Royal Mint coins world record

ROYAL Mint staff used hard cash to set a new Guinness World Record yesterday for coin tossing, in a bid involving hundreds of people.

It was a case of heads you win, tails you win as the money-making factory in Llantrisant, Wales, played host to 850 workers and hundreds of family and friends.

The outcome was far from being a toss up, with a new world record established at the flip of a coin - or several hundred. "It was a great success with a new world record of 1,697 coins being tossed simultaneously," said a Royal Mint spokeswoman.

"After a final, nail-biting count to verify the number of coins officially flipped, the Royal Mint team were confirmed as the new world record holders."

The title was snatched from previous holder, the Achariya World Class Educational Institution from Puducherry in India, which achieved a total of 1,485 simultaneous coin tosses on 6 August.

The record attempt took place within the high security facility, which mints coinage for countries across the globe. It took place during an open day, which meant family and friends got a rare glimpse inside the complex.

Newly-minted 50p coins commemorating the 2012 Olympics, seen for the first time only this week, were used to set the record. "Everyone had to return their coins because they all needed to be counted so the record could be checked and ratified," the spokeswoman said.

"But all those taking part were given a nice new, shiny 50p piece in a case."