The plant operator from Bebington, who describes himself as “not academic but good on logic” said it was “tough” to keep his win a surprise and had only shared the news with his grandmother.

“I had to tell someone, so it was our little secret,” he said.

Mr O’Halloran, had only been asked by producers not to reveal the win on social media before the show was aired last weekend, but felt he had to keep the “fun surprise” for when his family tuned in.

“I’ve never been on TV before and this was the first time I’d applied for anything like this,” he said.

“I never thought I would get that far. I’m not an academic, I didn’t want to carry on with education after school, but I think I do quite well in pressured situations”.