Guinness has launched a global campaign to celebrate true Irish friendliness and make St Patrick's Day 2012 officially the Friendliest Day of the Year - with the assistance of Guinness World Records.

The Guinness Storehouse in Dublin, the home of Guinness, was the natural place to kick start the Guinness campaign - which aims to unite more than a million people worldwide in the name of friendliness through two Guinness World Records titles.

Fergal Murray, the Guinness Master Brewer, officially launched the friendliness campaign by making the first pledge to be friendly to everyone and anyone he meets on St Patrick's Day, Saturday 17 th March 2012.

The online pledge, which can also be accessed through Facebook, is asking fans of Guinness the world over to make a pledge to commit to friendliness on St Patrick's Day this year , and in the process achieve a Guinness World Records title for Most pledges for a campaign. To be part of this Guinness World Records title, go to www.guinness.com or www.facebook.com/guinness click on the 'COUNT ME IN' button to pledge.

In addition to pledging to be friendly, Guinness is asking people to join official St Patrick's Day celebrations at one of 4,000 venues worldwide that will be monitored as part of the Guinness World Records attempt for Largest global St Patricks' Day celebration.

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"Every year, St Patrick's Day is celebrated by millions of people all around the world as a special occasion imbued with the spirit of true Irish friendliness - it has become the perfect opportunity to get together with friends, raise a pint of Guinness and enjoy one of the greatest days of the year," says Fergal Murray, Master Brewer of Guinness.

In order to successfully set the world record, on 17th March 2012, Guinness World Records adjudicators will be stationed at Guinness St Patrick's Day events around the globe to painstakingly count the number of people celebrating this famous day, whilst verifying online pledges to assess whether St Patrick's Day has achieved the records: Most pledges received for a campaign and the Largest St Patrick's Day Celebration. If successful, Guinness World Records will officially confirm that St Patrick's Day is 'The Friendliest Day of the Year'.