New Zealand mayor sets longest interview record

Tim Shadbolt, mayor of the southern town of Invercargill, talked for 26 hours and four seconds, the broadcaster NewstalkZB reported.u00a0Shadbolt and interviewer Tom Conroy were given a certificate by a representative from the Guinness World Records for the "interviewathon".

The interview was designed to raise funds for first aid group St. John ambulance.u00a0The previous record, set in Spain in 2009, was 12 hours and 30 seconds.

Shadbolt discussed a variety of matters, "including his many, varied, and colourful past lives", NewstalkZB said.The event, which was aired live, was also the longest one-on-one interview on any media and the longest single event on New Zealand TV, Conroy said