Curse of the Lottery strikes again: Weirs to divorce
● Largs couple who scooped £161m split up
When they became Britain’s biggest lottery winners the nation took the down-to-earth hard-working couple to their hearts and watched approvingly as they helped a range of worthy causes, as well as indulge in a few mansions, holidays and cars.
However, Chris and Colin Weir, from Largs, North Lanarkshire, who scooped £161m when they won the Euromillions jackpot in July 2012, appear to have fallen foul of the lottery curse as they announce they are to divorce.
A statement issued on behalf of the couple, who have been married for 38 years and have two grown-up children, read: “It is with deep regret that Chris and Colin Weir confirm that they have been living apart for some time and are applying for divorce amicably.
“They ask that the family’s privacy is respected at this time and there will be no further comment.”
Mr Weir, now 71, told a 2011 press conference: “When we first realised we had won, it felt like a dream. Everything went into slow motion. But it feels like a good thing, something we should not be afraid of but for us to enjoy with the children.” Mrs Weir, now 62, worked as psychiatric nurse before their win and Mr Weir was a TV cameraman and studio manager .
The most recent edition of the Sunday Times Rich List put them at 770th place in the index of the richest 1,000 people in the UK.
They have donated to a number of charity ventures, and set up The Weir Charitable Trust.
A community football club in their local town received a donation, while their investment in Partick Thistle FC led to the youth set-up being rebranded the Thistle Weir Youth Academy and a section of Firhill Stadium being named the Colin Weir Stand.
In 2014, the year of the Scottish independence referendum, the Weirs donated £3.5 million to Yes Scotland.
The majority of lottery winners remain anonymous, but among those who have gone public and been ‘cursed’ are Jane Park, from Edinburgh, who became Britain’s youngest lottery winner when she won £1m when she was only 17 in 2013.
But after leaving her £8-an-hour administration temp job and going on a spending spree she said the win had “ruined her life” and that life had been easier before the win.
Last year she said she was willing to pay a man £60,000 a year to date her.