Couple Who Live In A £600k Cotswolds Home Become UK’s Biggest-Ever Lottery Winners With £184m Jackpot

Joe and Jess Thwaite, a couple in their 40s, have won a record-breaking £184, 262,899 jackpot, having played a Lucky Dip ticket on May 10th. Joe is a communications sales engineer, while Jess manages the business side of a hairdressing salon she runs with her mom Caroline and sister Rebecca in the riverside town of Tewkesbury. 

The pair from outside Gloucester have been married for 11 years with eight-year-old twins, but Mr. Thwaite already has two children from a previous marriage.

Joe and Jess decided to go public with the news of their win at a hotel in Cheltenham as they didn’t want to put the burden of keeping the secret on others. At a press conference with TV Presenter Dermot O’Leary, the couple said their financial situation is not horrendous, and the cost of living crisis has affected their lives, adding that they own animals like ponies and dogs, chickens, and geckos. 

“We have too many things; we’re too busy. We just want to create that kind of lifestyle for our children. We’re right at the bottom because we’ve pushed everything to get his house and have our ponies at home and that’s been our dream. I’m not saying that it’s horrendous, we love our life, this is what we’ve chosen,” Jess said.

Joe, aged 49, admitted he saw the winning numbers via the National Lottery app as his wife lay asleep and didn’t wake her up; instead started browsing for properties. 

“I looked it up and saw we’d won. I saw how much and I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t go back to sleep. I didn’t want to wake jess up, so I just laid there for what seemed like forever. I spent time searching for a property with no budget limit, which was a novelty,” Mr. Thwaite said, adding that he got up to about £7 million before he stopped himself from continuing. 

Only months ago, they had bought their new home for £600K but said now that their priority includes DIY jobs around their property while admitting their two children have always talked about going to Hawaii.

The pair say they will equally share the win with extended family, with Mr. Thwaite’s ex-wife, Sara Frost [pictured], claiming she was over the moon for them. 

However, their recently purchased home features four bedrooms, a kitchen, a breakfast room, and a lounge fitted with a fireplace with an oak beam mantle and a log-burning stove that leads to the garden. On the other hand, both Joe and Jess mark the 2nd EuroMillions jackpot won in the UK this year, and interestingly, they have plans to help causes and charities close to their hearts.