Gloucester couple reveal their identities after scooping £184m

The biggest-ever lottery winners in Britain have revealed their identities.

Joe and Jess Thwaite, a couple from Gloucester, won £184m on the EuroMillions last week.

They went public at a news conference today.

The couple said they bought their EuroMillions Lucky Dip ticket for the massive draw on The National Lottery App and so the next morning received an email saying they had good news about their ticket.

The next morning Joe got up as usual at 5.15am to sort out the couple's dogs, before then checking his phone and saw the email from The National Lottery saying, 'Good news, you've won a prize'.

Joe said, "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 some time searching for property with no budget limit, which was a novelty!"

Eventually the alarm rang and as Jess struggled to turn it off Joe told her, "I've got a secret, I've got something to tell you."

Jess' initial reaction when presented with the news was disbelief, thinking Joe had it wrong, the National Lottery app was wrong or that it was a joke.

Eventually she concluded that it wasn't worth getting too excited about as it probably wasn't true and got up to make a coffee and start their normal morning routine.

Joe, who is a Communications Sales Engineer and has been married to Jess for 11 years.

They have two primary school-age children, and Joe has two children at University from his previous marriage.

Jess, who manages the business side of a hairdressing salon she runs with her sister, said: "The win gives us time to dream which we haven't had before. We've had one week to think about this and we now have time to share lots of experiences and go on adventures with our family and friends."

Jess revealed that she was more prepared for the win than many, thanks to her father. She said, "My dad played The National Lottery all his life and constantly dreamed of winning.

"He would always ask us what we'd do when we won, how we'd spend it, who we'd treat. It was a regular conversation and I feel like he was preparing us. Maybe that is why I seem so chilled, as I've kind of been ready to win for years."

When Jess' father passed away around seven years ago, Joe took on the mantle of playing The National Lottery. Joe said, "The family always ask me if I have a ticket for the big draws. While I don't play every week, I do a Lucky Dip when there is a big jackpot. Although I don't feel like I've had a lot of luck in the past."

The winning EuroMillions numbers were 3, 25, 27, 28 and 29 - plus the Lucky Star numbers 4 and 9.

Their total win was £184,262,899.10.

The record was previously held by an anonymous ticket-holder, who won £170m in 2019.

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