£33m Lottery prize awaits owner

Someone in the UK is now £33 million richer thanks to Saturday's record Lotto jackpot - but no-one knows who or where they are.

It can be safely assumed that the person - or people - who bought the second winning ticket did so at a shop rather than from the website, as those with an online account would have received an email informing them of the good news and urging them to log in as quickly as possible.

Once two weeks have passed since the draw - considered a reasonable time for the winner to have checked their ticket and lodged a claim - Camelot will release details of the area where the ticket was bought.

But the clock is already ticking, as the winner has 180 days from the date of the draw to claim the prize.

A Camelot spokesman said there could be "a million reasons" why the winner has not come forward yet.

"A lot of times, the winner will tell us they just didn't get around to checking the ticket, usually because of some event like moving house, going on holiday...

"But this particular situation is highly unusual because there was so much hype and excitement around this particular draw. Whoever it is has gone into a shop and paid their money knowing the amount at stake."

A number of rumours about the location of the winner have already surfaced, including one that the ticket was bought at a Morrisons branch in Bolton.

This is not the only unclaimed prize currently awaiting its owner.

A list on the National Lottery website shows there are nine £1 million cheques waiting for Lotto and EuroMillions winners to come forward, as well as luxury holidays and various other significant amounts of money.

But for now, all attention is on whether the winner of Saturday's remaining £33 million will come forward, or if the ticket will lie forgotten and the money ends up going to National Lottery projects.

The Camelot spokesman said: "There's someone out there somewhere in the UK who has won £33 million. That's all we know."