Hundreds dress as elves in world record attempt

A glitter of Christmas elves appeared in Weymouth for the world record attempt

Hundreds of people took to the streets with pointy ears, wearing red and green, in an attempt to break the world record for the largest gathering of people dressed as elves.

The entourage of elves paraded through Weymouth on Saturday, as they tried to beat Thailand, the current holders of the festive title.

Some travelled from as far as Wales, Winchester and Yeovil to show off their best elf outfits in the Dorset seaside town.

Despite everyone's efforts, Weymouth did not claim the record this year but there are hopes it can in 2026.

The town's business leader, Dawn Rondeau-Irvine said: "The record was 1,762 people and we got the numbers but just in the wrong order."

This year's attempt saw elves led by stilt walkers and Santa in his sleigh.

Registration began at Weymouth Pavilion where the elves were checked to see if they qualified to take part. If they did, they were given a wristband.

If not, they were sent to the elf ear making workshop or the make-up department where they could get elf-ready.

Reporter, Sophie Cridland, also took part in the fun

Some people, like Andy and Heather, got creative with their costumes by adding something a little extra.

Heather said: "We used to do costume making for a Star Wars group and Andy has taken his spare storm trooper and turned it into an elf.

"This is the second year we've come out and he's kind of done some upgrades this year with added lights."

Lorraine from Weymouth added some mistletoe to the front of her elf hat.

"I met Santa at the pavilion and we had a little peck, only a small one," she said.

Staff members from the Winchester School of Art put on their best festive outfits

Meanwhile, three staff members from the Winchester School of Art said they had been planning their elf outfits for "months and months".

Claire said, "I brought them here to Weymouth because it's my home town."

"We even knitted our own scarves and all the pom poms that go on the end, which took hours but it was so much fun," she said.