Inside downfall of ‘Britain’s meanest man’ who won £5m on Lotto but ended up in DEBT and claiming benefits
A LOTTERY winner branded ‘Britain’s meanest man’ won a £5million jackpot – only to end up in debt and claiming benefits.
Retired Royal Artillery gunner Pete Kyle, 70, from Plymouth, guessed all six numbers right to win £5,122,412 in the Lotto draw on January 29, 2005.
The winning numbers he chose when he bought the ticket in his local Co-op were the same ones he had selected every weeks for years.
Pete promised to “change” his family’s life – before splashing out on a five-bedroom mansion boasting a steam room, bar, pool and garage filled with top-of-the-range cars.
The Mail reported at the time that Pete, born into a family of 15, reportedly refused to help his siblings Jean, Carol, David, and Steven – all of whom suffered from incurable Huntingdon’s Disease.
His alleged tight-fistedness led some to brand him “Britain’s meanest man”.
Just three years later he lost the pad and was forced to move into – and work at – a £15-a-night hotel in Plymouth sandwiched between a sex shop and a tattoo parlour.
Before winning the lottery, Pete lived off an army pension while suffering from a bad knee.
He claimed that his win fulfilled the prophecy of a gypsy woman – who, when he was 16, foretold from a palm reading that he would come into money late in life.
When Pete first won the National Lottery jackpot, he said: “I’ve always had a bit of luck of the Irish.
“I won’t want for anything any more. I’ve always had nought but now everything’s going to change. All our lives are going to change.”
Pete said his main priority would be to secure the future for his two children Gemma and Roy – as well as treating them both to holidays.
But he immediately began squandering £4,600 a day and treated himself to a new fishing boat and some tackle.
He also installed a snooker room and jackpot in his luxurious mansion – and reportedly gave away expensive boats for just one pound.
The Sun revealed how Pete spent £550,000 on the house in Derriford, £40,000 on a Mercedes, £40,000 on a Range Rover and another £20,000 on a 4×4.
But his lavish lifestyle soon caught up with him and just three years later, the house was reportedly repossessed.
Its new owner became fed up with bailiffs arriving to demand that Pete repay bills for £370,000 in debt.
His friends claimed he lost his money in a series of unsuccessful investments – but Pete hasn’t been seen in the area since 2008 and is said to have moved to Spain.