Spanish weather girl celebrates lottery win on live TV

A Spanish weather woman has celebrated a half a million-dollar lottery win on live television after realising she'd won a Christmas jackpot.

Elena Minambres Hernando was having her makeup applied backstage when she realised she had just won $581k in Spain's Fat Christmas lottery.

She raced out into the studio to tell her colleagues on the Telemadrid TV channel who were in the middle of a live broadcast.

The presenters immediately stopped their presentation and rushed to her side while jumping up and down and clapping their hands.

"I can't even talk. I don't believe it," she said while trying to hold back tears of joy.

"I've always wondered what people feel like when they win. You see it on TV, everyone celebrating, but when it comes to you, you don't know how to react."

The news team popped open a bottle of sparkling wine on live television and asked the weather woman if she would if she would be retiring.

"No, no, I don't want to retire," she laughed.

Minambres said the winning ticket had been a Christmas present from her mother-in-law.