Australian man breaks world record for loudest man, but just how loud is he?

Most people do not expect their air conditioner cleaner to be the world’s loudest person. Then again, their cleaner probably isn’t Joseph McGrail-Bateup, the official town crier for Australia’s capital city.

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McGrail-Bateup, who once held a world speed archery record, has returned to the record books after shattering the men’s loudest shout record by registering 122.4 decibels. He did so by yelling “now.”

The historic shout was officially recorded on May 2 at a Canberra radio studio by a professional acoustic engineer and an official witness. Guinness World Records verified the evidence and announced the record on Friday.

How loud is 122.4 decibels? According to The Associated Press, it is comparable to the roar of a chain saw, a jet at takeoff or a close-range ambulance siren.

McGrail-Bateup’s volume surpassed the 121.7-decibel mark set by Northern Ireland schoolteacher Annalisa Flanagan in 1994. While his shout technically beat Flanagan’s number, McGrail-Bateup told reporters he requested his record be categorized specifically for the loudest male shout. He preferred that Flanagan keep her historic title so they could both hold records.

Finding the perfect word took some strategy. While Flanagan originally set her record by shouting “quiet,” McGrail-Bateup and his daughter tested options before settling on “now,” he told Guinness World Records.

“There’s no way that you can actually practice for it. You have to just keep it for the day, especially with the world record attempt,” McGrail-Bateup told AP.

“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 practice for it. But it’s a lot of fun when you’re doing it,” he added.

It’s an achievement he never envisioned during his youth.

“When I was a kid I didn’t really have a loud voice, I was very shy, withholding all that stuff until I left school and I joined the theatre,” McGrail-Bateup told Guinness World Records. “It was very clear then that I needed to pipe up, make myself loud. So, I trained in the theatre where you didn’t use microphones or anything like that and I got loud and as the years went by, louder.”

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McGrail-Bateup stepped into competitive shouting in 2017 after being appointed Canberra’s official town crier, a role where he goes by Lord Joseph.

His duties as town crier include making announcements at community events, school fetes and car shows. The appointment earned him an honorary membership in the Ancient and Honorable Guild of Australian Town Criers. In 2024, he won a guild competition by registering a 98-decibel “Oyez, oyez, oyez,” a traditional call for attention, according to AP.

The job does not come without occupational hazards.

“Have I ever lost my voice through shouting or town crying? Yes, I have,” McGrail-Bateup said. “Generally it’s after competitions or a day where I’m doing a car show and out there yelling all the time and yelling over sports cars is quite an interesting thing, but it’s a lot of fun and sometimes I can be louder than the sports cars sitting next to me.”

This is not McGrail-Bateup’s first brush with fame. In 2019, he set a speed record for an archer shooting 10 arrows. However, that record was shattered just months later by a 7-year-old boy who beat his time by more than 11 seconds.

McGrail-Bateup said he has no plans to defend either title.

“If someone beats me, that’s fantastic,” he said. “Records are meant to be broken.”

Online reactions

Social media users quickly reacted to the news, with one X user writing, “Imagine having this guy as a neighbour…” Another joked, “Clearly, Guinness hasn’t met my upper-floor neighbors yet.”

Others have called for a rematch against McGrail-Bateup’s record, believing they are louder or someone they know could give McGrail-Bateup a run for his money.