Inside reclusive life of lotto winner dubbed ‘Rollover Romeo’ who shunned fame after splurging £11m fortune on supercars
HE was once dubbed ‘rollover Romeo’ thanks to his devilish good looks and a £11million lotto win to boot.
Now 27 years on, jackpot winner Karl Crompton, 50, is barely recognisable from his former self.
Now boasting bedraggled grey locks, the Lotto winner made a rare outing with friends to a golf club near Preston, Lancashire.
Considering his scruffy appearance, recent divorce and – of late – reclusive lifestyle, it would be easy to think Karl likely frittered away his millions since winning the jackpot in 1996.
In fact, through savvy investments he has doubled his lotto wealth to head up a £22million property empire.
But his shaggy beard and tangled locks show he’s left his eligible bachelor days long behind him.
£100-a-week job before jackpot
Back in 1996, Karl was living in his parents’ three-bed home, just five miles from Blackpool.
At the time, the 23-year-old was making £100 a week as a trainee at electrical shop Comet.
But when his family urged him to buy a Lotto Rollover ticket, he had no idea how his life would change.
He told the Sunday Mirror: “My mum and dad and brother helped pick some numbers then I went out with my pals.
“The next morning, I came downstairs to the kitchen and my mum said, ‘You’re looking at a lottery winner. I’ve got four numbers and got £96 or something’.
“So I looked at the numbers and my ticket. Even when Camelot later confirmed the numbers, I couldn’t believe I’d won.
“It was £10,903,198 – a half share of the full Lotto rollover prize.”
After his win, Karl went on a £3.5million shopping spree, buying a Bucatto motorbike, a Ferrari and a Porsche as well as luxury holidays.
He also splashed out £2million building a gothic mansion for himself in Elswick, Lancs.
Violent past emerges
He enjoyed showing up snobby salesmen with his big ticket purchases.
He told the Mirror in 2009: “Once I was sitting in a Bentley in a showroom when the salesman came over, looked me up and down and told me, ‘that car is sold’.
“I went, ‘Oh sorry’, and got out.
“Then I said, ‘I’m just waiting for the salesman to bring me the Ferrari that was here because I’ve just bought it’.
“You should have seen his face.”
But Karl’s new found fame came back to bite him when a bodily harm conviction from his teens was uncovered.
He had spent nine months behind bars in 1993 after attacking another teen with a pint glass at a Blackpool pub.
Speaking to The Sun, his victim Jason Edwards lashed out: “It’s obscene that this man is swanning around London drinking champagne, pretending he is whiter than white.”
Karl’s grandfather Ben Crompton retorted: “Karl served his time and was very sorry for what he did.
“He changed a lot after that happened. It was just one of those things that can happen in pubs when you are with a bunch of friends.”
Undeterred by his chequered past, beauties across the country were throwing themselves at Karl and he was even dubbed ‘Britain’s most eligible bachelor’.
Lancashire travel agent Alison Postle told the Mirror she had missed her chance with Karl after they enjoyed a canoodle before his Lotto win.
She told The Sun: “I just screamed when I saw Karl’s face on television and heard he had won the jackpot.
“I didn’t go out with him because of my boyfriend, but shortly afterwards I split up with him. To say this is a sickener is an understatement.
“If I had gone out with Karl who knows where I might be now? I could have been at his side when he collected the money.”
Making savvy investments
But Karl confessed his heart belonged to one woman only – his high school sweetheart Nicole Roach.
He told The Times: “I don’t have a girlfriend. There is one I would like to go out with but I don’t think her boyfriend would be keen.”
Luckily for Karl, nurse Nicole broke things off with her boyfriend and the pair wed in 2006 with no pre nup agreement.
They soon had two children Ethan and Jenson and with family life Karl soon began to calm down.
Together, the family invested in nine buy-to-let properties in Lancashire and Canada, gaining a steady income.
He said of family life: “You could say I’ve been there, done that.
“Now I’m happy just to wear the T-shirt.
“’I’ve got a Golf and people keep asking ask me, ‘Why haven’t you got a Ferrari?’
“But that’s just not me anymore. I’m married with two kids and I’ve got everything I want.”
But in 2020, the pair split as Nicole was spotted without her wedding ring. Without a pre-nup his ex-wife could be entitled to half his £22million fortune.
And lately, the millionaire has dropped hints he’s intending to leave the country.
He tweeted in January: “This country is f*****d could be time to move.”