The north London couple who created the successful Friends Reunited web site are £30 million richer this week, after the company was sold to ITV for £120m on Tuesday.

Yet despite their new wealth, Steve and Julie Pankhurst have no desire to move from their modest semi-detached home in Barnet.

The Pankhursts launched Friends Reunited, a site which enables people to trace old friends, from a spare bedroom in their semi-detached home in Milton Avenue, Barnet, in 2000.

The idea came to Mrs Pankhurst, a former Queen Elizabeth's Girls' School pupil, when she was pregnant and wondered how many of her old school friends were in a similar condition.

Mr Pankhurst, a computer programmer, was amazed by its success - it now has 15 million users.

As part of the deal, ITV have promised to pay an extra sum of up to £55m in 2009, depending on the website's performance in the coming years.

The site has expanded to include Genes Reunited, where people can trace their family tree, as well as jobs and dating sections.

The Pankhursts no longer live in Milton Avenue, but only moved to a "slightly bigger" semi in the same area.

The couple's immediate plans involve focusing on their two daughters, aged five and three.