ONE OF Britain’s youngest lottery winners has been found dead at his home after apparently becoming a recluse in his secluded cottage in the countryside.
Stuart Donnelly (29), then a trainee pharmacist, toasted his lottery win of more than £1.9 million (€2.11 million) with Coca-Cola in 1997 because at 17 he was too young to share his parents’ champagne.
He was found dead on Tuesday by a relative in the bungalow at Buittle Bridge, near Castle Douglas, Dumfries and Galloway, that he bought with his winnings and initially shared with relatives including his father, Danny, who had polio.
He is thought to have died from natural causes. The police said a postmortem examination was being carried out, and added: “Early investigations suggest that there are no suspicious circumstances.”
Donnelly was one of 13 people to share the £25 million (€27.81 million) jackpot in November 1997. He quickly became known for his generosity.
He gave £15,000 (€16,680) to Yorkhill hospital in Glasgow, where his younger brother, Shaun, was being treated for a rare blood disorder, and gave money to aunts and uncles.
At the time of his win, Donnelly, formerly from Neilston, Renfrewshire, was the main breadwinner for his immediate family and helped to care for his father. He spent £600,000 (€673,800) on buying homes for his father and mother, May, who were divorced.
Reportedly he also bought holiday properties for his family in Thailand, where he had his first foreign holiday on the winnings.
Donnelly was little known in Castle Douglas and, despite sharing his bungalow with his father, another relative and two friends over the years, he had recently been living alone. His father died of a heart attack on holiday some years ago.
He admitted on his Bebo website page that he rarely left his home, which he had fitted with luxury items including a full-size snooker table. He listed his pastimes as “sleeping, watching TV, listening to music, surfing the net. Basically, anything that involves not leaving the house.”
In 2003, Donnelly said winning the lottery had put him and his family under great pressure.
“It was very hard to deal with all the attention I got,” he said. “I even had people camping outside my house. It put a huge strain on me and my family.” – (Guardian service)