Mom Tri’s Villa Royal, above the rocks at the south end of Kata, will be the venue for amateur dramatics and fine food on April 23, when the Andaman Players perform the première of their latest thespian work. L-O-V-E is a Four-Letter Word.

Andy Andersen, organiser of the annual Phuket Blues-Rock Festival, which takes place on February 26 and 27, has organised a couple of intimate dinners for small groups of people to get to know the two headliners – Charlie Musselwhite and Richard Clapton.

Apparently undaunted by the way the 2009 Phuket Film Festival fizzled out, organiser Scott Rosenberg is gearing up for another go at it, and has issued a call for entries for the 2010 event.

The 11th annual Old Phuket Festival, which this year will run from February 19 to 21, promises a feast of free entertainment along with the chance to mingle with locals who will also be celebrating the Chinese New Year.

The nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier Nimitz, with close to 6,000 crew on board, dropped anchor off Phuket yesterday (January 31) for a few days of R&R. It was accompanied by the guided missile frigate USS Rentz and the destroyer USS Pinckney.

For romantics who enjoy jazz, French group Jazz Cool Band (JCB) will play a one-night gig in Phuket Town on February 14 – Valentine’s Day

Nineteen boats are so far signed up for the “fun” regatta – the annual Phang Nga Bay Regatta, which goes under the gun on February 4.

Thailand has always been a sponge, soaking up outside influences. Watch Thai TV any day and and you’ll see ads full of references to Western culture and, to a growing extent, Japanese and Korean influences.

Stereo Lab, the disco on the sand at Surin Beach, which earlier brought Hed Kandi to the island for the first time, has scored another hit, booking Brooklyn-born deejay Todd Terry for a night on December 2.

The 2010 Phuket International Marine Expo (PIMEX) is expected to attract over 75 local and international exhibitors and over 4,000 visitors.