Irish EuroMillions winner paid terrifying price for becoming country's 58th richest person

Dublin Live

9 hours ago

Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info
The largest ever EuroMillions jackpot was won in Ireland in recent days – with the lucky ticket holder now €250million richer. And the National Lottery has since confirmed the golden ticket was sold by a retailer in Cork, with a spokesperson saying they were giving the winner the necessary time to 'let this life-changing news sink in'.
But a woman called Dolores McNamara, who used to be a part time cleaner, can attest to the fact that the absurd amount of money may never sink in. She was once the record holder, after winning a cool €115million on the EuroMillions back in 2005.
Next month will even mark the 20 year anniversary from when she scooped the eye-watering prize. But despite the elation, the money has also been a poisoned chalice, and below we look back at her extraordinary story.
Dolores, a mum-of-six, was not in the privacy of her home in Limerick when she realised she had suddenly become the 58th richest person in Ireland at the time.
(Image: PA)
Instead, the then 45-year-old was sat in her local pub, the Track Bar, and she put her €2 lottery ticket on a table and told one of her friends: 'Check that for me.'
The draw was being shown live on the television and within seconds Dolores was in floods of tears. A barmaid, who was there at the time, once said: 'Then the drink started flowing and the champagne was poured and we had a great night celebrating. Dolores is a real nice woman and none of her friends believe this will change her drastically.'
After it became national news, her solicitor released a statement, saying their client had a 'desire to return to normality as soon as possible'. He added: 'She is absolutely determined that her feet and the feet of her family, will remain firmly on the ground.'
Unfortunately for Dolores, returning to 'normality' was never really an option, and the riches came with certain complexities. However, what it did do was purchase a huge and extravagant house called Lough Derg Hall. The €1.75m property in Killaloe, Clare, with stunning lakeside views, reportedly was once of interest to acting superstar Robert De Niro.
(Image: Press Association)
She also snapped up six homes in the Limerick area for her six kids – Dawn, Gary, Kim, Kevanne, Dean and Lee. Despite the joys of being able to set her loved ones up for life, the endless cash brought darker consequences, including Dolores having to purchase 24/7 security at her home.
This was after multiple sinister kidnapping threats and it was also reported that her children each had a panic button in case an ugly scenario happened. Her son, his partner and their child were also said to have moved home to stay in a private location after a kidnapping plot where a local gang was rumoured to be planning an abduction.
Dolores meanwhile was also involved in a road crash in 2015 and the case continued for years until she finally got a settlement of almost €8,500.
Heartbreak followed in recent times after her husband, Adrian, a bricklayer who had invested in his own racecourse because of the lotto scoop, died in 2021. He was only in his 60s and he passed away after an illness.
(Image: PA)
Dolores is now 64 and the grandmother-of-nine tends to avoid the public eye as much as possible.
Speaking to the press is not something Dolores does, despite the huge interest in her win, and her only interview came with her local Limerick Leader paper.
She said: 'The question that has been asked of me most frequently was how I felt about my win and my answer is still the same - I feel disbelief and shock. Buying a ticket for that Euro jackpot was a spur of the moment decision. I'd actually gone into the shop to buy a top-up for my phone and just asked the lady for a Lotto ticket.'