March 19, 2015

Top News Stories –

Top Gear France smashes channel ratings in first episode as critics give it the thumbs up –
Around a million viewers tuned in to Top Gear France – the best ever rating for the channel broadcasting the show, made by BBC Worldwide France reportedly for up to €400,000 per programme. The Gallic version features comic actor Philippe Lellouche, driving ace Bruce Jouanny and car expert Yann Larret-Menezo and The Stig. [Daily Telegraph] See Video of the Day.
Philippe_LellouchePhilippe Lellouche

Zayn Malik leaves One Direction tour after being signed off with stress –
Zayn Malik has left One Direction’s tour of Asia and has returned to the UK after being signed off with stress. A statement said: “Zayn has been signed off with stress and is flying back to the UK to recuperate. “The band wish him well and will continue with their performances in Manila and Jakarta.” On Wednesday the singer declared his love for his fiancee, Little Mix star Perrie Edwards, after photos emerged of him with his arm around another woman. [BBC]
Zayn_Malik_November_2014Zayn Malik

Russia: Gold found in roadside socks lands man in court
A Russian man has been found guilty of illegally possessing more than a dozen pieces of gold he found in some socks by the roadside, it’s been reported. Bagaudin Estermirov, from the Amur Region in Russia’s Far East, found 18 ingots of gold worth 10.5 million rubles ($171,000; £116,184), wrapped in three black jersey socks in bushes in the town of Zeya last October. A Russian district court on 17 March handed down a two-year suspended sentence for “illegal possession of a precious metal” after Estermirov fully admitted his guilt. The gold, which weighed about 8kg, was handed over to the state. [BBC]

Charlie Sheen hurls racist Twitter rant at Barack Obama –
Charlie Sheen, once the highest paid actor on US television before his career unravelled because of his drug addiction, has launched an attack on Barack Obama. The son of Martin Sheen and former star of Two and a Half Men, posted a garbled attack on the US president in the early hours of the morning on Twitter. “Barry Satera Kenya u won’t attend a soldier’s funeral uhkros da street that u kild yet u hav time 4 brackets? s a d.” Sheen’s anger appeared to be a reference to the funeral of Major General Harold Greene, a two-star general killed in Afghanistan. [Daily Telegraph]

Tag Heuer teams up with Google and Intel for Android watch –
Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer has announced it is to build an Android Wear-powered smartwatch. The firm – which is part of the luxury goods-maker LVMH Group – is forming a partnership with Google and the chipmaker Intel to create the device. Switzerland dominates the high-end watch sector. This marks the first of its companies to join Google’s wearable tech ecosystem. [BBC]

Video of the Day –

Top Gear France Trailer

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November 16, 2015

Top News Stories –

‘Pastafarian’ wins right to wear colander on head in driving licence photo –
A woman in the US has won the right to wear a colander on her head in her driving licence photo. The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles had previously forbidden Lindsay Miller from sporting the unconventional headgear, worn by followers of the satirical Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or ‘Pastafarians’. However, the decision was overturned after Miller launched an appeal with the assistance of the Secular Legal Society. Lawyer Patty DeJuneas told the Boston Globe: “I’m not a Pastafarian. But my understanding, and my view of it, is that it’s a secular religion that uses parody to make certain points about a belief system.” The Pastafarian ‘religion’ was founded a decade ago after the Kansas school board came under pressure to teach the theory of intelligent design in biology class as an alternative to evolution. [Daily Telegraph]

Town pays people to cycle to work –
An Italian town will pay people hundreds of euros per year if they cycle to work instead of using their cars. The council in Massarosa, just north of Pisa, says the pilot scheme will see cyclists paid 25 cents per kilometre travelled, up to a monthly cap of 50 euros (£35), the regional Il Tirreno news website reports. That means commuters who switch to two wheels could pocket up to 600 euros (£424) in a year. It’s said to be the first such scheme in Italy. Fifty workers will be included in the 12-month pilot, which will use a smartphone app to record the distance travelled each day. The scheme is being funded from fines collected from traffic tickets in the town, which by law has to be reinvested in road safety, the site points out. [BBC]

Budget private jet firm launched by French rugby legend –
Philippe Saint-André, the coach who took France to the quarter-finals of the Rugby World Cup, aims to democratise private jet travel. He and ex-player Christophe Ducluzeau have founded Le Jet, offering London to Paris flights for £363 one-way. The 45-minute service will launch on November 23 and will initially run on Mondays and Fridays, ferrying passengers between the private jet terminal of Stansted Airport and Le Bourget airport near Paris. Further London-Paris services and routes to other European destinations are also being planned. [Daily Telegraph]

Video of the Day –

Moto Experiment: Truth or Drop: How far will people go to protect their phones

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  • Six people, including a child, have been found dead on private property in Anderson County, southeast of Dallas, Texas, USA. The victims are members of two different families. One person, unrelated to the victims, is charged with one count of murder. More charges are expected. (CBS DFW)
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November 17, 2015

Top News Stories –

Charlie Sheen confirms he is HIV positive –
Hollywood star Charlie Sheen has confirmed he is living with HIV in a US television interview. “I am here to admit that I am HIV positive,” he said. The former star of sitcom Two And A Half Men appeared on NBC’s Today show, ending days of intense media speculation. Sheen revealed to Matt Lauer he had paid “enough to take it into the millions” to keep people from going public about his illness. “I have to put a stop to this onslaught, this barrage of attacks and of sub-truths,” he said, adding he was diagnosed four years ago. [BBC] In March 2015 Sheen launched a racist Twitter attack on Barack Obama.
Charlie_SheenCharlie Sheen

Bangkok sets record for longest half-marathon after route blunder –
The 6,000 runners who just completed the Bangkok half-marathon will have a special mention in sporting trivia quizzes for years to come, after they were forced to run an extra four miles to reach the finish line. Mark Kent, the British ambassador to Thailand, was among those who finished the longest half-marathon in history after a route blunder by organisers. The mishap occurred as the wrong gate was opened on a main road for the runners to complete a U-turn, some two miles further on than planned. The organisers have apologised profusely for the mistake and offered all competitors a free commemorative T-shirt bearing the message: “Finisher of 27.6 km”. An actual half-marathon should last 21.1 kms, or about 13 miles. [Daily Telegraph]

 

Video of the Day –

ACROSS THE SKY – a world record slackline in the utah desert from Camp 4 Collective on Vimeo.

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December 28, 2015

Top News Stories –

Man dies after blowing up condom machine, says German police –
A man died on Christmas Day in Germany after he was hit in the head by a flying piece of metal from a condom machine that he and two accomplices blew up in an apparent robbery attempt, police said on Monday. The 29-year-old man was taken to hospital in the western town of Schoeppingen, near the Dutch border, by the two other men who fled the scene of the explosion in a car, leaving behind condoms and money scattered around the gutted vending machine. The two men told hospital officials that their friend had fallen down the stairs, injuring his head. Suspicious of their story, the officials called the police. During questioning, police said, one of them admitted that the three had blown up the condom machine. Police said the three men apparently got into a car after triggering the explosion, but the 29-year-old did not close his door and was hit by debris when the machine exploded. [Daily Telegraph]

Lemmy, Motorhead frontman, dies aged 70 after cancer diagnosis –
Motorhead frontman Lemmy has died aged 70, two days after learning he had cancer, the British band has announced. Lemmy formed the rock group in 1975 and recorded 22 albums, including Ace of Spades, as he became one of music’s most recognisable voices and faces. The band said on its Facebook page: “Our mighty, noble friend Lemmy has passed away after a short battle with an extremely aggressive cancer.” Lemmy was born Ian Fraser Kilmister in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, in 1945. He lived in Anglesey, Wales, as a child and acquired the nickname Lemmy while at school, although he claimed to have had no idea where it came from. [BBC]
Lemmy-MotorheadLemmy in 2005

Game of Thrones tops list of 2015’s most pirated shows –
For the fourth year running, fantasy series Game of Thrones has topped a list of the most pirated TV shows. According to Torrentfreak, the season five finale was illegally downloaded 14.4m times. More than half of those came in the week after its US premiere. The Walking Dead and The Big Bang Theory rounded up the top three, with 6.6m and 4.4m downloads respectively. Earlier this year, Game of Thrones broke a record when more than 258,000 users shared the show simultaneously. The HBO drama was mainly downloaded on BitTorrent. [BBC] Last year Game of Thrones was only downloaded 8.1 million times.
Sophie-TurnerSophie Turner (Sansa Stark in Game of Thrones)

Video of the Day –

FINAL from Carmel Joy on Vimeo.

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