Did Charles Ingram keep his Who Wants To Be A Millionaire winnings?
16 April 2020, 11:54
What happened to Charles Ingram's Who Wants To Be A Millionaire winnings? Here's what we know...
Charles Ingram and the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire ‘coughing’ scandal are now firmly back in the spotlight thanks to ITV drama Quiz.
The three-part series tells the story of Major Charles who was accused of cheating his way to the jackpot with his wife Diana and college lecturer Tecwen Whittock.
After suspicions surfaced that Tecwen and Diana had coughed to indicate the right answers, an investigation was swiftly launched by ITV.
But what happened to Charles Ingram's winnings on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? Find out everything…
Did Charles Ingram keep his Who Wants To Be A Millionaire winnings?
Charles Ingram did not get to cash the £1million he won - as the cheque was de-authorised.
The sound technicians at ITV raised concerns about tactical coughing before Charles won the final question.
However, producer and head of Celador Paul Smith refused to stop filming until the contestant had finished his round in the chair.
After Charles answered the 15th question correctly and won the £1million, host Chris Tarrant handed him a cheque, however this was then held for eight days to be processed.
Following an investigation into the ‘coughs’ with Who Wants To Be A Millionaire creator David Briggs, Paul Smith called the police and de-authorised payment of the cheque.
However, Charles’ wife Diana previously won £32,000 on the show the year before after she getting her £64,000 question wrong, while his brother in law Adrian Pollock also took home £32,000.
After being found guilty of execution of a valuable security by deception, the couple handed a suspended sentence and each fined £15,000 and ordered to pay £10,000 towards prosecution costs, which was later increased to £65,000.
After being kicked out of the army, Charles has since been declared bankrupt four times, and the family now live in Bath.
They reportedly sell jewellery made by Diana at market stalls and were spotted selling the homemade pieces in Bath late last year.
Now Read: Quiz: How many people have won Who Wants to be a Millionaire? And where are they now?
