History Made as Records Break across the Globe; Thousands Participate in World's First International Guinness World Records Day.

NEW YORK -- History was made yesterday as Guinness World Records, the global authority on record-breaking achievement, hosted its first annual International Guinness World Records Day. From individual record attempts to extraordinary mass participation events, people from every walk of life vied for the chance to enter their names in the world's best selling copyright book. Some of the most astounding records set on the first International Guinness World Records Day include:

--Largest Underpants - The world's largest pair of underpants measured 14.4 m (47 ft 3 in) wide and 10.48 m (34 ft 5 in) high and was made by Bolton anti poverty campaigners. They were displayed and measured in Bolton town square, Bolton, UK.

--Largest Motorized Shopping Cart - Edd China built the largest motorized shopping cart, which stands 11.4 feet tall, 9.8 feet long and 5.9 feet wide

--Longest Cartoon Strip - The world's longest continuous cartoon strip, created by 35 Disney artists (all Italy) and entitled "Ciccio e il compleanno sottosopra" (Ciccio and the Topsy-Turvy Birthday), measured 242.45 m (795.43 in) and 0.9 m (3 ft) high. The cartoon strip also consists of 242 panels with an uninterrupted storyline and was completed in 8 hours and 30 minutes.

--Longest Non-Stop Commercial Aircraft Flight - A non-stop flight from Hong-Kong to London, the Boeing 777-200LR flew more than 20,300km (11,000 nautical miles) finally touching down at Heathrow Airport in England.

It was a worldwide celebration of human endeavor and achievement, as the USA, Australia, Hong Kong, South Africa, New Zealand, Singapore, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Italy, Germany and France all took part, making it the biggest record-breaking event in history. For months, thousands of people across the globe have been gearing up to smash all manners of weird and wonderful records. Here in the US, Ashrita Furman, the person with the most individual Guinness World Records, set another record for the fastest fireman's carry (carrying a person of equal weight on his back while running a mile) at 15 minutes 11.87 seconds.

In South Africa over 20,000 people participated in the world's largest shave-athon. Participants had their heads shaved to support the charity, CANSA. In Australia Grant Denyer, the host of TV's breakfast show, 'Sunrise' attempted the longest bungee jump from a helicopter over Bondi Beach. Germany saw the BILD newspaper attempt the longest ever lantern parade in Bremen and Iceland hosted an attempt involving 470 people in the world's largest Simultaneous Yo-Yo event. A shopping centre in Denmark also celebrated its birthday by attempting to set the record for the largest number of teacakes threaded on to a fishing line.

Perhaps the biggest celebration of the first annual International Guinness World Records Day occurred in Guinness World Records' home base of the UK, where several events marked the occasion including: Birmingham attempting the largest donut tower, Manchester Fort Shopping Park hosting the speediest gift wrap and Scotland where they celebrated their most well-know export and set a record for most varieties of whisky commercially available. The collection is held by the Millionayr Casino in Ayrshire and houses an amazing 900 different varieties!

"What an amazing day! With so many people participating in record attempts around the world, it could possibly be a new Guinness World Record for the most Guinness World Records set in a day. Regardless, it was definitely a magnificent celebration of this wonderful book and the global community that inhabits its pages," said Alistair Richards, Chief Operating Officer, Guinness World Records.

International Guinness World Records Day was supported by a number of broadcast and print publications around the world, calling on their audiences to break records. The celebration was also recognized with a national radio campaign in the U.S. that encouraged listeners to call in and attempt a pre-approved Guinness World Record attempt.

Guinness World Records 2006, this year's edition of the best selling book, contains the most comprehensive collection of the greatest and most amazing accomplishments from around the world and beyond. A "must-have" for both knowledge-seekers and aspiring record-breakers of all ages, Guinness World Records 2006 is now available for the suggested retail price of $27.95.

About Guinness World Records

Guinness World Records is the universally recognized authority on record-breaking achievement. First published in 1955, the annual Guinness World Records book is published in more than 100 countries and 20 languages and is one of the highest-selling books under copyright of all time with more than 3 million copies sold annually across the globe. Last year Guinness World Records celebrated its 50th anniversary edition (1955-2005) and the 2004 edition marked the sale of its 100 millionth copy. The Guinness World Records website (http://guinnessworldrecords.com) receives more than 11 million visitors a month. Guinness World Records is published by HIT Entertainment Limited, a fully integrated global studio with divisions in the U.K., U.S., Canada and Japan, including broadcast production and distribution, video and audio sales, consumer products licensing and marketing.