A woman won millions in the lottery 30 years ago, yet she still works at a supermarket. (Photo)

68-year-old Elaine Thompson from Newcastle (UK) won £2.7 million in the lottery nearly 30 years ago. This jackpot changed the life of the woman and her family, but now she has returned to work. This is reported by the Daily Star.

Elaine and her husband Derek, who worked as an accountant, regularly tried their luck using numbers chosen from significant dates in their lives—birthdays and anniversaries.

On their 17th wedding anniversary (December 9), Newcastle United was playing against Chelsea, so Derek went to London to meet friends and watch the match. "Don't forget to buy a ticket!" Mrs. Thompson reminded her husband.

As it turned out, those words determined their future. When the woman checked her numbers on the ticket (5, 11, 12, 26, 29, 33) against the official lottery results, she initially couldn't believe her eyes. Upon hearing about the jackpot win, Derek thought he was being "pranked," but after verifying it himself, he realized it was true.

"We went to bed, but our minds wouldn’t let us rest. We woke up at 4 a.m. Since someone leaked news of the win to the press, we had to give interviews," the couple recalls.

The pair spent the money to buy an abandoned guesthouse in Lyme Regis, transforming it into a 5-star holiday cottage. Additionally, they launched a charitable project and sent families battling cancer on vacation. Later, the Thompsons sold the hotel and bought the restaurant By The Bay, managing it for six years.

"Eventually, we decided it was time to return home—to the northeast. I continued working at a supermarket, although we had enough money—so it wasn’t for earning. I just enjoyed the social aspect and routine. Yes, I know people don’t expect that from a lottery winner," Elaine shares.

Derek also still works, but when he retires, he dreams of traveling around Europe. The couple raised a daughter and a son, 39-year-old Karen and 34-year-old Gary.

Meanwhile, 57-year-old Philip from Washington, D.C. (USA) guessed all five numbers on two Lucky for Life lottery tickets and hit the million-dollar jackpot. However, the man accidentally lost one of the winning tickets worth $500,000.