'We won £1m but money did not change us'

Christine and Nick Jane won £1m on the National Lottery in 2022

"The lottery said congratulations you've won a million pounds and I fell off the bed."

That was how Christine Jane, from Launceston, Cornwall, reacted when she found out she and her husband Nick had won the National Lottery.

The lottery, which turns 30 this year, was founded by the Camelot Group in 1994. It said it had given out out £94bn in prizes and grants to charities – however the odds of winning are estimated to be 45 million to one.

Despite the sudden increase in their wealth, Mrs Jane said the windfall had not changed them.

'We couldn't believe it'

Mrs Jane said: "We're still the same people, loving people, caring people, money hasn't changed us whatsoever.

The couple were a week away from getting married when a work colleague encouraged Mr Jane to buy a ticket on 14 October 2022.

Mrs Jane said she checked her numbers a day later and called the lottery, initially thinking she had won £100,000.

She said the person on the other end of the line asked if she was sitting down, which she was.

"The lottery people said, 'congratulations you've won a million pounds' and I fell off the bed," she said.

"We couldn't believe it, my husband couldn't believe it when he came from work.

"We had to show him the ticket... still now we cant believe it."

New home and cars

Mrs Jane said the first thing the couple bought was a "nice big lovely house".

"Some new cars, a family home, a bungalow and my sister in law is living in the bungalow now," she said.

"We bought him [her husband] a van because he wanted a van, so I bought him a van."