Phuket People | The Phuket News

Bicycling Bourton with Phuket veteran Bill Dobbs

Sunday 27 July 2025 02:00 PM

My good friend, 83-year-old Bill Dobbs, first set eyes on Phuket some 73 years ago, in 1953, when he was a mere slip of an Irish lad of ten summers. Bill’s father had spent his career in international shipping based in Singapore and Malaysia and had taken the family, including young Bill, for a holiday to an undeveloped and largely empty island called Phuket, about which he’d heard glowing reports.

London Calling: Nong Fiat is gearing up for the global stage

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 22 September 2024 11:00 AM

Fans of Prapapon 'Nong Fiat' Sreemoung, better known as Phuket’s ‘Queen on Street’, will be cheering for the 15-year-old in her recent live audition for ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ in London.

Ravi Chandran on social impact

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 28 January 2024 02:00 PM

Having retired following 25 years with Banyan Tree Holdings, Ravi Chandran has never been busier. It is not exactly what was planned by the affable former chief executive of Laguna Phuket. But the explosion of growth post-COVID in the hospitality and real estate sectors combined with a savvy business reputation has had his phone ringing off the hook. So, what is he up to these days?

Stephff: A celebration of satire

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 6 August 2023 11:00 AM

Stéphane Peray, better known as ‘Stephff’, is a French cartoonist based in Bangkok. He is renowned throughout the region as one of the best satirical cartoonists in Asia.

Stepping up for the long run

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 2 April 2023 02:00 PM

Kerati Charoenwattanachai, 43, is well known for his Kitti Duck Noodle shop In Samkong, the authentic recipe that he brought to Phuket from his family in Bangkok. However, his patrons are fast learning that not only does he have a talent for making tasty noodles, but he is also an athlete who has conquered many road and trail runs, and even ultra marathons.

A Commitment to Excellence: Meet Pamela Ong

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 12 March 2023 12:30 PM

Celebrating International Women’s Day on Wednesday (Mar 8), we had a great opportunity to sit and chat with Pamela Ong, Pamela Ong, General Manager, Courtyard by Marriott Phuket Town, to speak about her career journey and success story, which has the potential to inspire and empower a new generation of female hospitality leaders.

Jennifer Fredin – a Phuket Star is Born

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 21 November 2021 02:00 PM

Jennifer Fredin is a home grown success story. This young graduate of British International School Phuket (BISP) is on her way to becoming a major television and runway celebrity.

Remembering a Heroine

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 16 February 2020 03:00 PM

The Soi Dog calendar marked an important day Thursday (Feb 13). We know it as International Gill Dalley Remembrance Day. This year will mark three years since we lost our inspiring co-founder, Gill Dalley, who dedicated much of her life to ending the suffering for homeless animals in Asia.

Students develop a 3D prosthetic limb to help a little girl in Bangkok

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 9 February 2020 02:00 PM

British International School Phuket (BISP) IB students Melanie Preen, Michael Larsson and Arsenii Barbashov, should be extremely proud of themselves, having recently made a significant impact on the life of a five-year-old girl living in Bangkok born with amniotic band syndrome causing the loss of her left arm.

A Meal With: Marc Landgraf Cluster General Manager of Paradise and TreeHouse Resorts on Koh Yao Noi

Phuket Life / People

Saturday 18 January 2020 10:00 AM

In a region of the planet renowned for hyperbole and exaggeration, it is refreshing to be seated in a lovely beachside restaurant at the Paradise and TreeHouse Resort in a stunning location overlooking the breathtaking limestone karst spires of Phang Nga Bay while having supper with the genial resident General Manager Marc Landgraf.

Ready to serve

Phuket Life / People

Saturday 4 January 2020 10:00 AM

Matthew Barclay, the new Australian Consul-General to Phuket, has arrived on the island is now picking up the baton from former Consul-General Craig Ferguson, who set up the Consulate-General on the bypass road little over three years ago.

Behind the lens: Life through the eyes of a news agency photojournalist

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 20 October 2019 10:00 AM

I can spot a Mladen Antonov photograph a mile off. Whether it’s a cat in sunglasses at a pet expo in Bangkok or figure skaters at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, before I hover my cursor over the caption, I know the man behind the lens. There’s just something about his work.

Captaining The Boathouse: GM Eric Weber guides the iconic hotel into a new era

Phuket Life / People

Saturday 19 October 2019 10:00 AM

When I look back on my working life, which began for real some 35-plus years ago, I have been truly fortunate to hold a variety of both interesting and ultimately rewarding hospitality positions in some of Asia’s extra special destinations.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej – A long life lived with love for his people

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 13 October 2019 10:00 AM

Three years have elapsed since King Bhumibol Adulyadej passed, and he remains firmly and forever in the hearts of Thais. This weekend will see communities across the country come together in his memory.

Phuketian only Thai to take on 160-kilometre Dutch historical walk

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 18 August 2019 10:00 AM

The Netherlands is the fifth happiest country in the world, according to the United Nations’ 2019 World Happiness Report, sitting behind European cousins Iceland, Norway, Denmark and Finland.

Ladies first: Nominations open for third Women of the Future Awards Southeast Asia

Phuket Life / People

Monday 12 August 2019 02:00 PM

Nominations are now open for the third annual Women of the Future Awards Southeast Asia, the first movement uniquely created to celebrate and showcase the emerging female talent across the region.

Justice for Molly: Heartbroken mother wins case against municipality after four-year fight

Phuket Life / People

Saturday 10 August 2019 09:00 AM

It’s a news story that few can forget. Phuket is no stranger to a road accident but this one was different. It felt uniquely tragic and desperately unfair. Worst of all, it felt so avoidable. On the evening of December 11, 2014, Nitikarn Rotrattanachai – formerly known as Phakkamon Duangchaytemcharat – crashed her pickup into a sinkhole while driving home with her 7-year-old daughter Molly Anne Bailey.

Teen entrepreneur making Phuket proud with charity start-up

Phuket Life / People

Sunday 30 June 2019 10:00 AM

Founder and CEO of Sandee for Good, Asia’s Regional Director & Club President at LaunchX, Alumni at Quarter Zero, Co-founder of KétoPlants. This might read like the LinkedIn profile of a successful businessperson at the peak of their adult career, but it is in fact the CV of Irawadee Thawornbut, known as Bai-Dteuy, an accomplished Phuketian entrepreneur of just 16 years old.

A meal with Scot Toon, Managing Director – Asia for The Pavilions

Phuket Life / People

Monday 24 June 2019 10:00 AM

The Pavilions group of exotic and highly individualistic hotels and resorts may appear at first blush to be a mish-mash of unconnected properties without much of a uniting theme or vision. Yet, when you delve a little deeper into these sensational properties, you find that in fact an almost mystically bold vision unites them… that of finding “paradise” here on earth.

Back on board with record-breaking sailor Yassine Darkaoui

Phuket Life / People

Saturday 1 June 2019 10:00 AM

The name Yassine Darkaoui might ring a bell. That’s because the Moroccan sailor, entrepreneur and Phuket expat graced the Life cover in January this year, sat in lotus on the bow of a boat against the backdrop of Phang Nga.

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