I broke Countdown’s records aged 21 in just three seconds – here’s how I pulled it off
A COUNTDOWN contestant who recorded the show's record highest score has lifted the lid on exactly how he did it.
Tom Stevenson, who was just 21 when he broke several records on the Channel 4 show, put his achievements down to one thing in particular - meditation.
The wordsmith and mathematical whizz, who first began watching the intelligence programme as a teenager, posted a mammoth score of 154.
It beat the previous highest of 152 by working out the show's final conundrum with the word "volunteer" in just three seconds.
The contestant told The Sunday Times that he did not allow his nerves to stop him - despite host Colin Murray telling viewers they were on the verge of a "historic moment".
Tom added: "I'm genuinely not sure how I was able to stay so relaxed.
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"I think the most nervous I got was when I felt my heart pounding before the conundrum.
"I do try to meditate on a daily basis, though, so it could have been that, plus the chairs are rather comfy."
The University of Worcester student's Twitter account describes him as a "Eurovision obsessive, culture vulture, petrolhead, MH sufferer, keen writer and statto",
Tom said he first became interested in the show while studying for his GCSEs after being left house-bound by agoraphobia.
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He was inspired to appear on the programme because he didn't want his A-level results - three Ds - to "define" him.
After finishing his degree in English literature, media and culture, he now hopes to become an English teacher.
Countdown airs weekdays on Channel 4 at 2.10pm.
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