Britain's richest WhatsApp group: How some of the UK's biggest National Lottery winners have a community sharing holiday snaps and discussing how to spend their money

By MARK DUELL, DEPUTY CHIEF REPORTER (DIGITAL) Published: 00:02, 4 August 2026 | Updated: 00:11, 4 August 2026 If you're ever lucky enough to scoop millions of pounds on the National Lottery, it's highly unlikely that you'll know anyone with a similar experience. But a secret WhatsApp group has become a haven for winners to discuss their good fortune and help each other come to terms with their sudden wealth. Some of the UK's richest people have set up the community where they share holiday photos and discuss how to spend their money on charitable projects. Andy Carter, the National Lottery's 'fixer' who has helped guide more than 2,500 winners, says the group is a key way for winners to get support from each other. Speaking about the experience of someone who has scooped a big prize, he tells the Daily Mail that they get plenty of help and advice from lottery operators Allwyn UK. Those who chose publicity have a team looking after them to ensure they have a 'good day and lots of keepsakes', such as champagne glasses from the photoshoot. But he adds: 'Actually, you are on your own. You probably don't know someone else who's won. There's a community of winners, so they get introduced to each other. 'There's events where they go off and do stuff together and actually friendships are forged because they're able to say, 'well, what did you feel like when you won'?' One team of National Lottery millionaires hosted a lunch with volunteers and service users of Cegin Hedyn, a community kitchen in Carmarthen, south-west Wales Andy explains that the winners can share details - although the group is only open to those who have gone public, otherwise they can risk blowing their cover. He adds: 'When they get to the stage where they're doing more luxurious stuff, they are able to share that with other people who are also able to do the same. 'So you don't feel bad about saying "well, actually do you know, I've just taken my lot off to…" And they'll say "oh, well done." So there is this real community.' Andy is a married father-of-two who lives in Cardiff and has spent 20 years advising winners how to manage a total of £4billion worth of sudden wealth. He adds that the community of winners is 'one of the most valuable things we do'. Asked what is discussed within the group, he reveals: 'I think a lot of it is sharing, supportive - first of all welcoming and congratulating people, telling people about a lot of the good stuff they do around charity. 'Also it is sharing the holiday pictures, it is saying, have you been here? It is saying have you tried this? 'It's sudden wealth. Remember, that's a different sort of wealth, it's different from inherited wealth, or if you've built up a business and you sell it.' Another group of National Lottery winners gave a 'millionaire makeover' to a garden used by pre-school children at Sacrewell Farm near Peterborough He adds that many ask 'why was it me' while they are 'trying to sort of work out' how their life might change. Andy also says: 'You don't have to change your life or you can change the bits you want to change.  'You don't have to change at all. You can change at your pace. It doesn't matter.' He adds that while the group provides a 'support mechanism' for winners, something that is never discussed is how much money they have been given. Andy explains: 'What's great is when they all come together from what I can see, the numbers are never discussed.  'So if you put someone in a room who's won £1million and £10million and £20million, they've all got the same wacky experience.' Because everyone in the group has already gone public, Andy says this community is cited as one of the main benefits of 'taking the plaster off' and ending anonymity. Andy Carter is the National Lottery's 'fixer', an adviser who has helped guide 2,500 winners The lottery operates wellbeing courses to try to help people manage their win, but Andy says he also advises people to keep communicating with other winners.  He also says people in the group discuss causes they are passionate about and organise meet-ups where they volunteer on charitable projects together. Recent examples have included a team giving a 'millionaire makeover' to a garden used by pre-school children at Sacrewell Farm near Peterborough. Another saw a team of millionaires host a lunch with volunteers and service users of Cegin Hedyn, a community kitchen in Carmarthen, south-west Wales. Andy says winners who have gone public have a 'sense of camaraderie' through this 'community of winners which is really, really nice'. He adds: 'If you have won the lottery, the best thing you can do is go and have a cup of tea with someone else who has won.' It comes as the UK version of the world's biggest jackpot game Powerball launched last month with the chance to win more than £390million after a series of rollovers. The National Lottery's game sees UK players pay £4 per line to compete with their US counterparts to win shared jackpots. Players select five white numbers from 1 to 69 and one red Powerball number from 1 to 26. To win the jackpot, players must match all six drawn numbers.