World’s Loudest Person? 58-Year-Old Town Crier With A Voice As Loud As A Jet Takeoff

Last Updated:June 24, 2026, 20:10 IST

Joseph McGrail-Bateup from Canberra sets Guinness World Record as the world's loudest person after shouting 'Now' at 122.4 decibels, beating a 1994 mark.

A 58-year-old air conditioner cleaner and honourary town crier has become the world’s loudest person by yelling the word “Now" at 122.4 decibels – a volume comparable to a chainsaw or jet aircraft taking off.

According to The Independent, the ear-splitting shout by Joseph McGrail-Bateup, from Canberra, broke the previous record of 121.7 dB, set in 1994 by Northern Irish schoolteacher Annalisa Flanagan, who had yelled “quiet".

“Loudest shout by an individual (male) 122.4 dB (C-weighted) by Joseph McGrail-Bateup. Booming-voiced Aussie Joseph is the official town crier in the city of Canberra, Australia," Guinness World Record said in a post on X.

After winning the award, McGrail-Bateup said, “There’s no way that you can actually practise for it. You have to just keep it for the day."

“It took me seven attempts just for one word, which was the word ‘now,’ and my voice was shot for the next couple of days as well. It was husky. It was terrible. So no, you can’t really practise for it. But it’s a lot of fun when you’re doing it," he said.

The Independent quoted McGrail-Bateup saying that he considered himself as the world’s loudest man rather than the loudest person. Till now, no man was recorded as the loudest person.

“I’m pleased that she (Ms Flanagan) gets to keep her record. So she’s still the loudest woman in the world and I’m the loudest male in the world," he said, adding that he had stumbled upon Flanagan’s record while searching Guinness World Records unsuccessfully for feats in the realm of town crying.

According to The Independent, McGrail-Bateup became competitively loud when he was appointed the official town crier of Canberra in 2017. His town crier name is Lord Joseph and he makes announcements at community events, school fetes and car shows.

In 2024, he won a guild competition with the loudest “Oyez, Oyez, Oyez", at 98 dB.

Interestingly, he has broken a world record for the second time. In 2019, he broke a speed record for an archer shooting 10 arrows. His time of 60.03 seconds shaved a fraction of a second off a record that had stood since 2015. However, the record was broken nine months later by a 7-year-old boy.

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