Judith Keppel - wikipedia Judith Keppel Judith Keppel Judith Cynthia Aline Keppel ( 1942 - 08 - 18 ) 18 August 1942 ( age 75 ) Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, England Known for First winner of the British television game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire ?, Eggheads Spouse ( s ) Desmond Leon Corcoran ( 1964 -- 80 ) ( divorced ) Neil Shand ( 1985 -- 87 ) ( separated ) Children Sibylla Monacella Corcoran ( born 1966 ) Alexander Martin Desmond Corcoran ( born 1968 ) Aline Rose Corcoran ( born 1972 ) Parent ( s ) Walter Arnold Crispin Keppel ( father ) Relatives Arnold Keppel, 8th Earl of Albemarle ( great - grandfather ) Walter, 9th Earl of Albemarle ( grandfather ) Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall ( third cousin ) Judith Cynthia Aline Keppel ( born 18 August 1942 ) was the first one - million - pound winner on the television game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire ? in the United Kingdom. She is also the only woman in the United Kingdom to have won it and also the first person to win a million pounds or more on a British television game show. She has appeared on the BBC Two quiz show Eggheads since 2003. Contents 1 Personal life 2 Who Wants to Be a Millionaire ? 3 References 4 External links Personal life Keppel 's father Hon Walter Arnold Crispian Keppel ( 1914 -- 1996 ) was a lieutenant commander in the Fleet Air Arm, who moved with the family to various naval postings around Britain until they settled in London when she was 17. She took A-levels at St Mary 's School, Wantage, and completed a secretarial course, and married her first husband Desmond Corcoran, an art dealer. The couple went on to have three children, Sibylla, Alexander, and Rosie, but divorced in 1980. In 1985 she married comedy script writer Neil Shand. They separated in 1987. Keppel is the granddaughter of Walter, 9th Earl of Albemarle. Her great - grandfather, the 8th Earl, was brother - in - law of Alice Keppel, the mistress of King Edward VII, and was the great - granduncle of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. The Duchess of Cornwall is therefore her third cousin. Through the noble lineage of her aforementioned grandfather, her ancestry can be traced back to Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II of England, who were the subjects of her million - pound question on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire ?. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire ? £ 1 million ( 15 of 15 ) Which King was married to Eleanor of Aquitaine ? A : Henry I B : Henry II C : Richard I D: Henry V Keppel 's £ 1 million question Keppel appeared on the 20 November 2000 episode of the UK edition of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire ?, becoming the 12th winner in the world and the first in the UK to win one million pounds. At the time, she was a garden designer living in Fulham and was `` struggling for money ''. Nonetheless, she had spent about 100 pounds phoning the quiz show more than 50 times to secure a place. `` BT rang me up and said, ' Do you realise your telephone bills are rising ? ' '' There was speculation at the time that the win was leaked to the press so that ITV would draw ratings away from BBC One which was showing the last episode of One Foot in the Grave in the same timeslot. However, the Independent Television Commission cleared Celador and ITV of the allegations. Keppel now appears on the BBC Two quiz show Eggheads, where she and four other quiz champions are pitted against members of the public. References Jump up ^ ' West Midlands ' county did not exist prior to 1st April 1974. ' Staffordshire ' is correct Jump up ^ Charles Mosley ( ed. ), Burke 's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage ( London : Burke 's Peerage, 1999 ) Jump up ^ http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/233b6186-52c8-11e3-8586-00144feabdc0.html#axzz4115VmSpl Jump up ^ Woods, Judith ( 4 August 2001 ). `` Thank God, I do n't have to move to France ''. The Daily Telegraph. London. Jump up ^ Sir William Coutts Keppel, 7th Earl of Albemarle thePeerage.com Jump up ^ `` My secret to winning Who Wants to Be a Millionaire ? Being single ''. Daily Telegraph. 31 January 2014. Retrieved 11 August 2017. Jump up ^ `` Cool, calm, and collector of quiz show 's first million : But first the adverts as viewers wait for response to the final question ''. Herald Scotland. 21 November 2000. Retrieved 4 July 2015. Jump up ^ `` Millionaire ? cleared of ratings ' fix ' ''. BBC News. 15 January 2001. Retrieved 28 January 2007. External links Preceded by First winner Top prize winner on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire ? ( UK ) 20 November 2000 Succeeded by David Edwards Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Judith_Keppel&oldid=800263479 '' Categories : 1942 births Contestants on British game shows Living people People from Fulham Keppel family People educated at Heathfield School, Ascot People of United Empire Loyalist descent Hidden categories : Articles with hCards Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 12 September 2017, at 12 : 34. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: who was the first woman to win who wants to be a millionaire
Answer: Judith Cynthia Aline Keppel; Judith Cynthia Aline Keppel; Judith Cynthia Aline Keppel