A FORMER railway guard from Wirral has spoken out after winning nearly £2.5m on the lottery.

Ben Woods, 38, won £2,485,736 on February 21, 2004 on the National Lottery.

He had just finished his shift before being asked to come to the local pub to speak with his dad.

Dad-of-three Ben told the Globe: "I was 23, single and living at home when I won. I finished my shift as a railway guard, and went to the local pub. Mum and dad were sitting there, white with shock, because they’d checked my numbers.

"Dad said he needed to talk to me alone in the toilets, and I thought ‘What have I done?’ I was sure I was about to be told off."

He says the money has since been used to pay for 12 trips to New York and a five-bedroom house.

Ben added: "The money has paid for 12 trips to New York, holidays for my mum and dad, a house for my sister and a five-bed house for me.

"I met my future wife nine months after the win, and when I turned up to collect her for our first date in a brand new Range Rover, her Nan said ‘I think he’s a drug dealer!’

"Now, we have three children and I’m a stay at home dad.

"My life has totally changed – for the better."

Wirral Globe:

The National Lottery's lucky 25 - (Picture: Sven Arnstein; Styling: Neil Cunningham)

Ben has now featured as part of a Vanity Fair inspired photoshoot alongside 25 other winners to celebrate the National Lottery's 25th birthday.

The photograph, shot by celebrity photographer Sven Arnstein, features some of the biggest winners from the 5,500 millionaires that have now been created by The National Lottery games.

With more than £110m between them, the lucky lottery players shared tips and revealed just how much their lives had been changed by the win.

National Lottery Senior Winner’s Advisor Andy Carter, who has paid more than a billion pounds in prizes to lucky players over the past decade said: “The National Lottery has been making amazing things happen for 25 years.

"These are just a tiny fraction of some of the lucky players who have won life changing sums of money over the past 25 years.

"We have all had the ‘when I win the lottery’ conversation, but these lucky people are now living out their dreams.

"And we have learnt over the years that our players are a generous lot too.

"From research we have discovered that 11% of winners have made additional millionaires or multi-millionaires through kind donations to family and friends.

"In addition, more than 91% tell us that they have donated time or money to charities close to their hearts, meaning the benefit of every big win is reaching far and wide.”