Thunderball: Sheffield local 'Mrs. H' lands £500,000 top prize in National Lottery

A mystery Sheffield woman, known only as Mrs. H, has taken home £500,000 after winning the top prize at the National Lottery Thunderball.

The anonymous winner scooped the life-changing payday in the draw on December 9 after splitting the jackpot with 'Mrs. C' from Kent.

National Lottery say the first thing the lucky winner splashed out on was a trip for her and her friends. She also plans to buy a new car and go on holiday somewhere 'hot and exotic'.

The Sheffield local, who played a Lucky Dip selection, continues the lucky streak of lottery winners that seems to stem from Sheffield, with at least 70 new millionaires stepping forward since 1994.

Andy Carter, Senior Winners’ Advisor at The National Lottery, said: "Huge congratulations to Mrs. H for winning this fantastic prize. She has become half a million pounds richer overnight and it seems that she already has half a million plans on how she is going to spend the life-changing amount."

The best-known Sheffield winners are the astoundingly generous Ray and Barbara Wragg, who won £7.6million in 2000 and gave away more than £5m of it to friends, family and charities.

Sadly, Barbara passed away in 2018 aged 77 – ever since, husband Ray has been fulfilling his wife’s wishes for him to live life to the fullest with their winnings.

Mr Wragg recounted what it was like to break the news to his boss the day after his win in 2000, saying: “When I told him I'd had a win, he said: 'That reminds me, I need to check my ticket.' I said 'don't bother Dave - I won the lot'.”

Latest Thunderball numbers

The latest Thunderball winning numbers from Wednesday, January 3, were 01, 02, 16, 29, 32, with the Thunderball being 03.

The next prize draw is tonight (January 5) with a £500,000 prize jackpot.

Players who win big are given the option to go public with their winnings or only release a few details and remain partially anonymous.

‘Mrs H’ won their £500,000 prize through a lucky dip, where the numbers are picked at random.