That’s how much a couple won on the Euro lottery... but how do people handle that kind of windfall? Here are the stories of Andy Carter and others

What exactly does one do with €185 million won in the lottery?

...try to keep a clear head, take some legal and financial advice, and don’t leave your job or your partner just yet

When Colin and Christine Weir, an unassuming, middle-aged Scottish couple announced they had won €185 million on the EuroMillions last July they were inundated by sacks of begging letters which forced them to move house.

That’s where Andy Carter comes in.

“People are in shock, and quite often scared of what’s going to happen. They want reassurance that this is real, this is happening,” Mr Carter said.

His advice to every one of his winners begins with three words: “Take your time.” By which he means, try to keep a clear head, take some legal and financial advice, and don’t leave your job or your partner just yet.

Mr Carter is a winners’ adviser for Camelot, the organisers of the lottery in Britain, where three ticket holders have won huge EuroMillions jackpots since January each worth around €50 million.

It is his job to check your winning ticket and arrange for the funds to be transferred into your bank account. And then he’ll hold your hand while you work out what on earth you’re going to do with the money.

So how did Mr Carter help the Weirs? He advised them, but wouldn’t discuss their decision to tell the world of their good fortune: a move that was clearly good publicity for Camelot but appears to have left the couple open to unwanted attention.

However, he points out that it can be hard to keep the news quiet, a fact acknowledged by Mrs Weir, who told her local newspaper: “If we hadn’t told anyone, people would have thought we were laundering money.”

Mr Carter says the Weirs are now happily settled in their new home and insists that the money improves the lives of the majority of winners.

Hotel chef Neil Baker was put in touch with Mr Carter when he won €1.9 million on the national lottery in February last year, and says his advice was invaluable.

He handed in his notice 24 hours after scooping the jackpot and hasn’t looked back.

“I play a little bit of rugby, I quite enjoy going out fishing. It’s just nice just to do what you want, when you want,” he said.

“They don’t just turn up and say here’s a cheque, off you go, have a nice life. I think they’ve learned that you can’t just drop an amount of money in someone’s lap like that,” he said.

But Mr Baker is aware of the need to be careful with his winnings if he wants his life of leisure to last, and is full of praise for the support he received from Mr Carter and his colleagues at Camelot.

“I think sometimes you can win too much on the lottery – you’ve got more money than you’re ever going to need,” Mr Baker says.

The case of Michael Carroll, a former rubbish collector who won €12 million a decade ago, offers a cautionary tale.

Then aged just 19, he bought a mansion where he held lavish parties and set up a demolition race track in the garden but he also developed a drugs habit, had several run-ins with the police, and now lives on welfare handouts.