Actuary sets new joke-telling record

Actuary Donald MacLeod has smashed the record for the most jokes told in an hour.

The 39-year-old told 580 jokes in a Glasgwegian pub last night, breaking the previous record of 549, held by Australian comedian Lehmo.

Previous record-holders include Tim Vine, who cracked 499 jokes an hour.

MacLeod, who performed under the name Donnie Maroot, said ‘I've never done anything like this before, and didn't really do much practising.

‘All my jokes are original ones. I tend to post one on Facebook every day and I've been doing that for years so I've built up a few hundred.’

‘My big advantage over Tim Vine is that when he did his attempt, he had to wait for people to stop laughing. My jokes are all terrible, so nobody laughs.’

His gags included: ‘What would the drummer in the Mexican Beatles be called? Gringo Starr’ and ‘Where's the best place in South Africa to get a Batman outfit? Cape Town.’

MacLeod, head actuary at financial mutual Scottish Friendly, was raising money for four charities in the Western Isles.

Published: 6 Mar 2014