Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 16 Jan 2012

1. CRUISE SHIP CAPTAIN 'WAS SHOWING OFF'

The captain of the Costa Concordia, the luxury cruise ship which sank off the coast of Italy at the weekend killing at least six, was "showing off" by sailing close to rocks to salute a fellow officer who was on the shore, it has been claimed. Francesco Schettino has been arrested for multiple manslaughter.

Cruise captain ‘panicked’ but the ship’s purser was a hero

2. THE ARTIST TRIUMPHS AT GOLDEN GLOBES

French silent movie The Artist led the field at last night's Golden Globe awards, winning three statuettes including best comedy. Also honoured were Kate Winslet and Meryl Streep. Host Ricky Gervais disappointed with a toned-down act, with just one edgy gag about Jodie Foster's film Beaver.

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Golden Globes: is The Artist too French to win the Oscar?

3. WHOLE UK TO VOTE ON SCOTS SPLIT

Senior Lib Dems want the entire UK – not just Scotland – to vote in a referendum on whether Scotland should be given 'devo-max', the 'third way' between independence and the status quo. They believe Scotland becoming semi-independent would have serious financial implications for the rest of the UK.

Boris Johnson holes Capt Dave Cameron below the waterline

4. PM DISMISSES GOVE YACHT SUGGESTION

Downing Street has quashed a suggestion from Tory education minister Michael Gove that the public should stump up £60m to buy the Queen a new yacht for her diamond jubilee celebrations. A spokesman dor David Cameron said he did not consider the idea to be "an appropriate use of public money".

5. HARRIS QUITS OVER SALMOND SPOOF

Labour MP Tom Harris has resigned as the party's new media adviser after posting a link on his blog to a spoof video that portrayed SNP leader Alex Salmond as Hitler. The parody, based on the German film Downfall, mocked Salmond for being secretive about his plans for a referendum on Scottish independence.

Labour MP Tom Harris resigns over Hitler YouTube spoof

6. HUNTSMAN QUITS REPUBLICAN RACE

Jon Huntsman, the former US ambassador to China and Utah governor, has withdrawn his bid to stand as the Republican's presidential candidate this year after he performed badly in New Hampshire and polled poorly for upcoming South Carolina. He is expected to urge supporters to back Mitt Romney.

From far right to moderate: all the US Republican candidates

7. BRITS BASHED AT AUSTRALIAN OPEN

Andy Murray is the only Briton left in the Australian Open after the other five British players all lost on the opening day. Between them Laura Robson, Heather Watson and Elena Baltacha won only nine games and Anne Keothavong was forced to retire. In the men's draw James Ward also lost. Fourth seed Murray opens his campaign on Tuesday.

8. 'BLUE MONDAY' STRIKES AGAIN

Today is 'Blue Monday', the third Monday in January, dubbed the most depressing day of the year by Dr Cliff Arnal, a psychologist, who used a complex series of equations to make his assessment for a travel company. While the science is dubious, there is no doubt that the day is grey.

Blue Monday: ridiculous idea hides a serious issue

9. HACKING 'POSSIBLE' SAYS MIRROR EDITOR

Richard Wallace, the editor of the Daily Mirror, has told the Leveson Inquiry it was "possible" that the paper's scoop on Sven-Goran Eriksson's affair with Ulrika Jonsson could have been obtained by phone hacking. He said he had no knowledge of hacking at the paper but said it might have been hidden from him.

10. HOT TICKET: LONDON MIME FESTIVAL

The London International Mime Festival has arrived. Tonight’s performances include Blind Summit, combining comedy, mime, puppetry and IKEA flat-pack technology (Soho Theatre) and Tokyo performance artist Umeda’s unique blend of Butoh, street dance, sound and lighting (Royal Opera House). Various venues, until 29 January.