Hilary's big cash giveaway on TV show
9:56am Wednesday 10th September 2008 in News
SECRET LADY: Hilary Devey working as a barmaid in the Channel 4 programme
A SECRET millionaire who donated tens of thousands of pounds to worthy causes on a hit television programme has spoken of her time on the show.
Hilary Devey lived in Bolton until she was 21, when she left to make her fortune in the haulage industry. She appeared in Channel 4’s The Secret Millionaire on Tuesday night.
She heads a company with a £100 million turnover and spent time on one of the region’s most notorious housing estates while the television cameras rolled.
Divorcee Hilary, aged 51, who grew up in Tonge Moor, was sent to Rochdale in June. She worked as a barmaid and volunteered with different organisations.
She said: “I was put in a council flat in the Falinge estate in Rochdale just a few days after it was named by GMTV as the worst council estate in all of England, with 80 per cent of people on benefits.
“But it didn’t phase me. I have had tough times in my life.”
Her son, Mev, aged 22, was addicted to heroin for five years so she wanted to find a project which helped youngsters caught up with drugs.
She found The Back Door Project, which works to get young people off the streets and turns their attention to music. She gave the project £60,000 to fund a manager for three years and £10,000 for a new kitchen.
Hilary also handed £62,000 to the Syke Community Centre, which recently lost its funding, plus £2,000 for the hard-working volunteer manager to enjoy a holiday, and £2,000 to a cash-strapped football team for a new pitch.
Hilary ended up giving away a total of £136,000, more than double what she intended.
She said: “The projects I worked with all struck a chord with me and I knew I had to help them.”
Hilary has stayed in touch with the groups she worked with and was delighted when one sent her a card recently.
She said: “Every single one of the kids in the youth group signed it. That made it all worthwhile.
“That was better than receiving £10 million.”
