Australian town crier has loudest shout in the world after growing up as the 'quiet kid' - Guinness World Records

Kingston Town Crier Chris Whyman competed at the World Championships in Chester, England this past week. Photo supplied by Chris Whyman. Kingston’s town crier Chris Whyman has spent more than four decades making his voice heard around the world, but his latest international competition gave him another chance to put the Limestone City in the spotlight.

A 25-year-old New Brunswick woman only a few months into her new job as a town crier is getting ready to compete at a world tournament of her peers — many of them twice her age. Summer Gallant spent her early adult years travelling before she returned home to Riverview, N. B., where she channeled her theatre experience into a successful bid to land the town crier gig. On a recent summer day, Gallant was wearing an ornate, red-and-blue jacket and tricorn hat when she turned toward the public gallery of Riverview’s town council chamber, rang a handheld bell and launched into a centuries-old tradition. “Hear ye! Hear ye!” she bellowed as she opened a swearing-in ceremony for Riverview’s new council. This week, Gallant will travel to the United Kingdom to compete against some of the world’s best town criers, starting Monday. Story continues below advertisement

I am grateful for the opportunity to share a few modest reflections on the volatile state of affairs as they relate to national security, here at home and abroad. Some days it feels as if the world is spinning off its axis. How and when Canada steps up, assumes leadership roles and reaches its true potential in this moment will require enormous skill, effort and political will. Our national security apparatus will figure prominently in our ability to do so. As it has throughout our history, that means protecting our own interests while accepting our responsibility to contribute to the security of others.