London - More than 100 men and women clad just in their underpants trooped on to the concourse of a central London train station Thursday hoping to set a new world record for a bizarre gathering of this kind.

The effort, entitled Pants to Poverty, was organized by the Fair Trade Organization to mark Guinness World Records Day.

A total of 116 men and women turned up for the event on a cold and rainy day at St Pancras train station in London, from where the Eurostar train also departs.

They were attempting to set a new world record for the largest gathering of people wearing underpants.

"It's great to see so many people eager to come together for a joint cause and have fun in their underpants on doom and gloom and the unforgiving British weather," said Guinness World Records' editor-in-chief Craig Glenday.

The underwear trick was just one of a number of stunts being attempted to mark Guinness World Records Day.

In the north London borough of Camden, participants guzzled their way through a 285.5-metre long line of pizzas, defeating a previous record set in Florida in May this year when 220 metres of pizza were devoured.

Other events in Britain include attempts to make the largest cup of tea with the largest tea bag. In Belfast, in Northern Ireland, an attempt was undertaken to set a record for the largest amount of people running in high-heeled shoes.

The Guinness Book of Records traditionally has the last word on whether the individual efforts qualify for entry into the famous publication. (dpa)