Married couple who won $216m lottery have split up

Two teachers from the UK who won a multimillion dollar lottery, have now split and are sharing their winnings with new partners.

A couple who vowed to stay “Mr and Mrs boring and normal” after bagging a $216m lottery jackpot have split - and are both now sharing their millions with new lovers.

Teachers Gerry and Lisa Cannings promised they would keep their feet on the ground and not let their huge fortune “change them”.

But the couple are now believed to have divorced and are living in mansions eight miles apart with new lovers they now share their millions with, The Sun reports.

Twice-married ex-history teacher Gerry, 70, is enjoying a champagne-quaffing lifestyle with new love with Samantha Cardell, 55 - a parent at the school where he taught before his win.

They won $216 AUD in prize money. Picture: The Sun

Meanwhile Lisa - now blonde - has found love with football-mad trucker Carl Weaver.

Mum-of-three Sam previously lived in a $1.2 million detached home with her Ford Galaxy-driving accountant ex Andrew, at the end of the country lane where Gerry bought his Lotto mansion.

She is now a named owner of the $3.26m newbuild country mansion she shares with Gerry in Lincolnshire.

Meanwhile, turquoise Porsche-driving Lisa, 55, is still at the $3.26m mansion she bought with Gerry after their 2016 jackpot, now with Carl - who until at least last year was still driving lorries.

A pal said: “Everyone has tried to make out there was this dramatic split with affairs and things - but it couldn’t be further from the truth.

“The reality is Gerry and Lisa split and have both happily found new people to move on with.

“Gerry isn’t known as much of a spender so it’s fantastic he’s found someone to help him enjoy all those millions he’s got in the bank.“

The pair said they’d stay ‘Mr and Mrs boring and normal’ but things have changed. Picture: iStock

Another friend said: “Lisa is enjoying the quiet life with her down-to-earth new man - gardening and going on walks after years of slogging it out as a teacher.”

Documents show how Gerry and Lisa split during lockdown in 2020 - before Lisa resigned from the limited company the family used as their investment vehicle.

Gerry and his two sons from his first marriage remained directors, leaving it unclear what proportion of Gerry’s winnings Lisa was entitled to.

A local farmer, who knows Gerry, said: “Everyone around here knows Gerry is the lottery winner and Samantha is his new partner.

“He’s a decent fella and we’re chuffed for him but a bit envious that he doesn’t need to work.”

One of Lisa’s neighbours said: “We first saw them together in the village pub and I thought ‘Hello, what’s going on here?“

“Good luck to them. They are good neighbours and keep themselves to themselves. It is a lovely, quiet village.”

The former couple now have new partners who they are sharing their winnings with. Picture: The Sun

‘We’re normal’

Another neighbour said: “It’s no secret that Lisa and Carl are together and Gerry and Samantha. I assume Lisa and Gerry are getting divorced now, they split up some time ago.

“Everyone knows the Cannings are the Lotto winners but it does show that winning can destroy people and marriages.”

Speaking at the time of his life-changing win, Gerry, who lived in a $358,000 house, said: “We’re normal, we just do normal things and we want to carry on doing normal things.

“We don’t really worry about things or make a drama. You could say we’re a bit boring like that.”

He said there would be no lavish change in their lifestyle and their son, then aged 11, Sam would have to wait until his birthday four months later to get the Xbox he had always wanted.

The keen golfer, who has two adult sons and five grandchildren added: “We will help them buy houses and make sure they are comfortable, but we don’t want money to take over their lives.“

He told how he had seen a poster advertising the rollover when he went to buy fish and chips on the evening of the draw.

Gerry and Lisa Cannings bagged millions of dollars in a lottery. Now they're separated. Picture: The Sun

‘Won the lottery and the jackpot’

He explained: “I thought, well, why not? So I went and asked for five lucky dips. And one of them turned out to be lucky. It didn’t seem real.”

The couple, who had chosen to go public, had together vowed “to carry on as boringly and normally as we always have.”

They matched all six lucky numbers - 15, 16, 23, 39, 48, and 59 - beating odds of 45 million-to-one to win the jackpot, which was the result of nine consecutive rollovers.

Lisa told how she had sent a text message to all her friends and family saying: “Won the lottery jackpot! Catch us on the news! Speak to you soon! OMG!”

The lottery helped both winners find real love. Picture: iStock

The couple said they would buy a bigger and better home and upgrade their modest cars.

Lisa said “oh no” when approached by The Sun.

Gerry said: “If you are press, no comment. I spoke out at the time. I’ve done my bit.”

Gerry’s first wife Jenny Brown, 68 - who famously once said she would not take him back for £32m - said she now only had contact with Gerry over their grandchildren.

Samantha’s ex Andy declined to comment when approached by The Sun, saying: “I have a divorce going through and if anything came up to jeopardise that it would be wrong.”

He refused to say if he blamed Gerry for his marriage ending, replying: “I’m not answering that at the moment.”

This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission