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Irish Examiner
20-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Cork's Shandon Street buzzes with rumours after €250m EuroMillions win — but local legend says 'not me!'
The luckiest man on Cork's historic Shandon Street had to set the record straight as the rumour mill went into overdrive about Ireland's largest-ever €250m EuroMillions winner. Christy Forde, who has run his Shandon Upholstery business on the street for almost half a century, said that despite his remarkable winning streak in recent months, he did not hit the jackpot this time. 'Sure I'd have had a heart attack if I'd won that amount,' he said. As celebrations erupted in Clifford's Centra on Shandon Street — the shop that sold the winning €250m EuroMillions ticket for last Tuesday's draw — Christy became the focus of intense speculation. He had previously won the Millionaire Raffle, buying the winning ticket at Clifford's last Christmas and gifting it. The €100,000 prize remained local, he confirmed. He also recently won the church lotto and a soccer club raffle. But on Friday, Christy admitted he enjoyed fuelling the EuroMillions rumour mill — with a twinkle in his eye. 'When I heard it was won in Ireland, I went into Clifford's on Wednesday to check my ticket,' he revealed. 'We didn't know at that stage that the winning ticket was sold in Cork, or even in Clifford's. "I queued up and there was a crowd behind me and the staff checked my ticket, and when they gave it back to me, I shouted 'yes! yes!' and the whole place was stunned. But sure, if I'd won it at that stage, I'd have had a heart attack on the spot. 'So when it confirmed on Friday that it was sold in Clifford's, I thought, here's my chance — get famous. I'm famous on Shandon Street already,y but not all over Ireland. They know I'm a lucky man, so I went up to the top of the lane, and got out my ticket for the next draw, and said 'oh, me heart is thumping'. Christy Forde, of Shandon Upholstery, the luckiest man on Shandon Street, Cork, who had to come clean to deny rumours he is Ireland's largest ever EuroMillions jackpot winner. 'Someone told me to sit down, and asked did I want some water, and if I was alright. Now, I never said I'd won it, but my intention was that Christy Forde would go sky high. 'But it wasn't me. Whoever it was, the blessings of God on them. They should do what I would do — they should keep working. If I won it, I wouldn't work at all on Saturday mornings, I'd take Saturday mornings off.' The jaw-dropping €250 million jackpot sets the record for the largest prize ever won in Ireland. It marks the 18th EuroMillions jackpot win in Ireland since the game began in 2004 and the 13th National Lottery millionaire of 2025. Store owner Ted Clifford said it was still hard to believe his shop had sold the winning ticket. 'We are here on Shandon Street for 95 years and am so proud to be the third generation owner of Clifford's. We send our warmest congratulations to the winner and their family,' he said. Just up the road, second-generation cobbler Martin Duggan advised the winner to take their time and let the scale of the win sink in. 'I've heard a few rumours of people buying a few rounds of drinks in the local pubs, but they're only rumours," he said. "It's a mind-boggling amount of money. If it was a syndicate, I think it would be known already so it looks like it's a single winner. 'I think it's someone local, and we're delighted. It's great for the shop, it's great for the street." National Lottery chief executive Cian Murphy described the moment as historic for both the National Lottery and the country, and a day of celebration for the community served by Clifford's. 'We are very well-versed in managing this. We advise all winners to sign the back of their ticket, keep their ticket safe and bring it to National Lottery HQ,' he said. 'We also advise them to get independent financial advice and independent legal advice. 'This is a life-changing amount of money, and it's very important that people get that advice.' If the winner or winners choose to remain anonymous, Murphy added, the National Lottery would support them in maintaining their privacy. Rumours were swirling across Leeside — that it's a family from Blarney, a 10-person syndicate on the northside, or a group of friends working in a pharmachem company. One man, said to be in a 'winning syndicate,' denied the claim. 'And even if I did win, I wouldn't go public and here's why. I have loads of enemies, and I want to keep it that way,' he joked.
Extra.ie
20-06-2025
- Business
- Extra.ie
Celebrations underway as Cork Centra react to selling €250million EuroMillions ticket
Celebrations are underway for the Cork Centra that sold the mind-boggling €250million EuroMillions ticket. The life-changing sum, the biggest jackpot in the history of the competition, was sold in Clifford's Centra on Shandon Street in Cork City Centre on the Tuesday draw (June 17). Celebrations kicked off at the store on Friday afternoon, with store owner Ted Clifford saying that they were surprised to sell a winning ticket just months after they sold a Millionaire's Raffle ticket, which was worth a massive €100,000. Celebrations are underway for the Cork Centra that sold the mind-boggling €250million EuroMillions ticket. Pic: Mac Innes Photography 'This is just fantastic news, it is hard to believe it,' Mr Clifford said. 'We are delighted to have sold this golden ticket to one of our customers. We already sold a winning Millionaire Raffle ticket on New Year's Eve just gone, worth €100,000, so that must have been the start of our winning streak. 'On behalf of our Centra team, it's an honour to be part of this historic moment. We are here on Shandon Street for 95 years and am so proud to be the 3rd generation owner of Clifford's. We send our warmest congratulations to the winner and their family.' Cian Murphy, CEO of the National Lottery, also celebrated the massive win, saying that this has been a historic moment for both the lotto and country Shane Kenny (right), National Lottery, alongside store manager Simon and the team at Clifford's Centra on Shandon Street in Cork city centre. Pic: Mac Innes Photography 'We are delighted to announce Clifford's Centra as the location to have sold the €250 Million EuroMillions winning ticket,' Mr Murphy said. 'This is a truly historic moment for the National Lottery and for the country. 'Not only does it mark the 18th EuroMillions jackpot win in Ireland, but also Ireland's biggest ever Jackpot win. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to the winner and our sincere thanks to Ted, Simon and all at Clifford's Centra for being part of this unforgettable milestone.' The winner of the life changing sum has contacted the National Lottery to make arrangements to collect their prize, but there's no word on who they are just yet.
CBS News
12-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
Michigan woman wins $1 million on lottery ticket she forgot she bought
An Oceana County woman won $1 million on a Michigan Lottery ticket she nearly forgot she bought. The 63-year-old woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, bought her winning Millionaire Raffle ticket on the Michigan Lottery's website. "I won $100 playing an online game, so I decided to use some of my winnings to purchase Powerball and Mega Millions tickets online," said the player. "When I was purchasing those tickets, I saw the Millionaire Raffle game and thought, 'Why not?' and purchased one ticket. "I forgot I had purchased the raffle ticket until I saw an email from the Lottery one day with information on claiming my prize. I didn't believe it when I logged into my Lottery account and saw a $1 million prize pending. I logged out and logged back in several times, and the prize was still there, so I knew it had to be real. I am still trying to wrap my head around it!" The woman plans to save her winnings. "Purchasing a Millionaire Raffle ticket on a whim led to a huge $1 million payday for this lucky player!" said Michigan Lottery Commissioner Suzanna Shkreli. "The Lottery's online platform offers players several different ways to play and win with online instant games, draw games, and online raffles, including the Millionaire Raffle game." The Millionaire Raffle is an auto-renewing raffle game that launched in December 2024. The Michigan Lottery sells 100,000 tickets per draw, with drawings held after 100,000 tickets are sold. Each drawing awards a $1 million top prize and 100 $1,000 prizes.
