The world's tallest man, the shortest living woman, the widest mouth, the longest nose, and the oldest person ever are among the most popular world records according to Guinness.
Robert Wadlow, the tallest man ever, was 8ft 11 inches at his peak height while Jyoti Kisanji Amge, born in Pagpur, India, is the shortest living woman measuring just over 2ft tall. The oldest living person is Lucile Randon who is more than 118 years old.
While none of the huge records are claimed by people living in Liverpoo, we've certainly used creative means to make history. Here are the top ten weirdest world records set right here in the city.
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10. Largest balloon costume
The world's largest balloon costume measured a looming 11ft 7ins tall was made and worn by Tom Kent at Liverpool Comic Con on November 13, 2021. The cosplay enthusiast broke his own world record with his impressive creation having previously made himself an 8ft 7ins Pikachu costume in 2017.
The arms of the inflatable Hulk could be moved by two rods that ran through the middle of the costume. Its feet measured 66cm, the neck had a circumference of 125.5 cm and the waist was 188.5cm.
9. Fastest marathon while dressed as a fisherman
Freddie Bennett, who lives in south Liverpool, officially became the world's fastest fisherman after completing the Rock n Roll Marathon in four hours and 37 minutes - all while wearing rubber wellies, yellow waterproofs, and carrying a fishing box.
He took part in the May 26, 2019, race to raise money for Pavilion Preschool which was operating out of a temporary building at the time. The school's new £250,000 childcare centre, paid for thanks to generous donations from parents like Freddie, opened in November 2020.
8. Most flips of a bottle on the back of the hand in one minute
Bootle bartender Kovacs Gyorgy performed his record-breaking trick in front of a crowd at Liverpool’s Titanic Hotel on February 9, 2017. The 23-year-old, trained by TGI Fridays, managed an impressive 146 spins in one minute - around two spins per second - beating the previous record by 38 spins.
He said: “I’ve always been one of the fastest spinners on the flairing circuit so I decided to check out the current Guinness World Records title online. I started practising and I could break the record nine times out of 10. Then I knew – it was game on.”
7. Fastest speed dragged behind a motorcycle
This world record was set by daredevil Gary Rothwell who was dragged behind a motorcycle at a speed of 156.3mph on 2mm titanium-soled boots at Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground in Leicester on April 18, 1999.
The Kirkby stuntman previously also held the world record for the fastest wheelie at 209.8mph - but was overtaken by Egbert Van Popta from the Netherlands in August 2016 when he rode a Hayabusa Turbo 1300CC on its back wheel at a speed of 213mph.
6. Longest individual magic show
Richard Smith earned the right to call himself the world's most dedicated magician after churning out tricks for 30 hours and 45 minutes at the Liverpool Moat House on August 7 and 8 2004. He performed a total of 331 tricks to raise money for the cancer treatment of fellow Magic Circle member Christopher Hardman, 15.
Christopher was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in 2002 after doctors found a tumour in his left leg. His leg was amputated above the knee and he went through eight months of chemotherapy but tragically died on October 25, 2004 - just two months after Richard's record-breaking show.
5. Largest LEGO brick wind turbine
A team of LEGO builders spent around 600 hours constructing the world’s Largest LEGO® brick wind turbine outside the Liverpool ONE shopping centre in May 2017. A total of 146,251 plastic bricks were used to create the turbine which stood at 7.63m.
4. Most people modelling on a catwalk
The world record for the most people modelling on a catwalk is 3,651, and was achieved by Culture Liverpool in association with British online retailer Very at the Pier Head on July 4, 2015. Professional models, children, pensioners and celebrities including TOWIE star Lauren Pope dressed in their flashiest gear for the show which took three hours and 50 minutes to complete. The event was followed by a huge after-party with a giant glitterball and a disco on the docks.
3. Oldest Santa's grotto in operation
The record for the world's oldest operating Santa's grotto was - until relatively recently - held by The World’s Famous Grotto which delighted children for more than 130 years.
Established in 1879 inside Liverpool's Lewis’s Department Store, it moved to Rapid Hardware in 2010 and again to St John's Shopping Centre in 2017. Sadly, the festive event was unable to go ahead in 2020 due to Covid-19. It failed to return in 2021 and it has now been confirmed that the grotto will not open this year either.
A spokesman for St Johns said: "We would love to put a grotto in the centre but there just isn't enough space in our malls for that to happen."
2. Largest multi-venue dance class
This record was set by 26,797 primary school pupils from schools all over Liverpool on July 11, 2008. It was organised by Sportslinx and dedicated to improving the health and fitness of the city's children.
1. Most manual wheelchair spins in one minute
The Guinness World Records title for most manual wheelchair spins in one minute was awarded to 24-year-old Stephen Rainey in July 2015. He completed a total of 66 spins, breaking the previous record of 63 set by Gulshan Kumarin from India in 2011.
The challenge took place at Lifehouse, Brunswick Dock, and was part of an event to raise awareness of services available to local wheelchair users. He said: "This was a really special achievement for me. I hope that my success now helps influence wheelchair users to take part in sports and activities."
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