Peter Lavery, a Belfast bus driver who won £10.2 million on the National Lottery in 1996, has revealed the 'dark side' of his windfall, including a deluge of 15,000 begging letters and a media frenzy that awaited him upon returning from a celebratory holiday.
The Winning Moment and Immediate Spending Spree
Lavery, then 34, discovered his life-changing win on a Sunday morning after a night out with friends. He initially struggled to process the news, saying, 'It felt unreal.' Within four weeks, he had given away £3 million to family and charities. He completed a five-hour bus shift that Sunday, earning £200 a week, but by Wednesday he had resigned and was jetting off to a five-star resort in St Lucia with 12 friends and family, costing £66,000.
The Dark Side Upon Return
After three and a half weeks away, Lavery returned to Belfast to find that everyone knew he was rich. The head of the post office informed him there were 15,000 letters waiting, many addressed simply to 'Peter Lavery lottery winner' without a full address. Overwhelmed, he asked for them to be returned. He noted that some letters did get through, but questioned, 'Where do you start and where do you finish?' He added, 'People who come, they're in desperate situations... they must be so desperate to think you are the answer.'
Financial Excess and Health Decline
Lavery initially lived extravagantly, buying a £300,000 home in the 'Golden Triangle' area of Belfast and spending £500,000 on cars including Jaguars and Bentleys (though he later sold most, keeping only his Mercedes). His drinking escalated, leading to a health crisis before his 40th birthday. Diagnosed with Type-2 diabetes, his doctor warned him to change his lifestyle or face lifelong insulin injections. He quit drinking, stating, 'I didn't drink every day but once I got a drink in me I just didn't want to go home.'
Turning to Business and Philanthropy
Despite the upheaval, Lavery became a successful businessman, founding Titanic Distillers. He has donated nearly £2 million to charities and once took 20 children affected by the Troubles, along with their parents, to Disney World in Florida. He reflected, 'You can only do what you can do... as long as my heart tells you I've done something... I didn't have to do anything.'
