From bum walkers to historical clocks, Salisbury has its fair share of record holders – but they might not be what you expect. Because far from the usual feats, such as sporting efforts, the city boasts some more unusual efforts that are the envy of the world, or not…

The world’s oldest surviving clock

The unusual timepiece – which doesn’t have a face – dates from 1386, or possibly earlier, and can be found at Salisbury Cathedral.
It was restored in 1956, having struck the hours for 498 years and ticked more than 500 million times.

Tyler Hainey – Scooter World Record Holder

The most backflips completed in one minute on a kick scooter

Another childhood favourite that has taken on a more serious tone is riding a scooter.
Salisbury’s own Tyler Hainey – a world-famous scooter pictured above – beat the record of one of his idols, Dakota Schuetz, when he completed an impressive 15 flips in January last year.
Perhaps more impressively, Tyler was just 10 years old when he did it.

Most high explosives detonated in a single film take.

The most high explosives detonated in a single film take

Explosions may not be anything special on the Salisbury Plains, but the world record set was infact for a Hollywood blockbuster.
Filmmakers from MGM Studios and others descended on the location during the making of James Bond movie, No Time To Die, in 2019.
There, experts detonated 136.4kg of a TNT equivalent for the shot.

Harriet Pickrell

The fastest 20m bum walk

Shuffling around on your bottom was a favourite childhood pasttime for most of us – but it takes on a more serious meaning when world records are involved.
In 2013, during a special fundraising day held by the James Hay Partnership at Salisbury and South Wilts Sports Club, Harriet Pickrell took on this ‘cheeky’ challenge. She managed to travel 20 metres in 1 minute 4.05 seconds, smashing the previous record of 1m 39s.

Martin Rees

Yes, you read that correctly – magic tricks performed while plummeting through the air at speeds of up to 120mph.

Daredevil magician Martin Rees took on the challenge in 2016 at GoSkydive in Wiltshire.
Dropping from 15,000 feet over Salisbury, the 28-year-old managed to complete 11 tricks, verified using video from several helmet cameras.