The Man Who Shattered a 30-Year World Record with a Single Roar

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Guinness World Record

The Man Who Shattered
30 Years of Silence

How an ordinary Australian air conditioner cleaner shouted his way into the history books with a mind-boggling 122.4 decibel roar.

122.4 dB
The Winning Shout
32 Years
Previous Record Intact
7
Attempts to Achieve Glory

In a world constantly buzzing with background noise, it takes something truly extraordinary to stand out. Meet Joseph McGrail-Bateup, a 58-year-old resident of Canberra, Australia. By day, Joseph works a normal job cleaning air conditioners. But by weekend, he steps into the ceremonial robes of an honorary town crier—a passionate pursuit that recently earned him the title of the World’s Loudest Person.

Smashing a Guinness World Record that had stood untouched for over three decades, Joseph proved to the world that pure vocal power isn't about size—it is about technique, timing, and a healthy dose of determination.

The Anatomy of a 122.4 Decibel Roar

To grasp just how loud Joseph’s history-making shout is, you have to look at the science of sound. The decibel scale is logarithmic, meaning volume doubles roughly every 10 dB. When Joseph stepped up to the microphone in a specialized Canberra radio studio, he managed to register an ear-splitting 122.4 decibels.

How loud is 122.4 dB? It matches the immediate acoustic force of a pneumatic drill, a roaring chainsaw, or an ambulance siren up close. It sits right on the edge of the human threshold of physical discomfort.

"There's no way that you can actually practice for it. You have to just keep it for the day, especially with a world record attempt. 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."
— Joseph McGrail-Bateup

From "Quiet" to "NOW!"

Joseph’s successful run unseated Northern Irish schoolteacher Annalisa Flanagan, whose 1994 record of 121.7 decibels was reached by ironically screaming the word "Quiet!".

When searching the Guinness database for town-crying achievements, Joseph stumbled across Flanagan's long-standing figure. Recognizing an unusual challenge, he spent weeks experimenting with the structural acoustics of different words before identifying the short, sharp phonetic punch of the word "NOW" as his ultimate sonic weapon.

The Multitalented "Lord Joseph"

Joseph’s gift for projection didn't happen overnight. In 2017, the Canberra local government appointed him as the capital’s official, part-time honorary town crier, known affectionately at community events, school fetes, and car shows as Lord Joseph. Joining the Ancient and Honorable Guild of Australian Town Criers transformed his hobby into a competitive art form, culminating in a 2024 guild championship where he logged a 98 dB rendition of the historic call: "Oyez, Oyez, Oyez!"

Fascinatingly, this is not Joseph's first dance with Guinness fame. He is a multi-disciplinary record breaker, having captured a speed-archery record in 2019 by firing 10 arrows in a lightning-fast 60.03 seconds. While that record was later bested by a prodigiously talented seven-year-old boy, Joseph remains unfazed.

True to his sportsmanship, Joseph embraces the fleeting nature of titles: "If someone beats me, that’s fantastic. Records are meant to be broken." For the time being, the world belongs to the man with the ultimate voice box.

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