Would this bother you?

[Grapesontheice]

I’m prepared to be slaughtered and accused of greed but in my shoes would you be annoyed by this…..
At work one of my colleagues decided to sign up for a radio competition to win a huge sum of money. To win the money they were asked a question live on air. They didn’t know the answer but I did so I told them and they won. Colleague is now (obviously!) ecstatic to receive the prize money, everyone congratulated them, requested a round of drinks on them and went back to work. My point is, is it unreasonable for me to be upset I wasn’t thanked or offered any of the prize money?

They wouldn't have won it without you so yes they should give you some.

This should be made into a three-part TV serial

Yes I think if I was your colleague I would have offered money as they would never have wondered had it not been for you.
I would ask them for some for this reason

Oh interesting one! £12k is a lot of money. I'd have maybe given someone £1k as a thank you. I would DEFINITELY have said a massive thank you st the very least! However, in your shoes I wouldn't ask - you're not entitled to anything and it would just make you look grabby. I can see why you're annoyed though.

They won't have received the money the fact you've already moaning about not getting something when they don't have it is appalling They might have waited and given you a cash bonus to say thankyou but you haven't given them the opportunity to do so.

My mum once gave the right answer as the “phone a friend” on who wants to be a millionaire.
She was given some money as a thank you - I have a vague recollection that it was £500. She was happy with this although other people felt she should have been given more (person didn’t become a millionaire but they did win a decent amount).

I used to know a man who was very hot on money and getting what he considered his fair due. He always said that, if he were called as a Phone A Friend and he knew the answer for sure, he would spend the first few seconds striking a deal as to how much he would of the increase in prize money he would get as a direct result of his answer, before giving it! It sounds kind of cut-throat, but thinking about it, I don't really blame him.

They haven’t thanked you because they have no intention of giving you anything.
To thank you, would be to acknowledge your contribution, and they haven’t because they don’t want to share.

Yes, I was thinking exactly the same. Unless they're the unpleasant kind of person who never says thank you if you hold the door for them or pass them something, that's definitely their thinking. If you pushed it and asked for a share, I wouldn't be surprised if they claimed they knew the answer anyway and you 'forced' it on them a nanosecond before they remembered it. They've calculated this carefully and happily used you before deliberately dumping you like a hot turd.

I'm not suggesting that this is what should happen, but I think there's potentially a moral case to treat this that OP was the prize winner - i.e. giving the correct answer that brought in the £12K - and the colleague was OP's 'agent' in setting up and being an (albeit accidental) middleman linking the source of the potential income and the 'work' needed to earn/win it. Therefore, the majority was 'earned' by OP, who should thus get the majority of it, and the colleague should have had 10-15% of it, or whatever the standard agent's fee is!!

Rose - I did update, nothing was said by my colleague and we left for our Christmas break. I won’t see them until 4th January, we don’t have each other’s phone numbers.
banana-I’m ‘moaning’ about the lack of respect, not a wad of cash shoved in my handbag.
I don’t feel I have anything else to add to the thread which is why I haven’t been back, but I appreciate the responses and views.

Ok folks. Think on this possible Mumsnet post - what would your responses be?

“I was next in line to answer a question on a radio programme for £12k winnings. The person before me obviously didn’t know the answer but SUDDENLY shouted out the right answer and WON. I am so pleased. Though it would have been great if I’d have had the chance as I desperately need the money. Oh well. At least that person didn’t cheat.”

You would all be horrified and wanting to contact said Radio Station.

yet this conversation is “how much should the cheating duo share”.

Commercial radio comps can be very lucrative indeed. I once won £1,000 just for answering and saying the necessary phrase to the DJ (I was expecting it as a backroom person called me earlier!) I gave up the prize for a chance to win £1million in a later round.

I wasn't a parent then, so I didn't have the same guilt at turning down a guaranteed grand just before Christmas - most of the parents took the £1,000 to make their kids' Christmas amazing.

I got down to the last 17 people in the final, and had an amazing time; but nevertheless ended up going home as newly-wealthy as 15 of the others!

Hmm .. absolutely they should thank you and treat you too..

Best of luck and Happy Christmas! Your gift is learning that persons true character.

Sounds something like Who Wants To Be A Millionaire( Can I phone a friend?) I always used to think that the friend who gave the correct answer, would, or should, get a good slice of the money. And if the person on the quiz had anything decent about them, they would offer.. Not bury their head in the sand and hope that the question will go away. Just what kind of a person IS this?Some people! I'd be bold and ask ' Any chance of a cut at all please ?

I’d say a third is fair.
2/3 to the caller for setting it up, 1/3 to you for knowing the answer.
Or even three quarters/a quarter.
Will she have to pay tax on her winnings?

If I was them, I'd give you £1K and say a big thank you.

You should have got half

Sounds something like Who Wants To Be A Millionaire( Can I phone a friend?) I always used to think that the friend who gave the correct answer, would, or should, get a good slice of the money. And if the person on the quiz had anything decent about them, they would offer.. Not bury their head in the sand and hope that the question will go away.

A lot say "I'll buy you a drink!" but an awful lot don't say anything beyond thanks (or even just "OK, bye"). If anything, I think Chris used to say "There might be a drink in it for you!" a lot more than the contestant did.

Even so, I wonder if 'a drink' means a decent proportion of the winnings for a lot of them, or just, literally £10 for a bottle of wine or something. I wonder if they sometimes figure that they answered the other questions themselves and the PaF only helped them with one of them; but of course, every question is worth approximately the same amount as all the previous ones combined - and it's not like the first few silly ones are very challenging for most people.

I too would share 50/50, and if she doesn't think to do so, in your shoes I'd be very annoyed. She needs to realise that without you, she'd have nothing, and at least offer you a decent amount. If she offers nothing though, I think this is likely to cause an atmosphere at work, as you're bound to feel hard done by, and I wouldn't blame you.

Do you think that by your colleague acknowledging you helped, this might make them worried that you would be entitled to the money? So thought it best to just say nothing just in case? Not a nice way to go about it at all and like you said, a thank you would have been enough, but I do wonder if there was some thought behind the lack of acknowledgement.

12k would have made a huge difference to my situation but knowing that I hadn't done it myself I would give you half

Yes, I hope so too.

Absolutely you should get half of the prize money no question.

Yes, you should have received something. £1,000 would still have left her with a tidy sum.

Feck that. I’d ask them directly to give you at least half.

Well if you hadn’t told her the answer she’d have lost, don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect half!!

I’d have given you half. I’d be embarrassed to keep the money knowing I didn’t really win it!