Guinness Book of Records sets own new record

FRANKFURT, Germany (Reuters) -- The Guinness Book of Records has set a new record of its own -- 7 million copies sold of its first edition of the new century.

Reaching this milestone has been cause for much celebration for the bible of the wacky and weird, said representatives attending this week's Frankfurt Book Fair.

"It is another record year. It is an old cliche but it is true," said Christopher Irwin, managing director of the Guinness record book.

"I thought the millennium edition would be a peak. But for the 2001 edition, sales have improved rather than diminished. We are looking at a total of 7 million compared to 6 million last year," he said.

Among the top markets, he added, were the United States, Canada, and Scandinavia. The book's Australian edition has also grown quickly.

In addition, Guinness broadcasts a World Records television show that is shown in 100 million households worldwide each week.

Frankfurt, a magnet for the world's top publishers, is an international marketplace always fondly remembered by Irwin.

"I found our U.S. distributor in a casual conversation at the fair," he said.

The new entries in the latest edition include is a medical submarine the size of the letter 'L' on a keyboard.

Just four millimeters in length and 0.65 millimeters in diameter, the German-designed sub was developed as an innovative way of treating cancer. It can "sail" along arteries and repair damaged blood vessels.

Australian Les Stewart won a place in the book after taking 16 years and seven months to write out in full in words the numbers one to one million.

The Guinness record book, one of publishing's longest-running success stories, was launched in 1954. It was the brainchild of Hugh Beaver, managing director of the famous Guinness brewery.

He was out shooting in Ireland and got into an argument about whether the golden plover ranked as Europe's fastest game bird.

Beaver, believing that records sparked pub and bar disputes around the world, decided the time was right to produce the ultimate reference book for superlatives.

Twins Norris and Ross McWhirter, who were running a fact-finding agency for British newspapers, were picked to launch the book. It still changes up to 25 percent of its records each year.

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