This whopper vegetable home-grown in Hampshire has been crowned an official record breaker.

Twins Ian and Stuart Paton are celebrating after their entry at this year’s Autumn Pumpkin Festival saw them smash the UK record.

And this was despite losing two larger pumpkins to a mouse just a week before.

They reclaimed the title from their nearest rival, last year’s winner and UK record holder Mark Baggs, from Wareham.

Their 17ft circumference pumpkin beat his by more than 300lb weighing 1,884lb (134 stone or 854kg) in the contest at the Royal Victoria Country Park in Netley.

It topped Mark’s previous record of 1,520lb.

The brothers, who grow their pumpkins at Pinetops Nurseries, the family nursery they run in Lymington, picked up £1,000 prize money.

However, it could have been different as they discovered two mice underneath the pumpkin as they left for the competition.

They believe a mouse had eaten into three of their other efforts, two larger, causing them to go rotten and collapse.

This pumpkin was the last of the seven they had grown.

But despite this, father-of-two Ian, of Hazel Road, Pennington, said the winner proved 380lb heavier than their personal best, but their ultimate aim is the world record of 2,032lb.

“It’s brilliant,” said Stuart, a grandfather-of-two, of Sky End Lane, Hordle.

“We’ve grown for about 40 years and every year we get a bit closer to the world record, and it moves a bit further away from us, but today we have made a big jump.

“We just want the world record.”

The brothers, who were handing out pumpkin seeds at the event, recommended to produce one like theirs gardeners needed a greenhouse with a good seed, plenty of manure and, once a pumpkin is produced, not to let it dry out.

The contest was one of the highlights of Saturday’s Autumn Pumpkin Festival organised by the Jubilee Sailing Trust, which raises thousands of pounds for the charity.

This year’s scarecrow alley included offerings with a Hallowe’en theme, one inspired by film Despicable Me, a suited Shrek, a school pupil, workmen and Scouts.

In its sixth year, it also included numerous stalls, including arts and crafts, a puppet show and live music.

Co-ordinator Sonja Davison said volunteers had battled with the weather all week to set it up and heavy showers early on had seen visitors running for cover, but the community had rallied together and it had still proved a success.

She believed numbers could match last year’s 6,000 attendance.

Giulia Spratt, 40, of Brooklands Road, Bishop’s Waltham, was with children Valentina, two, and Florenza, six. “It’s different because of the pumpkin aspect,” she said.

“They loved it.”