New Thai PM gets Magpies shirt

Britain's ambassador to Thailand presented new prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva with a Newcastle United football shirt Monday to mark the Thai leader's links with the city of his birth.
At a formal ceremony of congratulations, ambassador Quinton Quayle handed over the famous black-and-white striped shirt complete with the number 27 -- because the Eton- and Oxford-educated Abhisit is Thailand's 27th premier.
"He is a fan of Newcastle United football club, so today I presented a gift of a Newcastle United shirt with number 27 on the back," Quayle told reporters at the headquarters of Abhisit's Democrat Party.
Abhisit -- known to friends by the western name Mark -- was born in the northeast English city of Newcastle upon Tyne in 1964 while his parents were studying in the city.
He once reportedly said in an interview that "If I wasn't me, I would like to be a Newcastle United striker."