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Losing a £3 million lottery ticket led to 'Britain's unluckiest couple' launching law suits and getting divorced.
Martyn and Kay Tott were propelled into the headlines 20 years ago after begging the National Lottery to bolster their bank account.
It took the couple weeks to clock that their lucky numbers had been drawn but by the time they realised, their winning ticket was nowhere to be found.
Despite being able to prove their purchase by obtaining computer records from their local Londis, the Totts were caught out by Camelot's small print.
The couple who lived in a two-bedroom semi in Watford, had breached a little-known National Lottery rule that states lost tickets must be reported within 30 days.
The Totts waited 45 gruelling days before being told they would not get their prize, the Mirror reports.
The case gained national attention with public figures like Sir Richard Branson and Tony Blair urging the lottery to award the multi-million pound prize.
But Camelot didn't budge and the couple's misfortune put an incredible strain on their marriage, The Sun reports.
Martyn also spent five years trying to get his hands on the payout in court.
He later said he was glad they never got the money.
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"Having that money taken away was torture," he told the Mail on Sunday.
"For a long time I lost sight of who I was and what I believed in. But I can honestly say I’m glad I didn’t get the £3million now.
"There is no guarantee it would have brought me happiness."
Earlier this year a Hertfordshire couple lost out on a £182million EuroMillions jackpot.
Rachel Kennedy, 19, and Liam McCrohan, 21, were left “absolutely heartbroken” in March after claiming their ticket payment had not gone through.
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The couple, from Hertfordshire, realised their usual numbers of 6, 12, 22, 29, 33, 6 and 11 had come up but there was one major catch – their ticket payment hadn't gone through.
They had played the same numbers for five weeks in a row, before all seven digits appeared in the draw.
Rachel explained how she had set up her account to automatically buy a EuroMillions ticket for each draw – but when payment for the winning ticket was attempted, the lottery account did not have enough funds.
Checking her account after the draw, she was greeted with a message saying her numbers were a "winning match" – however, her heart sank when she realised the glitch, The Sun reported.
- National Lottery
- Euromillions
- Money
- Pound
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