Bella the cat breaks 'loudest purr' world record

A 14-year-old cat has broken the Guinness World Record for the loudest purr - from the comfort of her favourite cushion.

Bella, from Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, achieved a purr measuring 54.6 decibels, equivalent to the volume of a boiling kettle.

Her feat was captured by an official adjudicator and an acoustic engineer who blocked out all external noise.

Nicole Spink, Bella's owner, said she "couldn't be more thrilled".

"She has been our family's companion for many years - we love her to bits and are so proud of her achievement," Ms Spink said.

Dave Wilson, the official Guinness World Records adjudicator who oversaw Bella's record-breaking attempt, said: "It's always an exciting day when there is the potential for a new world record so we waited in anticipation to see whether Bella would be able to do it."

Nicole Spink with official Guinness World Records adjudicator Dave Wilson

Bella needed to purr louder than 50 decibels to achieve the record and Mr Wilson said "the results were immediately obvious".

Ms Spink said: "We've always known Bella had a really loud purr - we even have to turn up the volume to hear the TV over her purring - and that's always after mealtimes.

"So, when we saw that the record for the World's Loudest Purr was up for grabs, we knew we had to put Bella forward, and we're so pleased we did."

She said the certificate would get a "really prominent place in the house".

"We're going to have to choose which child's photos to take down first," she said.