EUROMILLIONS mum Gillian Bayford is locked in a family feud over her
£148million jackpot.
Gillian, 43, accused her dad Ian McCulloch, 71, of trying to seize control of
the fortune she won with her ex Adrian, 45.
The Dundee mum of two blasted Ian, mum Brenda and brother Colin, 41, saying:
“It made them bitter and greedy.”
And she told how she gave them a £20million slice of her fortune — only for
them to come back for more.
In her first in-depth interview since scooping the £148million jackpot she
revealed she has not spoken to them in a year.
Gillian, who runs a property firm in Dundee, said: “It’s upsetting and it’s
raw. The money was supposed to make everybody happy.
“But it’s made my close relatives demanding and greedy.
“They’ve been given substantial amounts of money and houses and cars but
still wanted more.
“My dad has openly said he wants to control my business and take half my
money.
Gillian said growing up in Carnoustie, Angus, was tough because the family was
constantly plunged into debt by Ian, 71, and his failed businesses.
She started a new life in Haverhill, Suffolk, but claimed she was still called
on to bail him out.
When she won Britain’s second- biggest EuroMillions win, her mum and dad were
broke and living in a caravan.
And as soon as the Camelot cheque cleared Gillian claims money was sent to a
firm her father owed cash to.
Gillian said: “My dad and brother had debts of £700,000 on the day we won.
That was the first thing we paid for when we won.
“Adrian’s family had to wait weeks but my parents and brother were first.
They got their cars and houses before anyone else.”
Ian and Brenda, 66, now live in a £275,000 apartment in an exclusive housing
development in Angus and drive an Audi S8.
Colin, 41, bought a £288,000 five-bedroomed house in the area, has two Audis
with private plates and married his long-term girlfriend — without telling
his sister.
Gillian added: “I can hold my head up because I know I’ve taken them out of a
situation that they dragged me through for 40 years.
“They brought our name into disrespect in the village and we had people
threatening to torch the family house.
My dad and brother built up one company after another when they closed. I’ve
bailed them out of every single debt.”
But Gillian said the family harmony she expected her fortune to bring never
came.
After just nine months Ian called an emergency meeting because Colin was
running out of cash.
Gillian revealed: “My dad said the money Colin had been given wasn’t enough
and that he was struggling. He realised it wasn’t going to last.
“He wanted me to guarantee that I would help my brother for the rest of
his life. I would never see him struggle.”
Since then, Gillian said she’s handed over another £800,000 so Colin could buy
Jumping Joey’s playcentre in Arbroath.
The mum said she tries to ensure her kids lead a normal life. But she claims
her dad has jetted to Canada, South Africa and Florida and refuses to fly
economy.
Gillian said the feud was sparked after her parents saw a newspaper article on
her.
She said: “They are disgusted when I get that kind of attention.
“They’ve disowned me because I embarrass them. But they’ve been more than
happy to take my money.
“The most upsetting thing is that they won’t have anything to do with their
two grandchildren. They won’t see them.” The last time Gillian spoke to her
family was last May at her gran’s funeral.
And she’s warned she won’t be giving any more handouts.
Gillian said: “They have forgotten their roots and lost touch with where
they’ve come from.
“They’re rubbing people’s noses in it by flashing their cash, which I think is
downright nasty.
“If they come back and knock at my door I won’t be bailing them out
again.”
Colin refused to comment about the row. But Ian claimed his daughter was
“absolutely off her head” and said he’s tried to heal their rift.
He said: “We have no issues at all with Gillian. Nobody is embarrassed by her
life.
“I wrote her a message in January and said it’s about time we buried the
hatchet. She never replied.
“She’s not speaking to any of us. I haven’t got a clue why. How do you think I
feel as a grandfather and my wife as a grandmother at never getting to see
the grandchildren?
“We don’t want anything from Gillian. She’s given us far too much.
“All we wanted was the family and to see our grandchildren.”
And he insisted the family are thankful to the winner.
Ian said: “We were going down, we were bankrupt. If it wasn’t for Gillian we
wouldn’t be sitting in this top house.
“We’d be down in the caravan park living there. We knew our destiny. We have
got many thanks for everything Gillian has done.”
She was a healthcare assistant at a kids’ hospital ward in Cambridge when she
hit the jackpot in 2012, while Adrian ran a music shop.
They celebrated with pizza and splashed out on a fleet of luxury motors and a
£6million mansion.
In November 2013 the couple broke up and split their winnings.
Gillian, who lost weight after landing the cash, bought a new home outside
Dundee. She is now engaged to car salesman Alan Warnock, 44, and keeps
herself busy buying and renting properties.
Last month her tearoom, Sugar and Spice, in Arbroath, shut and the 21 staff
were offered a £100 payout if they stayed quiet.
Gillian said the closure was “unfortunate” but would not be drawn on the
reasons behind it.
Adrian is set to wed stable girl Sam Burbidge and has opened a music shop in
Cambridge.
THE EX-HUBBY
JUST 15 months after the jackpot win Gillian and hubby Adrian divorced —
blaming the stress of the jackpot.
Adrian, 45, is now engaged to ex-horse groom Samantha Burbidge, who is 16
years his junior.
She moved in to his £6million country mansion after they met in a pub.
READ MORE:
Adrian, who had a secondhand record store, now owns Black Barn Records — a
film and music memorabilia shop in Cambridge.
How Lotto ‘curse’ left luckiest in dire straits
By CARRI-ANN TAYLOR
WINNING the lottery has led to misery rather than joy for some.
The most infamous case is King of the Chavs Mikey Carroll, who blew his
£9.7million win on cars, drugs, booze and hookers.
Rangers-daft binman Carroll, from Norfolk, trashed his mansion and sold it in
2010.
Three years ago, he was employed in an Elgin biscuit factory for £200 a week.
He now works in an abattoir.
Callie Rogers, of Workington, Cumbria, was Britain’s youngest lotto winner at
16 — scooping £1.9million in 2003.
Ten years later she had frittered it away on drugs and alcohol.
Roger and Lara Griffiths of Wetherby, West Yorks, netted £1.8million in 2005.
Lara said it wrecked their marriage. Roger said he ended up with £7 in the
bank.
Iorworth Hoare, from Newcastle, was dubbed the Lotto Rapist after scooping
£7.2million with a Lotto Extra ticket bought on day release from jail in
2004.
The High Court later ordered he pay his victim close to £100,000.