Winehouse flees UK as row rumbles on

Updated 16.07 Wed Aug 29 2007

Keywords: Blake Civil-Fielder, records, Mitch, fans, Amy Winehouse

Amy Winehouse has been photographed relaxing on holiday as the family row over her destructive behaviour continues in the UK.

She was spotted sunning herself with husband Blake Civil-Fielder on a beach in St Lucia after his stepdad, Giles, called for fans to boycott her records to send the message that her spiralling addictions and erratic behaviour are unacceptable.

"It would force Amy and Blake closer together and they'd feel that the world was against them even more than they feel it is now and that would make the situation worse" - Mitch Winehouse

But Winehouse's father Mitch rejected such extreme measures saying: "People buy her albums because they like her music. And they like Amy.

"And if we took a unilateral decision like that, not that it would be possible, all that would happen is it would force Amy and Blake closer together and they'd feel that the world was against them even more than they feel it is now and that would make the situation worse."

Mr Civil-Fielder had suggested Winehouse's record company might "take notice" if fans stopped buying her CDs.

He said: "Perhaps its time to stop buying records. It's a possibility to send that message. Because by doing that, it affects the record company and then the record company may take notice."

Winehouse, 23, is reported to have checked in and out of rehab on two occasions since she was hospitalised on August 8.

On Tuesday, Mitch said the Winehouse and Civil-Fielder families are "living through hell". He said: "Basically we just want the same things - we want our children to be safe. But we've got different definitions of how we can do that."

Last week, shocking photos of the star and her husband were published which showed the pair with cuts and bruises after an apparent fight.

Mitch said of the photos: "As a parent, it was sickening. Worse than sickening, I wanted to die. But I can't die. I have to be strong for everybody."

Meanwhile, Winehouse's older brother Alex, 27, said she can fight her recent troubles without going back to rehab.

He added: "Blake has a rocky past, but she's chosen to be with him and I have to stand by that. We had a long chat. She's very level-headed, believe it or not, even though she's had some problems.

"I'm confident she doesn't need to go back into rehab. Amy's not capable of doing anything awful. I feel confident she is fine."