Australian Family Sets New Guinness Record with Over Half a Million Christmas Light Installation

An Australian family who put more than half a million Christmas lights on their house has claimed a world record - for the second time. Father-of-three David Richards from Canberra first won the title in 2011 with 331,038 lights, but was beaten by a family in New York who put up 346,283.

His family vowed to take regain the title this Christmas - so installed more than 31 miles of wire with 502,165 lights, glowing reindeer and loud music around their suburban home, to the frustration of some neighbors. Guinness World Records confirmed the family's charity feat has officially the most Christmas lights on a residential property.

Some of the Richards’ neighbors are very upset and haven’t spoken to the family since 2011. But most of them love the dazzle and come to visit from numerous miles away. David says, “I have always loved Christmas. Having the Christmas lights with the community coming in and sharing it is a time when you get to know people you perhaps should know better, I guess.”

Of course, putting up so many lights would mean a enormous electric bill. It comes up to about $2,200 a month, an amount that the local power company has been generous enough to donate. The Richards hosts a charity event open to the public, and the proceeds go to children’s charities that fight Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. In 2011 they had 70,000 visitors and collected about $70,000. This year David wants to up the amount to $90,000. “It actually helps a lot of families who have put up with an amazing amount of grief. That makes it all worthwhile to me,”

David lives in the suburb of Forrest with his wife Janean, 13-year-old son Aidan and daughters Caitlin, 10, and Madelyn, 6. It took them a month to put up all the lights – they started in October and worked every weekend since. Thankfully they didn’t have to physically count all the lights. Delivery records and invoices helped with that. The lights aren’t just meant for Christmas, they’re also meant to party his wife’s cousin’s wedding this Saturday.

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Chinese Artist Honored By Guinness World Record For The World's Longest and Most Detailed Wood Carving

A Chinese artist has won a place in the Guinness Book of Records after creating the world's longest wooden carving. Zheng Chunhui, a famous wood carver, spent four years making the artwork which is over 40ft long and made from a single tree trunk. The scene is essentially a copy of the famous Chinese painting 'Along the River During the Qingming Festival' which was created over 1,000 years ago.

Though it has been replicated many times, Chunhui's version, which is made from a single piece of tree trunk, is surely the most spectacular. The complicated work features boats, bridges, building and even 550 individually carved people. The piece measures 12.286 meters long, is 3.075 meters tall at it highest point, and is also 2.401 meters wide. The original painting, referred to as the 'Chinese Mona Lisa' because of its fame, was finished during the Song Dynasty by artist Zhang Zeduan.

The work was awarded the world record on Thursday last week as part of Guinness World Records Day, set up to honor the day the book of records became the best-selling copyright book. Other records broken on the same day included the most hula hoops spun simultaneously, which was broken in the UK, by the ‘Marawa's Majorettes’ dance group, who spun 264 hula hoops between them.

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Tiny Chihuahua Milly Crowned World’s Smallest Dog By Guinness World Record

Milly the Chihuahua has been crowned the world's smallest dog at just 3.8 inches high.

The micro mutt who lives with her Argentine owners in the north east Puerto Rican town of Vega Alta, was so small when she was born back in December 2011 she had to be nourished with an eye dropper and could fit in a teaspoon.

And regardless of being fed almost entirely on gourmet food, she failed to grow much larger than the size of an ordinary Chihuahua puppy, now weighing around a pound.

Milly is always accompanied by Ms Eizzil or by her owner, Argentinian Vanessa Semler, who is dedicated to rearing chihuahuas in Puerto Rico.

Ms Semler says caring for Milly takes effort, but explains that she and her husband, Edwin Davila, have no children so they have the time to focus their energies on their pet project.

Delighted owner Vanessa Semler said: 'We have to be certainly careful with Milly because she is too small so she can be easily lost.

'When people see Milly they are really surprised because she is so small but they really love her because she is so lovable.' Milly, who sleeps in a baby's crib, beat previous title-holder Boo Boo, a long-haired female Chihuahua, owned by Lana Elswick of Raceland, Kentucky, who at 4.2inches towers over the new record holder.

Pocket-sized pets remain one of the most fascinating areas of the Guinness World Records database, with tiny dogs arguably the most popular of all our animal records.

 Boo Boo, a long-haired, female chihuahua was the former holder of the title of World's Smallest Dog. She measures 10.16cm tall and is owned by Lana Elswick of Raceland, Kentucky

Born in December 2011, she weighs roughly 1 pound (half a kilogram) and is known for often sticking out her tiny tongue when someone takes her picture. 'She knows how to pose,' says Vanesa.

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Bulgarian Man Swims In Bag To Set Guinness World Record

Jane Petkov, a 59-year-old Bulgarian man, tried to set a new Guinness record by swimming across a lake while enfolded in a bag with his arms and legs tied up. Known as "amphibian man" his native country, Petkov says he relies on attention and a special breathing technique to pull off the amazing feat.

The record-breaking attempt took place on September 10, on Lake Orhid, in Macedonia, and had Jane Petkov jumping out of a boat in the central of the water trying to somehow make his way to shore. His arms and legs were tied once before putting on the thick bag, and again over the bag, to make sure he couldn’t use them during his death-defying feat. What’s even more surprising is doctors who examined him before the challenge found he was severely anemic, which, given his age, made the task even more unsafe. Nevertheless, on the morning of September 10, the amphibian man jumped in the cold water of Lake Orhid and began to swim on his back like a dolphin.

It took Jane Petkov 2 hours and 47 minutes to swim a distance of 1.25 miles (over 2 kilometers) and reach the shore, where the coordinators of the event helped him remove the bag. “I was very cold for the first kilometer but after that it was all fine – no problem whatsoever, “he said.”Had the water been warmer, I could have swum 10km or more.” The whole evet was filmed from a lifeboat, and the footage will be sent to Guinness Records, in London. Petkov is known as a follower of Peter Deunov, a renowned Bulgarian religious teacher and founder of a School of Esoteric Christianity.

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