William Lee Adams

William Lee Adams is a staff writer at TIME’s London bureau where he writes about business, culture and European social affairs. Since joining TIME in 2007, he has traveled extensively, reporting from Roma slums in Bucharest, maximum security prisons in Norway, and the world’s largest song contest for children in Ukraine. Half-Vietnamese and half-American, Adams grew up in Fayetteville, Georgia, and holds degrees from Harvard and the School of Oriental and African Studies.

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REUTERS/Chaiwat Subprasom

‘Ladyboy’ Flight Attendants Begin Their Ascent with Thailand’s P.C. Air

At Thailand’s P.C. Air, transsexual flight attendants are taking to the skies—and boosting acceptance of the country’s “third sex” while they’re at it.

Courtesy of the European Broadcasting Union / Junior Eurovision

Junior Eurovision: Georgia Wins the World’s Largest Song Contest for Kids

Candy — a group of five teenagers from the Republic of Georgia — has won the Junior Eurovision Song Contest.

Reuters/Scanpix/Oslo police handout

‘Cold and Inhuman’: Anders Behring Breivik Makes First Public Court Appearance

Breivik described himself as a “resistance” fighter while appearing in a courtroom packed with 500 people.

Blend Images/Hill Street Studios

Will ‘Manly’ Paint Colors Encourage Men to Decorate?

“Classic Liberty Red” is now “Rust on my Truck,” while “Butterscotch” is now “Beer Time.” Classy.

Duke Tribble / MSNBC / AP

About Face: Ex-Skinhead Endures 25 Surgeries to Remove Racist Tattoos

With his face and body blighted by symbols of hate, Bryon Widner struggled to escape his past. But salvation came— from the very people he once tormented.

Courtesy of Shorter University

Georgia University to Employees: Reject Premarital Sex and Homosexuality, or Leave

Working at Georgia’s Shorter University isn’t a nine-to-five gig. It’s a way of life.

REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth

‘Shocking and Inexcusable’: Facebook Riot Plotters Lose Appeal Against Long Sentences

In August, as London burned and rioters pelted police with rocks, two young men invited their friends to a “smash down” via Facebook. That was, as their lawyers have admitted, “monumentally foolish.” But does it really merit four years behind bars?

Getty Images

Bhutan’s Royal Wedding: ‘Dragon King’ Weds Commoner in Dazzling Buddhist Ceremony

The Himalayan country known for its policy of Gross National Happiness got a little bit happier this morning after King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck married his longtime girlfriend Jetsun Pema.

Photo courtesy of Trans-Fuzja

Poland Poised to Elect Its First Transsexual Parliamentarian

In a country that isn’t known for its progressive politics, male-to-female transsexual Anna Grodzka is proving to be a political trailblazer.

FBI / Getty Images

Ex-Miss Iceland Wins $2 Million Reward for Helping Nab James “Whitey” Bulger

James “Whitey” Bulger, one of America’s most notorious crime bosses, managed to evade FBI agents for more than 16 years. Then he met Anna Bjornsdottir, a former Miss Iceland turned yoga instructor.