Conor McNicholas is to leave BBC Worldwide's Top Gear magazine after less than a year as editor.

McNicholas, who edited NME magazine for seven years before accepting the Top Gear role last June, has left ahead of a planned redesign of the print spinoff from the BBC2 motoring TV show.

It is not known why McNicholas, who picked up several industry awards for his NME work, including PPA consumer magazine editor of the year and the British Society of Magazine Editors entertainment magazine editor of the year in 2005, is moving on from the title.

"News today is I'm moving on from Top Gear," he said on his Twitter feed late on Friday. "It was a blast. Top magazine, top people. I wish them all the best with the redesign."

At the time of his appointment it was reported that McNicholas had probably been brought on board because he had shown great success at pushing magazines, notably NME, into other media such as online radio and live events.

More ... http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/jun/29/top-gear-magazine-editor-leaves