Tuesday, June 23, 2026, 9:44 p.m
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A man from Australia entered the Guinness Book of Records after he managed to emit the loudest cry ever measured in a human. The performance earned him the title of the loudest person in the world.
Joseph McGrail-Bateup, 58, from Canberra, works in air conditioning maintenance. During the attempt approved by Guinness World Records, the Australian shouted the word “now” (“now”), and the sound produced reached 122.4 decibels, reports AFP.
With this performance, he surpassed the previous record of 121.7 decibels, set in 1994 by teacher Annalisa Flanagan from Northern Ireland, who had spoken the word “quiet”. The intensity of the scream approaches the noise produced by a chainsaw or an airplane taking off.
“There’s no way you can train for it. You just have to keep it up for the day, especially with a world record attempt,” McGrail-Bateup said.
It took the Australian seven tries to pull off the performance, and the effort took its toll on his voice.
“It took me seven tries for just one word, which was the word ‘now’, and my voice was also affected for the next two days. It was hoarse. It was terrible. So no, you can’t really practice for it. But it’s a lot of fun when you do,” he added.
McGrail-Bateup believes her record does not eclipse previous record holder Annalisa Flanagan.
“I’m glad she (Flanagan) can keep her record. So she’s still the loudest woman in the world and I’m the loudest man in the world,” McGrail-Bateup said.
Since 2017, the Australian has also held the honorary position of Canberra city crier, where he is known as Lord Joseph.
It is not the first world record in his record. In 2019, he set an archery speed record, managing to shoot 10 arrows in 60.03 seconds. However, the feat was surpassed nine months later by a child of only 7 years. However, the Aussie says he is not interested in reclaiming his records.
“If someone beats me, that’s fantastic,” he said. “Records are meant to be broken,” he said, according to the quoted source.











