Who Wants To Be A Millionaire Winners: Where Are They Now?

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire winners are undoubtedly among the luckiest participants of a TV show.  The British series just celebrated its 20^th anniversary in 2018.

What makes this show so interesting is that no one can never know what is going to happen. For example, not every participant manages to win the coveted sum that is, as you can imagine, £1 million. Several people have tried to win the top prize, including the Top Gear star Jeremy Clarkson.

So far, in the UK, only five lucky and smart people have reached and solved the last questions. Can you remember their names and their stories? They made the story of the British television, together with other stars, like Minty from Eastenders. Let’s see what are they up to now, and how money has changed their life.

Judith Keppel: The First Winner (2000)

Judith officially became the first Who Wants To Be A Millionaire winner. She won the show’s jackpot two years after its launch. This crucial moment of the British television happened in 2000, and it broke other records as well. In fact, Judith was the first person winning £1 million on a British TV show, and so far, she has been the first and only woman who managed to do that.

Besides, she allegedly is Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall’s third cousin. What makes this story even more interesting is that her million pound question was about the Royal Family.

Judith is now taking part in other TV shows. For example, she is one of the elite team on BBC show Eggheads.

Image Source/ Birmingham Mail

David Edwards (2001)

David Edwards managed to become one of the show’s winners only six months after Judith did. In fact, this physics teacher from South Wales won in 2001.

He answered the final question entirely on his own since he had already used up all the three lifelines. However, this wasn’t the first time when David won money on a TV show. A decade before Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, precisely in 1990, he was crowned Mastermind champion. In 2001, he also took part in two quiz shows, Are you an Egghead? And Make me an Egghead, but without winning any money.

Image Source/ Youtube

David Edwards, the first man to win the show, participated in a special edition of Make me an Egghead in September 2016. He is now an active member of the Welsh National Quiz Team, and he even ended up at the European Championships with his squad.

It is also interesting to mention that David’s son, Richard, later competed in the same show and won “only” £125,000.

Robert Brydges

In 2001, there were two millionaires who reached the jackpot question. In fact, after David Edwards, Robert Brydges managed to read and answer the last question of the show. However, some viewers complained when he finally bagged the jackpot prize.

Allegedly, people claimed Robert was too rich to deserve not only the price but even to be on the show in the first place. We cannot say if he really had access to much money, but surely his bank account was anything like Mark Wright’s net worth! On the other hand, he won without any help and officially became the third of the British Who Wants To Be A Millionaire winners.

No one really knows what Robert did with his money. Nevertheless, he was director of investment for a broker firm and the vice president of a US bank. In other words, it is easy to assume that he decided to invest his money.

Pat Gibson (2004)

British viewers waited until 2004 to meet the next millionaire. This time, the lucky man was Pat Gibson, from Northern Ireland.

His journey to the jackpot left the public speechless. He managed to arrive at the last question and even give the correct answer with two of his lifelines still available. This was the first time that something like this happened to any of the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire participants.

Image Source/ Youtube

He first used the 50:50 to reduce the chances to pick the wrong answer. Then, he used the Phone-a-Friend to seek help from one of his friends, who was a quizzing champion himself.

The question was:

“Which of these is not one of the American Triple Crown horse races?”

The correct answer was: Arlington Million.

After his millionaire win, Pat has played an essential role in other TV shows, such as Mastermind Champions and Brain of Britain. He is now one of the expert team on BBC quiz Eggheads, together with Judith Keppel, the first of the UK Who Wants To Be A Millionaire winners.

Ingram Wilcox (2006)

The last of the UK Who Wants To Be A Millionaire winners appeared on TV in 2006, more than a decade ago. Ingram Wilcox was a civil servant, and a previous illustrator of educational books.

His path to the last question was particularly impressive. He runs out of lifelines at the £32,000 mark, meaning that he had to answer the remaining five questions with no back-up options. Nevertheless, this was not the first time for him to show nerves of steel in a TV show. In fact, he reached the final of Mastermind in 1980, but only came third.

No one knows what he is up to right now, but he may be back to his everyday and happy life with his five children.

The question was:

“Which boxer was famous for striking the gong in the introduction to J. Arthur Rank films?”

The correct answer was: Bombardier Billy Wels.

How Can You Become One Of The Who Wants To Be A Millionaire Winners?

Before you can seat and try to answer all the 15 questions, you need to apply for the game show. You can either call or text a dedicated number or submit your request via the show’s website. In addition, you can take part in one of the casting auditions held at various locations around the UK.

After this, you will officially be one of the contestants. However, there is a further challenge, that is  the “Fastest Finger First” preliminary round. You must thus answer a single question correctly, and do it faster than your opponents.

If you win, you will move on towards the main game, and try your luck with the 15 questions of the show. The next Who Wants To Be A Millionaire winner can be you! After solving the 1 million pound question, you may be as rich as Bugzy Malone!