John's quarter of a THRILLION!

But 'disciplined gambler' John wasn't complaining too loudly.

The man who at 19 became a bus conductor for Leigh Corporation and was born in long-gone terraced Lester's Row in Astley Green had settled for a 'mere' £250,000 -- with a little help from his 80-year-old mum, Doris -- while appearing on Monday night's TV quiz show Who wants to be a Millionaire. The former Ellesmere Street infants, Astley St Stephen's and Tyldesley St George's junior schoolboy had viewers and show host Chris Tarrant captivated by his knowledgable, laid-back -- but far from cocky -- style. The morning after the show was screened overjoyed John revealed how the win will give him and his wife, Margaret, financial security for the rest of their lives. Speaking from his home near Beverley, Yorkshire, journalist John revealed why he'd picked his mum to help him out when he'd flagged at the £125,000 milestone.

With £64,000 in the bag, after a little help from the studio audience, John was stumped by the question: "Which fruit is the principal ingredient of slivovitz brandy?"

He had no hesitation in choosing his mum as his phone-a-friend advisor.

Confident Doris got him on to the £125,000 mark when she in turn had no hesitation in giving him the correct answer "plum".

"I love you mum," said John, as millions of anxious viewers and the Elstree studio audience, including his Little Hulton born wife, willed him on towards the million pound jackpot.

John revealed how he had every faith in his mum's answer. He had friends waiting for a helpline call but had promised only to select the one who was clued-up on the subjects in question.

He knew how his mum liked to collect miniature bottles and recalled how she had brought that particular type of miniature brandy bottle back from a holiday in pre-civil war Yugoslavia and it had a picture of the fruit on the label.

But he will rue the school curriculum at Bolton's Canon Slade which had him swotting for Elizabethan history rather than early 20th century that could have won him at least £million. Gambling man or not, John decided it was wisest to hedge his bets and retire while the going was good when faced with the 14th of 15 questions: "Who was the Prime Minister when women got the right to vote?" Ironically if he had gone with his 80 per cent certain hunch that the answer was Lloyd George he'd have scooped another £250,000.

And when the show was over and the contestants were winding down with a few drinks John could still raise a smile when host Tarrant walked in to the recording studio bar singing the barrack room ballad "Lloyd George knew my father, my father knew Lloyd George". John revealed how after trying for over a year to get on the show his 15th call proved lucky. "My goal was £32,000," said John who got the call-up for the show at 4.20pm the day before he was due in London studio at 11am. I'd intended to learn a list of kings, presidents and prime ministers but I only managed the kings. I'm a disciplined gambler," said John, "and at the end of the day decided I'd be less disappointed by not gambling and taking £250,000 rather than gambling but being wrong and losing £218,00."

He had been a bit shaky early on with a £4,000 nursery rhyme hiccup and needed the audience to steer him to the £8,000 stage when modern music had him stumped and he explained his knowledge stopped at Pink Floyd.

Then with £15,000 of £16,000 at stake he gambled on a swallowtail being a butterfly admitting to host Tarrant "I can stand to lose £15,000 but my bookmaker can't".

But he used his second lifeline in correctly guessing Bodega Bay as being a location for the Hitchcock film The Birds. Then mum came to the rescue and he raised his total to the quarter-million mark by choosing Henry Ford as the man who said "history is bunk".

"Why did you choose that one?" asked Tarrant.

"Because I think he said it," replied John dryly.

Reflecting on his success John said: "I'm going to invest the money, it will give us financial security for the rest of our lives. If I had won a million I would have bought a race horse but I know how much money they can eat up."

But he promised there would be a big party for family and friends and something special for his mum and the other phone-a-friend duo who were waiting to help if needed.

This week John had taken a few days off work and his mum and dad, Jack and Doris, who now live in Abergele, have been staying with him.

Delighted Doris told the Journal: "We are very proud of him and I was happy to be able to help, but we don't want anything."

Her elder sister Lena Tickle, John's first teacher when he was a three-year-old at Astley's "little school" in Ellesmere Street, still lives in Higher Green Lane and other members of her family the Parrys still live in the area.

The Sextons also lived in Higher Green Lane after leaving Lester's Row, moving in to a National Coal Board semi near the Cross Hillock junction, then moved to Somerset Avenue, Shakerley and later back to Astley and then on to Leigh. Jack Sexton went on to become the NCB's road transport manager for the north west area. Race tipster and gambling man John may be -- ever since he went in to the pit village bookie's shop as a 16-year-old teenager with team mates from Astley Youth Club soccer team.

He earned two and six (12p) a week pocket money in those days and put two bob (10p) of it on a horse called Redlands. It won at 4-1 and I got a ten shilling (50p) note back -- I was hooked from there."

John, who worked at the Journal and Bolton Evening News at Leigh, Walkden and Farnworth, may be ruefully wishing that Lloyd George really had known his father.

But he can still laugh about it all the way to the bank.