UPDATE
ukpa British star Adele marked her long-awaited comeback with a record six gongs at The Grammy Awards on a night overshadowed by the death of fabled singer Whitney Houston.
reuters Greece's parliament approved a deeply unpopular austerity bill Monday to secure a second EU/IMF bailout and avoid national bankruptcy as buildings burned across central Athens and violence spread around the country. Cinemas, cafes, shops and banks were set ablaze in central Athens and black-masked protesters fought riot police.
PhuketWatch Daily Media Wrap
PHUKET: A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.
smh.com.au US singer Whitney Houston may have drowned after falling asleep in a bathtub at a Beverly Hills hotel, possibly after taking a drug used to treat anxiety and depression, US reports say. The reports came as Bobbi Kristina, Houston's 18-year-old daughter, was released from hospital after being taken there earlier "because she was having a complete breakdown", a source told People magazine.
nytimes.com Whitney Houston died as a cautionary tale, but the most painful cautionary tales are about people who were heroes once. Ms Houston's fall attracted so much notice because she had so far to go, down from the clouds into the abyss.
bangkokpost.com Thai Airways International is reviving its plan to create yet another budget carrier following the failure to get its to partnership with Singapore-based Tiger Airways off the ground. The flag carrier has now turned to Nok Air, its budget affiliate, to help set up a new airline whose prime mission would be to compete head-on with Thai AirAsia, which has the lion's share of the no-frills business in Thailand.
smh.com.au A Qantas superjumbo A380 with 435 passengers on board for Singapore veered off track along the runway at London's Heathrow Airport after a steering fault emerged during two aborted take-off attempts.
cnn.com Dressed in white, Suu Kyi popped out from the sunroof of her vehicle, clutching in her hand flowers that have come to symbolize defiance. She plans to hit the campaign trail for the next 50 days.
DPA Prasakorn Sakonsattayathorn, whose family owns the five-star Sukhothai Hotel, submitted the winning bid at an auction for the licence plate bearing the Thai letters 'Yor Ying Yor Ying' and numbers '9999', the Bangkok Post reported. Land Department deputy director Asdasathai Rattanadilok Na Phuket, who directed the auction, said the 11 million was 'the highest bid in history, costing more than the price of a car.'
tvnz.co.nz Low-cost carrier Lion Air has postponed plans for a 2012 share flotation worth more than $US1 billion, its chief executive and co-founder said, bowing to a stock market reversal that soured last week's debut of Indonesian flag carrier Garuda. Lion Air, Indonesia's biggest carrier by passenger volume, has ambitious plans for expansion.
abc.net.au Umar Patek, the man accused of making the explosives used in the 2002 Bali bombings, has appeared in court on the first day of his trial in Indonesia. He was arrested in January in Abbottabad, the same Pakistani town where Osama bin Laden had his safe house.
smh.com.au A Brazilian plane has made a forced landing after a passenger had a "psychotic attack", entered the cockpit and assaulted a pilot, crew members and passengers who tried to subdue him, witnesses say. The TAM Airlines jet was en route from Montevideo, Uruguay to Sao Paulo.
MCOT South Korea's military joined the annual Thai-US joint military exercise for the first time this week as the maneuvers kicked off in Thailand's eastern seaboard province of Chonburi. The 10-day joint drill, code named Cobra Gold 2012, is scheduled to end on February 17.
eurasiareview.com Burma's tourism industry is struggling to cope with the influx of travellers and businessmen visiting the country, with hotels at bursting point and the government fearing humilitation if it is unable to accommodate an expected surge in numbers over the coming year.
Phuket World Sports Wrap
Agencies Manchester City survived a furious late surge by Aston Villa to eke out a 1-0 win to stay atop the English Premier League.
dailymail.co.uk Luis Suarez's Liverpool future has been plunged into doubt after he was accused by Anfield officials of deceiving them over his intentions to shake hands with Patrice Evra. He pointedly snubbed Manchester United defender Evra in the pre-match ceremony at Old Trafford and was forced to issue a grovelling apology. United issued a statement accepting the gestures.
Associated Press Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova won her second straight Pattaya Open title, defeating Russia's Maria Kirilenko 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-3. This was Hantuchova's fifth career title and her first since winning in Thailand a year ago.
Phuket Coming Events 2012
February 23-26 10th Thai International Travel Fair, Bangkok
February 24-25 Phuket Blues Festival, Laguna Phuket
March 29-April 1 Phuket International Boat Show, Royal Phuket Marina
April Opening of Gardens by the Bay, Singapore, three waterfront gardens that will dwarf Kew in London and provide ''green lungs'' for the city.
May 5 Krabi celebrates the province's 140th anniversary
May 26-June 5 National Youth Games, Phuket
Phuket Coming Events 2014
November 14-21 Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket
