THE couple who scooped a £148million lottery jackpot are set to divorce little
more than a year later.
Adrian Bayford, 43, and wife Gillian, 41, yesterday admitted their marriage
had “broken down irretrievably”.
He has moved out of their £6million Georgian mansion and into a four-bedroom
home in a Suffolk cul-de-sac.
The number is up for the multi-millionaires’ marriage — despite their
insistence that the jackpot would bring them closer.
They won their huge prize when Gillian was working nights in a hospital and
Adrian was working days at his second-hand record shop.
Mum-of-two Gillian announced she would quit her job, adding: “We have lived
within our means and been comfortable but we have been like ships in the
night to earn the income we needed.
“It will be fantastic to spend more time as a family now. This money has
come at the right time for us and is going to benefit the whole family.”
However yesterday — just 15 months after the huge EuroMillions win — her
spokesman said: “Gillian Bayford confirms that her marriage to Adrian has
broken down irretrievably and they have separated.
“Gillian will be giving no further comment about this matter either now or in
the future.” Meanwhile Adrian, 43, admitted the break-up to The Sun.
He said he has left the couple’s mansion and moved a ten-minute drive away to
a £500,000 house in Suffolk he is renovating with his twin brother Miles.
Earlier this year wild rumours surfaced of a fling between Gillian and the
couple’s gardener Christopher Tovey, 39.
But rubbishing the claims, Gillian, 41, insisted in July: “We are not
splitting up. We aren’t any different to the way we were before.”
The down-to-earth couple — who have two pre-teen children — hit it rich in
August 2012.
Gillian was a children’s ward healthcare assistant at Addenbrooke’s Hospital
in Cambridge and Adrian ran a shop selling records and musical instruments.
Their jackpot was the country’s second biggest and put them 516th on Britain’s
Rich List, alongside singer Tom Jones and chef Jamie Oliver.
But after posing for photographs with champagne, they celebrated by taking
their kids for a pizza.
Their first treat was a budget holiday to visit Gillian’s parents in a
Scottish caravan park.
Adrian vowed to keep his store open but closed it after being flooded with
begging letters.
The family left their three-bedroom home in Haverhill, Suffolk, for the
200-acre country estate.
The mansion has seven bedrooms, four reception rooms and four marble bathrooms
as well as a three-bedroom annexe, a lodge and four cottages.
The couple also splashed out on a fleet of cars including an Audi, a Mercedes
and a sporty Mini.
Friends say Gillian has lost weight through a diet and exercise regime.
This weekend she visited her husband’s new house and was seen talking to him
in the driveway with her arms crossed.
A source said: “People locally have suspected for some time that all is not
well in the marriage.
“It’s such a shame because they are a lovely family with two young kids. And
everyone around here was so happy for them when they won.
“They worked hard all of their lives and then came into this wonderful bit of
good fortune. That’s why it’s so sad it’s ended like this.”
You can’t buy love…
PAM SPURR, Relationship expert
ADRIAN and Gillian’s split is proof that, as the song says, money can’t buy
you love.
Having won millions you would think they would live happily ever after, but
it’s no surprise to me that their sudden wealth might be responsible for the
break-up.
Psychologically we are not prepared for such a drastic change in our
circumstances.
Couples argue over how to spend the windfall. One may want to splash out on
luxuries, while the other wants to spend wisely.
And if there were cracks in the marriage, the win can provide the escape route
they secretly hoped for.
Curse of the lottery
ADRIAN and Gillian are not the only people for whom a big win spelled
disaster. Here we look at other unlucky winners.
MICHAEL Carroll, the jailbird lotto lout, won £9.7million in 2002. He bought a
mansion in Swaffham, Norfolk, gave away huge sums and blew the rest on drugs
and cars. This year it was revealed the 30-year-old works in a biscuit
factory in Scotland.
Roger and Lara Griffiths won £1.8million in 2005. Their £670,000 home in
Wetherby, West Yorks, burnt down in 2010. After a series of bad investments,
Roger, 42, walked out on Lara, 43, after 14 years of marriage. He recently
admitted he had just £7 left.
Callie Rogers was just 16 when she won £1.9million in 2003. But the Cumbrian
blew a fortune on boob jobs and drugs. She battled with depression and
attempted suicide, but now the mum of two, 25, says she is happier being
broke.
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