UNLUCKY IN LOVE!
Lottery winner’s partner split with him a month before he scooped £9m... and says she ‘supposes’ she’s happy for him
WHEN Paul Long won more than £9million on the lottery, he said it would help ensure those closest to him were ‘looked after’.
But one person who looks like she has just missed out on this largesse is his ex-girlfriend. Mr Long, an unemployed supermarket worker, 55, moved out of the home he shared with Julie West on February 1 after an ‘amicable’ split.
Celebrating after his jackpot, Mr Long told the Daily Mirror: ‘Let’s be honest ... if I was with someone and you’ve just split up, and they go and win £9million on the lottery, you’re going to be gutted, aren’t you?’
He added mischievously: ‘You never know, I might take her for a holiday or a meal.’
When Miss West, who had been with Mr Long for five years, was asked if she was happy for him, she responded: ‘I suppose so.’ She added that it was ‘out of order’ for her ex to joke about her being upset. Mr Long bought his winning ticket – one of two lucky dips – on Saturday after his football team Leyton Orient won their first home game in three months, in the hope that his good fortune might carry over to the Lotto. He won £9,339,858.
It emerged yesterday that he discovered his windfall while staying at the flat he had once shared with Miss West in Chadwell Heath, East London.
He said: ‘She asked if I wanted to stay over on the way back from football on Saturday to look after the cat because she was away. On Sunday she came in when I was on the phone to Camelot.’
A neighbour, who asked not to be named, said: ‘Paul moved out a few weeks back. I saw Julie yesteralso day and she looked a little down in the dumps. Now I know why.’
Mr Long had moved into a rented property in Wickford, Essex, and was starting to look for work after a year off following an injury. A former car plant worker, he has worked for Asda. The newly minted millionaire’s celebrations were limited to a bottle of beer and a cup of tea, although he is planning to upgrade his six-yearold Ford Fiesta to a new £17,000 Ford EcoSport SUV and possibly buy himself a house.
There will also be a season ticket at Leyton – something he couldn’t afford at the start of the season.
Another person to miss out will be ex-wife Lisa, although their three grown-up children, Rebecca, 27, Elliott, 24, and Matthew, 20, will be looked after.
‘The kids explained to her. She’s happy they will be taken care of,’ he said. However, he vowed: ‘I’m not going to make them millionaires. They should learn the value of things.
‘I want to give them a life where I know they’re going to be all right. Buy a couple of properties, probably for them in the future, buy one for myself. Again, not a mansion.’
Given that his football team’s victory prompted his good fortune, Mr Long said he would consider investing in Leyton – although he is wary, given their record.
They crashed out of the Football League in 2016-17 and now play in the National League.
‘I’m not making them millionaires’