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Viral picture of two widowed penguins comforting each other crowned ‘Best Photo of 2020’

And it's really not hard to see why.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 22nd December 2020
Tobias Baumgaertner / Instagram – @tobiasvisuals / Ocean Photography Awards

A viral picture of two widowed penguins comforting each other while staring into the distance together has taken the top prize at a prestigious photography competition.

After amassing hundreds of thousands of likes and comments on social media, the stunning shot – taken by photographer Tobias Baumgaertner at St Kilda Pier, Melbourne – has won a prize at Oceanographic magazine’s Ocean Photograph Awards 2020, with many calling one of the best photos of the year.

And it’s really not hard to see why.

Tobias Baumgaertner bagged the ‘Community Choice Award’ at the Ocean Photograph Awards 2020 for his moving photograph – originally taken in 2019 – which quickly went viral earlier this year when he shared it to Instagram.

He explained in the caption that the two penguins appeared to have lost their respective partners.

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He wrote: “During times like this the truly lucky ones are those that can be with the person/people they love most.

“I captured this moment about a year ago.

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“These two Fairy penguins poised upon a rock overlooking the Melbourne skyline were standing there for hours, flipper in flipper, watching the sparkling lights of the skyline and ocean. A volunteer approached me and told me that the white one was an elderly lady who had lost her partner and apparently so did the younger male to the left.

Since then they meet regularly comforting each other and standing together for hours watching the dancing lights of the nearby city.”

Tobias Baumgaertner / Instagram – @tobiasvisuals / Ocean Photography Awards

He continued: “I spent three full nights with this penguin colony until I was able to get this picture. Between not being able or allowed to use any lights and the tiny penguins continuously moving, rubbing their flippers on each other’s backs and cleaning one another, it was really hard to get a shot but I got lucky during one beautiful moment.

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“I hope you enjoy this moment as much as I did.”

You can view the rest of the 2020 finalists and award winners here.

For more of Tobias’ photography, you can follow him on Instagram here, or head to his website.

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The Chestergate pub in Stockport is at it again with some of the most wonderfully Manc scenes you’ll ever see

Danny Jones Danny Jones

The legendary Chestergate pub in Stockport is back with another belter of a video, following on from their viral belly-flashing clip of 2022.

The Mersey Square boozer has painted yet another quintessentially Northern depiction of UK pub culture with the latest Manc scenes they’ve captured around the karaoke machine.

If you’ve never had the pleasure of stumbling into The Chestergate in Stockport town centre, the long-standing boozer currently operated by publican chain Blind Tiger Inns, you’re seriously missing out.

While it might not be the flashiest of pubs, when it comes to entertainment, it always delivers.

Whether it’s stunts like renaming themselves ‘The Southgate’ whenever the Euros or World Cup rolls around, or the locals just genuinely having a whale of a time no matter what day of the week it is, it really sums up the best of pub culture.

The Chestergate went viral for some of the most British footage ever caught on film back in 2022 and the videos saw a huge wave of love and support flooding in for the pub, as well as a healthy amount of chuckles. Safe to say we were chuffed to see them pop back up on our feed again recently.

Karaoke night at The Chestergate literally never disappoints.

Forget ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ or ‘Champagne Supernova’ for karaoke songs – we’ll take a cacophony of inaudible throwback pop music, whilst another bloke and his hype man try and MC over a totally ill-fitting beat any day of the week.

And that’s handy because you’ll find those kinds of shenanigans happening at this place all the time.

Be it hens and stags, St George’s Day celebrations; a safe-cracking-themed competition, a ‘Texas Hold ‘Em Hoedown’ dance-off, or simply the matchday crowds when the footy’s on, there’s always something going on here.

It’s simultaneously one of the most no-nonsense and somehow a non-stop shenanigan-filled paradise. They also look after their own and consider their regulars part of the family. Case and point: they threw their very own ‘Dancing Queen’ Molly a big bash for her 86th birthday and it’s such wholesome viewing.

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At this point, it’s worth flagging that we have nothing but envy for these folks and anyone who’s just out there having the time of their lives on any random weeknight.

Yes, it produced plenty of laughs for those watching online in recent times but this lot won’t mind one bit – not only is the pub seeing more and more new faces through the door but that’s the whole point of a pub, isn’t it? Going for a pint with your nearest and dearest and having a laugh.

Not only is it very Manchester but it’s Britain at its very best.

We hope to see you at The Chestergate pub in Stockport for a pint or two sometime soon and we’re making a bit of a prat of ourselves, don’t worry, we’re sure they’ll have the cameras ready for you.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The Chestergate (via Facebook)

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Tailgaters and middle lane hoggers warned to change their ‘dangerous’ driving style

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

A warning has been issued to tailgaters and motorway middle lane hoggers urging them to change their ‘dangerous’ driving style.

Do you find yourself guilty of two of the biggest driving sins from time to time?

Well, according to the latest figures released by National Highways, one in three motorists have admitted to middle lane hogging in their lives, while one in four have committed acts of tailgating on some of the UK’s fastest roads.

These shocking survey findings – which were released back in early March as the Government-owned road management company launched a new campaign – showed that lane hogging was among the behaviours that are most likely to cause motorists and passengers to feel ‘frustrated’, and tailgating was most likely to cause feelings of unease, stress, and anxiety.

Nearly a third (32%) of drivers admitted to lane hogging ‘at least occasionally’ while driving on England’s motorways and major A roads, according to the survey – which polled 2,500 adults between the ages of 16-75.

On top of this, almost seven in ten adults in England (67%) said close following or tailgating is a ‘serious problem’ on these types of roads, but nearly a quarter (23%) admitted to doing it from time to time.

Tut-tut.

Tailgaters and middle lane hoggers have been warned to change their ‘dangerous’ driving style (Credit: IPTC/Ronald Hudson)

It’s these very statistics which have led National Highways to issue an urgent warning that calls on these motorists to “carefully consider” their driving habits, as “little changes can change everything”.

Lane hogging and tailgating both fall under the offence of ‘careless driving’ in England, with the country’s police forces having the power to hand out on-the-spot fines of £100 and three penalty points to those who commit such offences.

“Middle lane hogging and tailgating are far more than mere annoyances for drivers,” warned RAC road safety spokesperson, Rod Dennis, adding that these actions “put everyone on the roads at risk.”

He continued in his reaction to the release of the latest National Highways figures: “Closely following another motorist could easily result in a serious collision should the driver ahead need to brake sharply for any reason, so the fact nearly one in four drivers admitted to doing so on some of England’s fastest and busiest roads is frightening”.

Mr Dennis said he understands that offenders “might find these habits hard to kick”, but that’s why the urgent calls for motorists to make changes are “so important”.

“By understanding that how we choose to drive affects others, we can each make a real difference to the safety of our roads,” he concluded.

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images – AA

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