A lottery winner who lost it all despite carrying on working full-time, buying secondhand cars and flying
economy says she still had a "great time". Lara Griffiths says she can't describe what it felt like when ex-husband Roger Griffiths told her he'd scooped £1.8million in 2005. But she said the whole experience was "shocking" - and, 18 years on, says she is "sick of being painted as tragic". Lara and Roger split eight years after the win. And she says she has since been accused of being a "silly woman" who frittered all the cash away. But Lara, now 53, says the opposite is true. She said: “It’s become an overriding narrative that the lotto ruined my life. People kept saying I was stupid, pumped full of plastic surgery and needed my kids taken away. But the fact is, I spent it wisely - and I had a great time.” Lara and Roger were happily married when he won the money. They immediately bought economy-class tickets to Dubai, where they spent 10 days. They also invested in the following months, buying a £150k salon in which Lara worked, 30 secondhand cars and at least 15 designer handbags. Lara claims they also got a mortgage on a house - instead of buying it outright for £450k. But she says having all that money was a strange feeling. She says she found the experience “shocking” - and she couldn’t differentiate between “good shock and bad shock”. Lara and daughter Ruby Lara said: “Everyone always asks you what it’s like to win the lottery. But it’s not a tangible feeling - imagine being told you suddenly have two million in the bank. “We went on holiday to Dubai and it was lovely, in the first instance. We didn’t fritter money away, though. We flew economy class, the cars were secondhand and we got mortgages on all the houses.” Lara left her £40k-a-year
Job in teaching the following year - despite not wanting to - fearing the teachers and students would look at her differently. She worked full-time at the salon she and Roger bought together, instead, but claims she didn't pay herself a salary. Despite this, she felt “bored” - and her new job left her feeling “unstimulated” as her passion was in teaching. Lara claims Roger also threw “a lot of money” into his fledgling
music career - dropping thousands to fund a record with his old uni band. He confirmed he spent £25k. But, by 2013, the money had run out - and Roger and Lara split. The pair had two children together - Kitty, now 16 and Ruby, now 19. The mum and her two daughters now live with Lara’s mum Norma, 86, in a four-bedroom house. Lara says she doesn’t want her daughters to inherit a “legacy” involving her spending £1.8million in lotto winnings. She added: “I fully hold my hands up and accept my mistakes. I’ve spent the last 10 years making sure my children have a nice life regardless of that. But the lottery did not ruin my life."