002 Michael Carroll Won £9.7 Million

Michael Carroll was the definition of a young and reckless man with a difficult childhood and life in general. Born in Norfolk, Michael was left without a father even before he was able to spell his name because he was arrested for stabbing a couple. Later, sentenced to 11 years in prison but unfortunately, he passed away before the end of his incarceration. Through his life Michael had many stepfathers who treated him bad, additionally, he was a kid when he was diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia. All those cruel interactions in his life led him to not that bright a future as a student and a citizen from an overall point of perspective. He was caught and sentenced at the age of 13 for shoplifting and after that, sent to Hollesley Bay Prison where he finally learned to read and write.

At the age of 19, in 2002, he won the National Lottery jackpot of £9.7 million. A funny fact is that thanks to his criminal record, the local banks declined his applications for a bank account with them but that never stopped him from collecting his winnings. When you grew up with nothing and you get your hands on such a prize, it is hard to maintain proper behaviour and money management. Michael was like a wild animal released from the zoo at the very beginning. He spent over £300,000 on parties, £250,000 on cocaine, £100,000 on prostitutes and many other not relevant and money consuming senseless hobbies. But his restless behaviour does not end here, in 2015 he was also fined for catapulting steel balls from his Mercedes Van and breaking 32 different windows in his neighbourhood. He even participated in a boxing match with Mark Smith who defeated him. Later, in 2006 a documentary film about him was released – Michael Carroll: King of Chavs. This is the best way to get familiar with his life story and all the struggles and obstacles he went through. Also, in the same year, it becomes clear that Michael already spent all of his money on the previously mentioned entertainment. Michael even applied for his old job as a binman in 2010, stating that he is truly broke already. The full length of his story you can find in our article dedicated to his journey in life.

In 2003 Callie Rogers Won £1.9 Million

Callie Rogers was only 16 years old when she became one of the youngest lottery winners in the UK. At the time, she was living in a foster care home and working as a cashier, trying to face and fight the many struggles in her life. She comes from a family with serious financial issues, but after all, maybe there is something like fate since she won £1.9 million. This significant amount helped her setting her entire life and family in order and took them out of the misery they were living in. Aside from the nonsense expenses typical for a young person, like breast surgeries, expensive cars, luxury clothes, alcohol and cocaine, Callie bought properties for herself and her mother.

But where did all of that lead her? Unfortunately, from this article, you will understand that money doesn’t buy happiness and sometimes it leads to pain and suffering, like in the case of Callie. In 2005 she gave birth to her son Kian, but the motherhood pressure and her new lifestyle led her to deep depression. Later on, she tried to kill herself, but her family found her and took her to the hospital. Nowadays Callie Rogers is okay, but she feels sorry that she never placed any money aside for her disabled son. If you want to know more about her story you should check the story behind the lottery winner.

In 2007 Leah Sumray Won £1 Million

The story of Leah Sumray is not that spectacular like the others mentioned until now, but it has its downfalls too. Leah was only 21 years old, working as a waitress when she suddenly became a millionaire after purchasing a simple lottery scratch-card of £5. She had many and different plans on how to spend her millions, most importantly she was family-oriented. Her first kind gesture was to take her whole family on a holiday and then spend some time in the USA with the purpose of shopping.

In fact, they went to the Canaries but on their way back Leah was detained and imprisoned at Bristol`s airport. It appears that she decided to disregard her witness testimonials which she was supposed to give in relation to an assault trial in the city of Truro. Her mistake cost her 14 days behind bars and a £200 fine. Additionally, she ended up with a criminalrecord which might ruin her professional future as a nursery nurse, because criminal checks are something typical in this area of child services. Leah stated that she feels she is used as an example because she is a young lottery winner. However, she tried to file an appeal for misinterpretation of the gambling law but unfortunately, the judge rejected it.

In 2008 Ianthe Fullagar Won £7 Million

Ianthe Fullagar is another lucky teen who won £7 million from the famous Euro Millions lottery. From all examples today she is maybe one of the brightest, but why? You will find out in a minute. At this time, Ianthe was a part-time waitress and also a law student. She decided to buy the lottery ticket exactly because the jackpot was exceeding £100 million at that time. After she found out that she was a winner, she was totally shocked, refusing to believe it was true. This is why she got her mother to call the lottery hotline and confirm that it was not a dream. Until she gathered the first part of the prize, she said she was hiding the ticket in various places or holding it constantly with her in order to keep it safe. Ianthe Fullagar decided to keep it quiet and never show herself that much on the media, which was a wise decision. In 2010 the Sunday Times placed her on 27th position in the chart of the richest people in the UK. We know one thing for sure, up to this date she is still a millionaire and an example of how young lottery winners must handle their winnings.

In 2013 Jane Park Won £1 Million

For some, being a young lottery winner is not easy, especially when you are 17 years old like Jane Park. In 2013 the Scottish girl played for the very first time and won the amount of £1 million. At that time, she was a temporary admin living in a council accommodation with her mother and working for £8 per hour. After she gathered her winnings from Euro Millions, she went on a spending spree of course. But first things first, she went on a holiday for about 60 days in Spain and a few more in different locations in the USA and the Maldives. Then she purchased several cars VW, BMW and a Range Rover with a total cost of about £60,000. Another £5,000 was spent on a breast augmentation surgery, from which she had several complications afterwards. Jane loves being under the spotlight, she took part in many TV shows sharing her story and struggles. In a TV interview, she shared that the lottery win ruined her life at some point because it’s way harder to trust people around you after such an event. She also thinks that it is not right for people under the age of 18 to have the right to buy tickets and participate in the National Lottery, she considered suing them because of that.

What Are Your Chances of Winning the Lottery?

Oh well, this is a hell of a question because it depends on many things but mainly on the number of tickets used and produced. The awful truth is that your chances are slim, very slim… let’s say that nowadays we have more and better opportunities for winning such prizes. Playing in online casinos or online lotteries is better because the odds are better. If you prefer to observe and analyze, you can become a millionaire while investing in cryptocurrencies because the situation there is similar. If you invest a small amount at some point it could become a fortune, just remember how Bitcoin went from cents to thousands of dollars. Check out our post with more lottery winner stories if you want to find out more. Of course, the normal National Lottery is always an option, but believe it or not the odds are against you.