A RETIRED couple from Largs are "tickled pink" to have become Europe's biggest ever lottery winners with a jackpot of more than £161 million.

Colin and Chris Weir uncorked the champagne yesterday after they realised that they had won the record-breaking payout as they went to bed at around midnight on Tuesday.

The couple -- who live in a three-bedroom detached house in the Ayrshire seaside town -- yesterday claimed that they checked their ticket four or five times each before finally accepting that they had won.

Teetotal Mrs Weir, 55, a former NHS psychiatric nurse, said that they were so shocked that they opened a bottle of wine to calm their nerves.

The pair, who have a daughter aged 24 and a son aged 22, now plan to buy homes for their children and then go on a luxury holiday with their winnings.

Mr Weir, 64, also plans to buy a sponsor’s box for his favourite football team, Barcelona.

On discovering their win, the couple revealed that they had an agonising wait until the next morning to call Camelot to claim their prize.

Mrs Weir said: “We had bought five lucky dips as the jackpot was now so big. I started circling the numbers I had matched but wasn’t doing very well.

“Then on the fifth line, all the circles seemed to join up. I had all of them but couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I checked it about four times before going downstairs to find Colin.

“I said to him ‘I need you to check something for me’. He knew immediately by my face and tone that something was up. After checking many times together, the news gradually hit us. The Camelot line was closed for the night but we couldn’t sleep. We were just so buzzed and full of adrenalin.

“We just sat there and spoke to each other about how absolutely amazing this was, we were tickled pink, we just couldn’t believe it.”

The couple, who both walk with the aid of sticks, took part in a press conference at a Falkirk hotel. Every 30 minutes they pocket £188 in interest and will earn around £3.3m a year from their savings.

They are almost as rich as the Beckhams in the Sunday Times Rich List.

When asked how he felt about that, Mr Weir, 64, a former cameraman for STV, replied: “We’ll need to start trying for another kid.” Mrs Weir added: “It’s too late for that.”

The couple said that they plan to relax and take their time to decide how they will spend their winnings but indicated that they want to set up a charitable trust with some of the cash.

Mrs Weir said: “We want to take time to think about how we can do some good with the money.”

But the pair added that their priority is making sure that their daughter Carly and son Jamie are taken care of.

Mrs Weir said: “Neither of them drive because they can’t afford cars so driving lessons and suitable cars are a big priority for them.”

She said “good looking” Jamie is likely to give up his job in a call centre after becoming Scotland’s most eligible bachelor, but Carly plans to continue her photography studies.

Mr Weir added: “I would like to go to Australia and see just what’s so spiritual about Ayers rock ... also Cambodia and Thailand.”

But Mr Weir, who supports both Partick Thistle and Ayrshire junior football side Largs Thistle, plans to buy a box at the home of the European champions, the glamorous Nou Camp stadium.

However, Mr Weir said he won’t swap the couple’s two Suzuki cars for a Ferrari.

But his shocked wife retorted: “I’ll be swapping my car.”

The win represents a dramatic change in fortunes.

Mr Weir quit his job around 20 years ago to care for Chris after she suffered serious health problems.

“He looked after me and helped me to get back to work,” she added.

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