Crying Out Loud

Town crier Michael Wood — the 84th stranger I met — took part earlier this month in an attempt to set the world record for the World’s Loudest Crier.

Click here for some details on the competition, which was part of broader celebrations to celebrate the reformation of the East Riding of Yorkshire. That’s the northeast region of England in which Michael lives and has for decades performed as the resident town crier. He has made a career out of reviving the ancient art of using just his powerful voice to make public proclamations.

BBC News’ Look North has some video footage from the event, which was held in the town of Beverley. In addition, the site Just Beverley has a wrap-up of the day’s festivities. Michael won not only World’s Loudest Competitive Cry but also World’s Quietest Cry (in an email, Michael tells me the latter was an April Fool’s joke).

I met Michael and his wife Margaret in December for a pub meal of fish and chips back when I was back in my home country of England for Christmas.

During the interview, he previewed the crying contest and also told me all about his life that took many interesting twists and turns before he became a town crier.

Separate from this month’s contest, Michael has won a host of awards for his crying. As he told me late last year: “It might not mean anything to anyone else, but it’s nice to be able to say, ‘I’m Michael Wood, British town crier champion.’ Nobody from TV comes knocking on my door, but it’s given me a lot of satisfaction.”

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