The phone box made famous in the film Local Hero is at the centre of an unofficial world record for most people to be squeezed inside.

A total of 16 girls aged six to 15 managed to cram into the kiosk in Pennan, Banffshire, which found fame when it featured in Bill Forsyth's 1983 film.

The youngsters, all members of the skipping group Skip 2 The Beat in the nearby village of Portsoy, helped the Banffshire Coast Tourism Partnership claim the unofficial record.

The previous best figure of 14 was set in the Royal Mile in 2003.

But Guinness World Records has already told Skip 2 The Beat that the record could not be officially recognised because the phone boxes were unique to Britain.

A spokeswoman said: "It is too specific to be recognised as a world record."

Nevertheless, their coach, Sylvanna Matheson, said: "It's absolutely brilliant. We thought we could maybe get 15 but the girls managed to squeeze in another."

Karen Crowe, the Banffshire Coast Tourism Partnership chairperson, said: "The girls have been practising really hard. During one practice one of the smaller girls got a bit crushed and there were some tears."

Local Hero, which starred Burt Lancaster, told the story of American oil representatives who were looking to build a refinery in a Scots village but found they were overcome by the beauty of the surrounding area.

Also starring Peter Capaldi and Denis Lawson, it was shot in Pennan and last year topped a critics' poll for the best use of locations in Britain.

As the girls prepared for their record attempt, one youngster performed a Highland fling while a piper played. Then they carefully got into the kiosk one by one. When all 16 were in, they remained in position for around five minutes.

"It was amazing, I don't have a clue how they did it," said Mrs Crowe. "The first girl went up into the top of the box then the rest piled in underneath. It was quite a feat."

Ian Dunlop, area director of VisitScotland, said: "The Pennan phone box is a real draw for tourism with a host of sightseers from around the world.

"What better way to acknowledge the status than to attempt this record-breaking challenge and make the red phone booth famous for yet another reason."