Callie Rogers, who won a lottery jackpot of £1.87 million in 2003, says she’s much happier now all her fortune is gone. The 16-year-old Callie was living in foster care in Cumbria when she found out she had become a millionaire.
She immediately quit her £3.60-an-hour checkout job, bought a £180,000 home and gave £500,000 to friends and family. However, she also blew plenty of the winnings, including £250,000 on cocaine.
One of the biggest impact on Callie after she won the life-changing sum was that she was no longer able to tell which relationships were genuine. As people around her tried to use her for money, she once became so depressed that she attempted to take her own life.
“There were people who came along after I won the lottery that weren’t in my life before and aren’t in my life now,” said Callie. “There were a lot of false people involved. At the time I didn’t realise because I wanted everyone to like me. The money brought problems with family and friends.”
Lottery organisers Camelot offered to help her after her massive win, but she refused as she was too young to understand how much the money would change her life. Callie said her fortune had nearly broke her but now she was happy that she no longer had to suffer from the stress of having such a huge sum of money. “The pressure to splash out and live a glam party life has gone and I prefer it.”
Now 31 and a mother-of-three, Callie is in a stable relationship and is a carer for her youngest son Blake, who suffers from cerebral palsy.
Culture Minister Tracey Crouch has confirmed that the Government is considering an increase in the age limit to 16 for playing the game.
