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The legendary Czech actor Radoslav Brzobohatý passed away suddenly on Wednesday, a day before his eightieth birthday. Some of his most famous film roles came in the 1960’s, but the prolific television, theatre and movie star had dozens of roles to his name.

The Czech authorities continue to struggle with an outbreak of fatal alcohol poisoning that’s so far claimed the lives of 18 people, apparently from drinking bootleg spirits tainted with the industrial chemical methanol. The government has banned sales of hard alcohol at outdoor kiosks and mobile stands, and says it’s ready to ban spirits outright if the number of deaths continues to rise.

The national tourism agency CzechTourism has launched a new advertising campaign branding the Czech Republic as a ‘land of stories’, using experiences famous figures such as Goethe, Einstein, Apollinaire and Peter the Great had in the country to attract visitors from abroad. The new campaign invites potential tourists to make the Czech Republic the place for their own stories just as famous figures from their countries have done before them. Maggie Lund caught up with Leon Sverdlin, creative director of the advertising company Mark BBDO, whom CzechTourism

Czech authorities are still clueless regarding the source of bootleg liquor which has killed 11 people across the country over the last six days. The government has established a central emergency response council on Wednesday to in an attempt to bring the situation under control, and is considering declaring a nationwide state of emergency.

The newly-formed hockey club Lev Praha has made its debut in the Kontinental Hockey League. The first Czech-based team to join the KHL got two wins out of its three home games before setting off on a tour of Russia and Belarus. But has the new club also succeeded in bringing Czech hockey fans to see KHL action in Prague?

Czech Prime Minister Petr Nečas has come under criticism from some members of his government, several Czech NGOs and even exporters over his statement about human rights and their relation to the economy. Mr Nečas said that support for the Dalai Lama or jailed members of the Russian punk band Pussy Riot might have a negative impact on trade relations. This earned him accusations that his words ran contrary to the country’s official foreign policy.

The Czech Republic is in the grip of a methadone scare after 11 people suffered acute methadone poisoning from bootleg alcohol. As the number of fatalities rises police around the country are trying to trace the source of the contaminated liquor and issuing urgent warnings to the public.

More than 22,000 Czech students cast their ballots in this year’s edition of mock elections held at secondary schools across the country. Organized by the charity and human rights advocacy group People in Need, the mock elections put the Czech Pirate Party on top, with 20 percent of the vote. The project is designed to increase student’s participation in the election process. But it also showed how dissatisfied Czech students are with the political establishment.

The Nečas cabinet suffered its first significant defeat in its consolidation drive on Wednesday. The lower house rejected a crucial part of its austerity package –a controversial bill on tax hikes aimed at bringing the gap in public finances below 3 percent of GDP in 2013. The move has left the prime minister fighting not only for the future of his reform cabinet but primarily his own future as the head of the Civic Democratic Party and the government.

Czech tennis player Tomáš Berdych scored an important win at the US Open when he beat world number one Roger Federer in the tournament’s quarterfinal. Berdych, whose play against the Swiss has been described as overwhelmingly powerful, will next play Andy Murray of the UK for a spot in the US Open final.