In what has been labelled a disastrous start to the Top Gear revamp, lead host Chris Evans has called it quits after just one series.

The British broadcaster failed to sway a global audience with mixed to negative reviews after taking over the reigns from the Jeremy Clarkson. Add to this the endless rumours of friction between American co-host Matt LeBlanc and plummeting ratings week-on-week and the show’s demise appeared to be inevitable.

On his personal Twitter account, Evans today wrote:

“Stepping down from Top Gear. Gave it my best shot but sometimes that’s not enough. The team are beyond brilliant, I wish them all the best.”

Evans took over from Jeremy Clarkson after his high-profile fallout between the BBC production studio which involved physical abuse on set.

50-year-old Evans was eventually lured from radio land in the hopes of bringing the same charisma to the show for a reported £5 million contract over three years. It’s likely he won’t be seeing much of that deal after the show hit an all-time ratings low of just 1.9 million in the series finale.

In comparison, Top Gear at its peak under the supervision of Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond pulled in 350 million viewers per week in 170 countries.

This may not be the end of Top Gear just yet though as the BBC’s commercial arm, BBC Worldwide, pulls in AU$100 million a year from the show.

There’s reports that Matt LeBlanc is currently in talks with the network for a second series.

The post Chris Evans Calls It Quits As Top Gear Host appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

A photographer from Hong Kong has claimed first prize in the 2016 National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year Contest. Anthony Lau secured the prestigious title with a photograph of a Mongolian horseman in action.

“The snow was getting heavier, the wind was getting stronger, the morning snow was getting thinner and the light was moving away from its optimal position,” Lau said in a statement. “I knew I only had a couple of shots to get the best out of this encounter. With a bit of luck, one of my final attempts managed to capture the moment when one of the riders charged out from the morning mist along with his horses.”

Lau’s prize is a seven-day Polar Bear Photo Safari for two at Churchill Wild – Seal River Heritage Lodge, a National Geographic Unique Lodge of the World, where he will head out on guided excursions to photograph polar bears and other wildlife.

The contest also recognises the best photographers in the categories of nature, people, and cities. Lau’s image took the top spot in the people category and two Japanese photographers, Takashi Nakagawa of Tokyo and Hiroki Inoue of Hokkaido, won in the cities and nature sections, respectively.

The post See The Stunning Winners Of NatGeo’s Travel Photographer of the Year Contest appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

The temperature has cooled. Coats have come out of storage. Bed is a struggle to leave in the mornings. Winter has officially arrived in the Southern Hemisphere.

While some Australians embrace the cold and seek out snow (try these luxury alpine getaways), others crave escape. Your best bet for soaking up winter sun is to make the pilgrimage north, where dry season is in full swing and balmy weather awaits.

Whitsunday Islands | Queensland

The Whitsundays top many sun-seekers’ lists come cool weather. To call the islands “picturesque” almost downplays their beauty. Their iconic turquoise waters, white sand beaches, and lush rainforests are the stuff travel guide dreams are made of. Head to Hamilton Island for resorts, Long Island for exotic walking tracks, and Whitsunday Island for a photograph on stunning Whitehaven Beach.

Explorers Highway | South Australia & Northern Territory

Pack the snacks and prep the playlist. It’s road trip time. Trace the trail of pioneer John McDouall Stuart as you bisect the continent from Adelaide to Darwin on the Explorers Highway. The route not only takes you towards warmth, it also passes many of Australia’s notable sights. The Barossa Valley, the Flinders Ranges, Alice Springs, Uluru, Kings Canyon, and the Devils Marbles are a few options for your itinerary.

Darwin | Northern Territory

Darwin is a perfect Aussie winter stop, whether or not you take the Explorers Highway to get there. The tropical capital boasts museums, bars, restaurants, galleries, and Crocosaurus Cove – where you can take a dip with one of the scaly carnivores in the Cage of Death, if you dare. Don’t forget to explore Darwin’s backyard during your visit. Kakadu National Park is home to hundreds of types of mammals, reptiles, birds, and freshwater fish, many of which only occur in the area.

Port Douglas | Queensland

Palm-lined beaches and close proximity to the Great Barrier Reef make Port Douglas a firm favourite for winter travel. In addition to diving, visitors enjoy pristine Four Mile Beach, kitesurfing, five-star resorts, boating, the Reef Marina, and Mossman Gorge. If you’re up for a drive, ride the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway and explore Kuranda. Port Douglas offers a superb mix of natural beauty and man-made luxury.

Daintree Rainforest | Queensland

The world’s oldest rainforest could be a stop on your Port Douglas trip, but it deserves an entry all its own. The Daintree is the largest continuous area of tropical rainforest on the Australian continent, clocking in at around 1,200 square kilometres. Both the landscape and the creatures that inhabit it are strikingly diverse. A stop at Cape Tribulation, one of the only places in the world where the rainforest meets the ocean, is a must.

Gibb River Road | Western Australia

Tackle one of the country’s greatest four-wheel-drive adventures in Western Australia. The Gibb River Road is a 660-km odyssey through the wild heart of the Kimberley. Along the way you can bushwalk in Bell Gorge, take a scenic flight over Mitchell Falls, fish for barramundi at Jack’s Waterhole, and see freshwater crocodiles in the Windjana Gorge National Park. There’s no better way to experience the remote and dramatic scenery the region is famous for.

The post 6 Warm Places To Go In Australia In Winter appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Not many mortals can meet the lofty asking price of a now sold out McLaren P1. For those who can foot the US$1,350,000 price tag though, the car is often found banished to the confines of a collectors corner, only seeing sunlight from a heavily fortified window.

This is not the case for one Japanese lawyer named Hiramatsu. He drives his British green McLaren P1 on a daily basis through Tokyo traffic and loves it. On the weekends you’ll find him at Fuji Speedway stretching the car’s legs or at supercar meets or the famed Hakone Turnpike stretch of road.

RELATED: 10 Japanese Roads You Have To Drive

The post How To Daily Drive A McLaren P1 In Japan appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

The start of the working week means the beginning of another high-intensity workout program. As any man knows, it’s not easy to keep up with the stresses of a career whilst maintaining a protein-rich diet required for building muscles without adding fat.

So what’s the deal with protein anyway?

The human body needs protein as the main constituent for repairing body tissue and fighting infection. As well as being a source of energy, protein is also satiating meaning that it makes the body feel fuller over a duration without the sugar rush and dive that junk food provides.

RELATED: 5 Before-bed Beverages That Can Help You Lose Weight

Thankfully there is a quick, natural and easy protein hit that takes little preparation. These eight obtainable snacks from the supermarket are also guaranteed to keep you well away from the snack drawer throughout the day, so listen carefully gym gentlemen.

Want more cool food tips? Click here to see all of our handy food pointers. 

The post 8 Portable Protein Snacks That'll Get You Ready For The Gym appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Barack Obama is set to drop the mic on his presidential duties next January and as such there has been much speculation as to what the 54-year-old father of two is planning to do with all his spare time.

In a story about how Obama spends his time outside of work, The New York Times included a reference to Obama’s dream of opening up a t-shirt shack in Hawaii once he leaves presidency.

“Mr. [Rahm] Emanuel, who is now the mayor of Chicago but remains close to the president, said he and Mr. Obama once imagined moving to Hawaii to open a T-shirt shack that sold only one size (medium) and on colour (white). Their dream was that they would no longer have to make decisions…”

The New York Times also reported that during difficult White House meetings when no good decision seemed possible, Mr. Emanuel would sometimes turn to Mr. Obama and say, ‘White,’ Mr. Obama would in turn say, ‘Medium’.

We can’t blame the 44th U.S. President for craving a life of simplicity after his time holding office, and with rumours that along with the t-shirt shack, he plans to own an NBA team or do philanthropic work, we can only guess where Obama will end up next.

The post Barack Obama Plans To Open A T-Shirt Shack In Hawaii appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

It’s Monday again and what a weekend it has been. There was the Federal Election, a little unexpected sun, and the start of Dry July for all of you poor, yet sensible, souls keen to get their booze intake in check.

Whether you’re wondering why Ryan Reynolds is perfect husband material, what on earth NASA’s mission to Jupiter is all about, how you can rent a furry friend or it’s lunchtime and you’re just plain hungry, here are 5 Pointless and Awesome facts to ease the Monday madness. You’re welcome.

#1 What People Want To Change In Their Spouse

Nobody is perfect but having the ‘perfect’ spouse is clearly a priority in our modern world. Plastic Surgery Portal conducted a survey of over 750 married people to find out what they liked best and least about their spouses’ physical traits, and here’s what they found:

• Millennials (aged 26-33) are more likely to call themselves superficial than any other generation.
• 39% of surveyors reported the entire face most attractive, followed by eyes (17%) and the of course, the butt (10%).
• 31% of surveyors think the stomach is the least attractive part of their spouse’s appearance.
• 33% of respondents said they dislike their spouse’s stomach enough that they would change it, followed by teeth at 11%.
• Length of marriage also plays a role, with a shocking 18% of respondents reporting that they no longer find their spouse attractive at all.
• Almost 8% of spouses stop finding their partner attractive after the first 2 years of marriage.
• 71% of people married 6-10 years think their spouse could lose some weight.
• Only 32% rated their spouse’s attractiveness as a perfect 10 when they first met.

Ouch.

#2 Interesting Facts About NASA’s Mission To Jupiter

Did you know that this week NASA‘s Juno Mission arrives in orbit around Jupiter? After 5 years and 445 million miles the mission will begin an unprecedented scientific study of the planet that shaped our solar system. Here are 5 things you need to know about this ambitious and ground-breaking mission, via Gizmodo.

1. By the time Juno arrives in Jupiter’s orbit, it will be one of the fastest human-made objects in history, moving approximately 260,000km/h relative to Earth.
2. Even outfitted with a first-of-its-kind radiation vault, Juno will accrue radiation damage over time. By the end of its mission in February 2018, it will have been dosed with the equivalent of 100 million dental X-rays.
3. When Juno phones home to tell us that its orbital insertion manoeuvre went off smoothly, the signal it sends to Earth will be roughly a billion times weaker than what you’d receive in a typical phone call.
4. Juno is the furthest solar powered mission ever conceived, built to run on the sun in an environment 25 times dimmer than the Earth.
5. JunoCam allows amateur astronomers to decide which of Jupiter’s swirling storm clouds should be photographed during each of Juno’s 33 close flybys.

#3 Overheard At The Australian Polling Booths

What happens at the polling booth, stays at the polling booth, right? Wrong. As Australians across the country pondered over political parties and got stuck into the sausage sizzle voting at the Federal Election on Saturday, plenty of things were said and overheard at the polling booths. Here’s some gems, via News.com.au

• “How many trees did we cut down for this?”
• “When do you find out if you’ve won?” (little boy to his dad after he’d voted)
• “Come here and tell mummy who to vote for”
• “Should I put a tick or a cross in the boxes?”
• A hungover guy asking if he had to write his name on his ballot paper.
• “Wow, wow she’s hot, I’ll vote for her”
• “Australian Sex Party – where you cum first”

Ah, ‘straya.

#4 Unexpected Things You Can Rent

“We’re moving toward an access society, where you’re not defined by the things you own but the experiences you have,” Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky recently said. With a study published in TIME reporting that nearly half of American adults are engaging in the access economy, temporarily owning innovations and luxuries are as easy as ordering an Uber or logging into Netflix. Here are some companies expanding the spectrum of available experiences with items for rent that will blow your mind, via GOOD & Huffington Post.

1. Sex Dungeons: KinkBNB allows people to rent spaces designed and equipped for sexual satisfaction.
2. Solar Panels: Yeloha, currently available in the U.S., offers homeowners the ability to become “sun partners” and tap into cheap, sustainable energy from someone else’s roof.
3. Pets: Walkzee lets you borrow a shelter dog to take for a walk – a service beneficial to both human and animal.
4. A Line Stander: SameOleLineDudes charges $25 for the first and hour and $10 for each additional hour to wait in line for your show tickets, restaurants or anything else.
5. A Friend: Rent A Friend allows you to hire a person to show you around a new town, teach you a new skill, introduce you to other people, go to a movie or restaurant with you and more.

#5 The History Of The Hot Dog

• The term ‘hot dog’ is thought to have originated from sporting events of the 1880s and early 1890s. The ‘hot’ part referred to hot sausages (often called ‘red hots’) and the ‘dog’ part may have come from questionable sausage ingredients.
• Hot dogs became an American favourite when food-cart vendors put wieners in buns so they could be eaten without utensils by factory workers who worked too far from home to go back for mealtimes.
• At the turn of the 20th century, when going to the beach started becoming something the middle and working classes could do, hot dog carts became a popular option at destinations like Coney Island.

The post What People Want To Change Most In Their Spouse appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

When you’re living solo the options can be limited, however, this contemporary Taipei apartment definitely has the bachelor pad tick of approval when it comes to making the most of small spaces in style.

Designed this year by C.H. Interior, ‘Light and Shadows’ combines warm woody textures with glass and concrete tiles in a mostly monochrome colour palette for a masculine and stylish space perfect for any man living alone.

The post Find Laid-Back Luxury In This Taipei Bachelor Pad appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Alright, alright. Actor and part-time zen philosopher Matthew McConaughey is about to add Professor to his list of talents with a new teaching gig at the University of Texas Austin.

As expected, McConaughey will be teaching a class on film alongside director Gary Ross. Titled “Advanced Producing: Script to Screen”, McConaughey’s class is a bit of a behind-the-scenes look at the his new Civil War drama ‘Free State of Jones’.

“By studying the movie’s source material, script, shot lists, storyboards, shooting schedule, VFX, final cut and even exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, students will garner insight into the production of a major Hollywood feature,” the course description says.

There is one hitch, however. Most of McConaughey’s teaching will be done via video. Bit of an anti-climax for his fans, although he is slated to appear in person at least once during the semester.

The post Matthew McConaughey Is Now A University Professor appeared first on DMARGE Australia.