Oxford University student's Scrabble world record bid

An international Scrabble champion is thought to have broken the record for playing the greatest number of simultaneous games.

Chris May, 29, a musicology student at the University of Oxford, played 28 games, each against a different opponent, at the same time.

The current Guinness World Record stands at 25 games, set in India in 2007 by Ganesh Asirvatham.

Mr May, from Australia, won the Scrabble championship there in 2011.

To claim the record he needed to win at least 75% of the games played.

He won 25 out of 28 games (89%) in just over four hours.

Mr May, who is currently ranked ninth in the world, said: "I'm exhausted. I've never done anything like this before.

"It's not something I'm falling over myself to do again but it was great to do it."

Independent reports, photographs and video footage from the event will now be sent to Guinness World Records which will verify whether Mr May has broken the record.

Games were played according to British tournament Scrabble rules and his opponents include staff and students at the university.

The event has already raised more than £1,000 for ARCh - a Bicester-based charity which aims to support children in Oxfordshire with reading difficulties.

Jane Rendle, from the charity, said she hoped the event would "help highlight the importance of reading as well as show how much fun can be had with words".