Saturday night’s National Lottery Lotto draw, already hyped for its quadruple rollover jackpot of £10.5 million, took an unexpected turn on October 25, 2025, when a technical glitch brought the live broadcast to a screeching halt. For thousands of hopeful punters across the UK, what should have been a routine draw quickly spiraled into confusion, frustration, and a long night of waiting for results that, for a while, seemed as elusive as the jackpot itself.
The drama began at 8pm, the usual time for the Lotto draw’s livestream on the National Lottery’s official website and YouTube channel. The atmosphere was tense with anticipation, as the quadruple rollover meant the jackpot was the largest in weeks. The first six numbers—04, 09, 28, 40, 42, and 59—were drawn without a hitch, but then, just as the Bonus Ball was set to drop, the broadcast abruptly cut out. A stark message flashed on the screen: “Due to a technical fault we cannot stream this live draw. Please check National-Lottery.co.uk later for the draw results.”
As reported by BBC, the issue stemmed from the Bonus Ball failing to drop from the draw machine—a rare but not entirely unprecedented occurrence. The operator, Allwyn, quickly issued a statement: “Due to the bonus ball not dropping during tonight’s Lotto draw, we have paused the draw. It will resume as soon as possible with an alternative draw machine and under the supervision of an independent adjudicator. We expect to complete tonight’s Lotto draw and publish the verified results on national-lottery.co.uk later this evening and apologise for the delay.”
The technical fault didn’t just affect the Lotto draw. The Thunderball draw, which typically follows at 8:15pm, was delayed by about 15 to 20 minutes, finally airing at 8:35pm. The winning Thunderball numbers—09, 11, 13, 28, 34, with the Thunderball itself being 13—were eventually confirmed, but not before more than 200 people reported outages and issues on Downdetector, a popular online fault reporting service. According to Manchester Evening News, users flocked to social media and outage trackers, voicing their irritation and confusion as the night wore on.
For many, the delay was more than a minor inconvenience. The National Lottery’s YouTube stream became unavailable for the rest of the evening, and ticketholders were left in limbo, unable to check their numbers or celebrate a potential windfall. As Daily Mail recounted, frustrated players took to X (formerly Twitter) to air their grievances. “Here we go again another lottery draw another technical fault this is happening nearly every draw and is totally unacceptable,” one user complained. Another quipped, “The way my luck is, I bet the National Lottery draw that has been delayed is because it drew my numbers out.”
Behind the scenes, Allwyn scrambled to rectify the issue. The company, which took over the National Lottery operation in January 2024 after Camelot’s 30-year run, was keenly aware of the stakes—not just the £10.5 million on the line, but the trust of millions of players. Allwyn is an international operator owned by Czech oil and gas magnate Karel Komarek, and has continued to oversee the draws from Camelot’s former offices. Their swift response, including the use of an alternative draw machine and oversight by an independent adjudicator, was intended to reassure players of the draw’s integrity.
By just after 10:45pm, nearly three hours after the original broadcast cut out, the verified Lotto results were finally published. The six main numbers remained as initially drawn: 04, 09, 28, 40, 42, 59, and the Bonus Ball was confirmed as 55. The outcome, however, was bittersweet for many. No ticket-holder matched all six main numbers to scoop the top prize. One player did manage to match five numbers plus the Bonus Ball, claiming a £1 million windfall. Additionally, 82 players matched five numbers, each winning £1,750. In the related Lotto HotPicks game, three players matched four numbers to win £13,000 apiece, though no one matched all five numbers for the top prize.
The Thunderball draw, despite its own delay, also failed to produce a jackpot winner. No player matched all five numbers plus the Thunderball to claim the £500,000 top prize, but three lucky participants did win £5,000 each for matching five numbers. According to Sky News, the technical issues were reminiscent of another recent incident: the EuroMillions draw had suffered a similar glitch just weeks earlier, on October 10, 2025. For some, this pattern of faults has sparked concern about the reliability of the live draw system under Allwyn’s stewardship.
Allwyn’s repeated apologies throughout the evening did little to placate some of the more vocal critics. On Facebook and X, players questioned the frequency of technical problems and demanded greater transparency. “During the Live lottery, a technical difficulty has occurred resulting in the results being drawn later, I apologise for the inconvenience but I'll be posting the results as soon as they are posted by the National lottery,” one Facebook user wrote, echoing the sentiments of many.
Despite the disruption, the National Lottery’s protocols for draw integrity appeared robust. The use of an alternative machine and independent adjudication meant that, ultimately, the outcome could be trusted. Yet, the incident has highlighted the challenges of maintaining public confidence in an era where technical glitches can instantly go viral and shake faith in national institutions.
With no jackpot winner on Saturday, attention now turns to Wednesday’s upcoming “Must Be Won” draw, where the estimated jackpot will climb to £12.3 million. Should that draw also fail to produce a winner, a rolldown will occur, distributing the prize pot among those matching two or more numbers. For now, though, the saga of Saturday’s halted Lotto draw serves as a reminder that even the most well-oiled machines can falter—and that, in the world of lotteries, suspense sometimes comes in forms no one expects.
As the dust settles, players and operators alike are left to reflect on the night technical fate intervened, turning a routine ritual into a national talking point and, for a few lucky winners, a life-changing event.
