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Saturday, September 13, 2003



[Oriental Daily]

Charmaine Sheh will be filming in Beijing in December for new show "Gam Chi Yuk Yip" (Palatial Sins) and co-star Moses Chan will be filming underwater at this time. Charmaine does not know whether she will also have to film this scene because she is very afraid of the cold and laughs that to have to enter water in such cold temperatures will definitely freeze her to death.

At the moment, Charmaine is working hard with her slimming to prepare herself for the many layers of clothing she will be wearing so that she doesn't look plump. She remembers one winter when she was filming with Benny Chan in Shanghai for "Qian Long Huang Xia Jiang Nan" and every day she had to stick on over ten warm packs before she could start work but she was still so cold that she couldn't speak her lines.

"Qian" is currently enjoying very good ratings in China and Charmaine says she does not mind pairing up with rumoured boyfriend Benny Chan again to make another show as long as the script and terms are attractive. The success of this show means that her work on the Mainland will be plentiful and Charmaine says that in order to pay off her apartment, she will have to keep working externally for more money.

However Charmaine wishes most to have another apartment so that her mother can stay there when she comes over from America because her mum is currently looking after her student brother in the US and as her brother grows up, she would really like her mother to come back to look after her whilst working day and night, so she is working hard to reach this target.

Charmaine says that in the past she once thought that she would be married at 27 and have children before she is 30. As she is 28 now, her marriage dream has been shattered, but she insists she will have children and even have many kids, so she can make a football team before she is happy because she really does love children.

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a16cnt.html



[Oriental Daily]

Dodo Cheng has been representing Unicef visiting some childrens in undeveloped villages that do not have electricity, running water or food as they eat chillis with rice every day. There are few schools and the lack of local education means that the presents that Dodo brought with her such as milk powder and canned foods require explanation before the people know what to do with it.

The most unforgettable thing about her trip was meeting a mother who contracted AIDS after working in a local brothel and with the lack of knowledge, the disease was passed to her daughter. Another twenty-eight year old woman with no knowledge of birth control has ten children and with the scarce food, the children are iodine deficient and have become mentally retarded, always looking so confused and hard to bring up. After seeing all these things, Dodo believes that they need help from outside.

After her visit, Dodo shares her experiences and says that in the future, she will be better to herself. After experiencing the life of the people in these developing places, who cannot seem to change their destiny even with their youth, compared to her own life where she does have the ability to make things better. Dodo says that from now on she will no longer place emphasis on the material life because being spiritually satisfied is more important.

Because Dodo's friends were concerned that she would not be used to the food and water there, one of them, Sandra Ng gave her a "paper toilet". Dodo says: "I didn't use it... (was it okay at the hostel?) Although it was very primitive, where I stayed was okay because the organisers arranged for me to stay in a respectable hotel. (Did you cry during your visit?) No, I had prepared myself beforehand and I managed to control my emotions."

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a15cnt.html




[Ta Kung Pao]

TVB's "Ying Hung Do Siu Nin" (Find the Light) was running a promotion in a shopping centre yesterday but because the more experienced stars Damian Lau and Maggie Siu could not make it, the focus was left upon newcomers Shirley Yeung and Bosco Wong. However the other stars such as Law Lok Lam, Lee Ka Sing, Kuk Fung and Lau Kong were there to help out, playing games with the audience and handing out presents to the public who left totally satisfied.

Whilst playing a game to build a fruit bowl, Lee Ka Sing accidently cut himself and left to be bandaged up, later he explained that the gloves were too slippery causing the accident, but luckily the cut was not deep and on his left hand and the knife was clean so he did not need a tetanus injection.

Bosco Wong has been in the business for over three years and this show is his first leading role so he is quite nervous as he says modestly: "This time, with Damian Lau's help I hope that the ratings will be in the thirties." Entering showbiz in '99, he reveals that at the time he had thought of changing jobs because he didn't have many roles but in the end he stayed on and is beginning to see some fruits of his labours. His first target is to buy a new apartment for his family to live in and although the property prices have fallen, he is still a little way off his budget and needs to carry on working hard.

Shirley Yeung has been rumoured to be dating Gregory Lee for a long time now and his mother Sze Ming has openly invited her to their home for the Mid Autumn festival for dinner and a lantern party. However Shirley had to work that day and could not make it. Shirley says: "I was going to give some mooncakes to Auntie as a gift, but she said not to. (So why didn't you send a fruit basket instead?) That's my fault for not being able to improvise."

Although she could not make it to the Mid Autumn festival, Shirley has been to the Lee family for dinner before and has tried Lee Ka Ding's cooking as she praises: "I would never have though that a martial artist like him could make such delicious food and have so much knowledge about making soup, treating his ingredients like treasures. (Have you cooked anything for Master Lee?) No, because my cooking isn't that good."

After Shirley ended her reign as Miss Hong Kong, her series have been continuously one after another and she has been extremely busy, what type of role does she want to try? She reveals that she wants to be Lady Yang, but she would need to put on more weight for this and anyway Anne Heung has already played this role so she doesn't think she will have the chance. She says: "When I was studying, I went to see the Silk Road and dressed up as a Mongolian woman to take photos. I felt their headdress was very pretty and hope that I can play a Mongolian girl."

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-14/UL-175652.htm
http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-14/UL-175655.htm

Friday, September 12, 2003



[Oriental Daily]

Michael Tao has been filming for TVB's "Ching Chu Yu Nam" recently and having to work even on Mid Autumn festival and his mother's birthday yesterday, he spent both days in the studio, but he has no complaints because he understands that life as an actor is like that.

Not being able to eat mooncakes, Michael ate ball cakes [in Chinese this means being hit by a ball] instead as he filmed a basketball scene in a Ho Man Tin school with Shirley Yeung and Bobby Au-Yeung. One of the scenes was of Michael being hit by a ball and falling to the ground, and having to lie on the boiling hot floor time after time left Michael dripping with sweat and very worn out.

Afterwards, Michael revealed that in the intense hot weather he has been sweating so much that he has developed a skin condition that he scratches in his sleep and causes more injuries, but he has no time to go and see the doctor. The worst thing is the sweaty smell as even he cannot stand it himself and can only try and cover it with talcum powder and aftershave.

During the basketball, it was found that Michael's left arm could not be straightened and there was a six-inch scare on it. Michael reveals that this was an injury he sustained in his teens when he fell over at hime and his elbow hit a steel plate and some nails. Originally he had intended on having an operation to have it rectified, but Michael found it had little effect on his daily routine and even playing basketball, so he will not be having the operation. He also laughs that you have to fall to grow up, so he doesn't mind at all.

Also, Shirley Yeung had to spend her Mid Autumn in the studio so she could not spend the day with her rumoured boyfriend Gregory Lee and because his mother Sze Ming had said not to buy her any mooncakes, so Shirley did not send any presents.

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a65cnt.html

[Additional from Ta Kung Pao]

Shirley adds that she didn't mind working on Mid Autumn, because she still managed to see the moon and Mars beside it and she found it very pretty. Shirley says that at first, she mistook Mars as a helicopter, but when she found out it was Mars, she was very excited. She also says that she worked very late that day so Gregory did not come and visit her.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-13/UL-175388.htm



[Oriental Daily]

Charmaine Sheh and rumoured boyfriend Benny Chan's cooperation series "Qian Long Huang Xia Jiang Nan" (Emperor Qianlong's Southern Tours) is currently being aired on Hunan TV and is very popular making Charmaine's popularity in the mainland soar. A Japanese skincare product company has been captured by her image and her fame in China and offered her a seven-figure sum to be their spokesperson. Having bought a new home recently, Charmaine needs to work hard to make her money and she laughs that the sponsors are very kind to her as they have no special requests and she can very easily earn her fee.

As well as this, the firm would like her to go and shoot on location in Japan, but Charmaine is currently busy filming her series and cannot spare the time. However the company is really looking after her as they accomodate her and change to film in Hong Kong. However as the saying goes 'The rich attract the storms when they go out' and because she only had a few days free in her schedule, she still had to work even though it was a typhoon 8 warning to complete her shoot.

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a63cnt.html



[The Sun]


Yesterday, the "5th CCTV MTV Music Awards" were held in Beijing and of the Hong Kong stars appearing included Faye Wong, Jacky Cheung, Hacken Lee, Karen Mok, Louis Koo and Edwin Siu. Hacken beat the fierce opposition to achieve the award for "Best Male Singer for HK Region" leaving him both happy and surprised. He says: "I really am so happy, winning this award on the mainland for the first time and I when I went onto the stage, I was very nervous and excited." Originally he had planned to be on the 9am plane, but he was delayed by three hours, he explains: "Originally I was taking off at 9am, but because there was a problem with the cargo hold, the plane had to return and we had to change to another plane and finally we took off again at 1pm so I couldn't do my hair until I arrived at the venue." Talking of his girlfriend Emily Lo and her big appetite fuelling rumours she may be pregnant, Hacken denied this saying: "Don't be silly! If it was true I would have told you all! Her appetite has always been normal!" However he laughs that his girlfriend cannot cook: "Women don't need to be able to cook any more in this day and age! (So what does she know?) As long as she knows how to be happy that is okay!"

Also, the awards for the Taiwan Region went to Jay Chou and Sun Yanzi and Jacky Cheung and Faye Wong were named as the best male and female singers for the Asian region. Karen Mok was named best female for HK region and Louis Koo's "Mr Cool" was awarded most popular song for HK region. Edwin Siu was named as the singer with the greatest potential.

http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20030913/20030913004127_0003.html

Thursday, September 11, 2003



Combined article from The Sun, Oriental Daily and Ta Kung Pao

With the Mid Autumn festival, TVB's new show "Gam Chi Yuk Yip" (Palatial Sins) was filming its first day of studio shoots and holding its blessing ceremony, so there was some disappointments among the cast and crew who were unable to spend the festival with their family. Among them Gigi Lai says that her family have escaped from her forcing them to eat vegetarian meal because she is working. Gigi explains that she eats vegetarian food on the first and fifteenth of each lunar month as this helps her feel healthier, so she hopes that her family will try this as well but every time her brother doesn't eat meat, he will be weak and has to eat another meal to be satisfied, so he doesn't like eating vegetarian food and will only do it for her occasionally.

Others who had to work included Maggie Cheung, Charmaine Sheh and Sheren Tang, but there were few complaints as they created their own celebrations in the studio as Charmaine donated the fruit basket and mooncakes and others made a salad.

Charmaine says that she had already had dinner earlier with her granny and brother and with so many people at the studio, they are having a good time for the festival. Maggie was a little disappointed because this year her sister is in Hong Kong, but she was unable to spend the festival with all her family.

With the recent news of Anita Mui's illness, the topic of conversation was moved to health as Maggie, Charmaine and Gigi all expressed their insights into their healthcare regimes, among reports of a sudden significant rise in women who are rushing to have body checks done.

Maggie reveals she has never had a women's health check as she says: "I once went with Elaine Ng to do an antenatal check and I was so scared I was shaking and anyway I can feel it if my body is not quite right so I will be extra careful if my periods are irregular." However, she feels that with so many cells in the body, it would be difficult to detect if one or two mutated so she is considering going for a health check.

Charmaine says that she goes for annual checks with a female doctor but she still feels a little embarrassed. She is most afraid of going to the dentist, especially when she hears the sound of the drill. She says: "I get cavities very easily and each time they will use the drill, so I always have to have my walkman on to drown the sounds and then afterwards I have to go eating, drinking and shopping." Charmaine believes that one's health is precious so she warns girls not to drink too many cold drinks because this is bad for the womb. Charmaine reveals that she would like to have children in the future so she has to keep her body healthy.

Although Gigi is terrified of seeing the doctor and injections because she feels embarrassed, she still goes for a body check once a year because she feels that there are too many chemicals in modern food and drink and a regular body check is necessary. However she feels that life and death cannot be avoided, as long as you are healthy and do exercise, then you can prevent many illnesses.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-12/UL-175016.htm
http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a15cnt.html
http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20030912/20030912004125_0003.html



[Ta Kung Pao]

As last year's Miss Hong Kong winner Tiffany Lam left for America to continue her studies, her good friends Victoria Jolly and Nikki Chung were there to see her off at the airport together with Miss HK boss Rosa Chan. However there were no tears as they took photographs as a memory. Victoria is filming a series at the moment and took some time off to come and see Tiffany off but had to leave for work before Tiffany entered the gate.

So with this departure, when will Tiffany be back in HK? She says she is not sure, but she still has a contract with a skincare product company so she will have to return if there are any promotional events or advertisements and maybe at Christmas. She says that showbiz is so interesting and colourful and she says she will miss it, as she has met so many friends and felt so lucky in the last year. However she has not had her family with her and she feels the pressure, fortunately she has had many people to look after her. Her decision to return to America is to look after her family as well as to further her studies.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-12/UL-175021.htm



[Oriental Daily]

After celebrating his girlfriend Anita Yuen's birthday with her on 4th September, Julian Cheung flew straight to the UK together with a load of mooncakes to celebrate the Mid Autumn festival with local fans. With the rare occasion of Julian visting there was a small frenzy with his fans and as well as following him to have photos taken, many young girls offered him their hugs as well. He laughs: "This was my first trip to the UK and I couldn't believe how warm the fans are there, I gave them a lot of mooncakes and I hope that everyone will have a happy moon festival."

Although he only stayed for two days in the UK, Julian still managed to take in the sights. He says: "I did the tour in the fastest time, visiting Big Ben and Buckingham Palace. Having been there and taken a photo counts as having visited because as soon as I had been there, I had to return to Hong Kong. (Are you rushing back to spend Mid-Autumn with Anita?) No, I need to start work on filming "ICAC", but I have heard that this years moon will be the roundest in two hundred years, so I will go with a big group of friends to watch the moon and of course my girlfriend will be a part of it."

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a19cnt.html

Em: WAAH!! Chi Lam in the UK - shame that he only visited London... no-one ever comes up North!!! Boo...



[Ta Kung Pao]

Victoria Jolly, Joyce Tang and Raymond Cho were filming on a beach for TVB's new series "Sum Fong Sum Yuk Juk Gor Juk" yesterday and the storyline was of Victoria and Raymond were in a competition together and when they win, they are so happy that they hug.

Since this show started filming, there have always been rumours that Joyce has had an attitude and been picking on Victoria and with latest reports yesterday that this has led to Victoria's decision to return to the UK to continue her studies in Hotel Management. When Joyce was asked whether she knew that the report indicated that Victoria was "forced away" by her, Joyce replied with resignation: "They have written this so many times, so why don't we just say that I forced Victoria away? Going back to her studies is a good thing." When Victoria who was standing nearby heard this response, she explained immediately: "No one has been picking on me, they are all very good to me. My decision to go back to my studies is my own because I don't want to waste the two years of hard work and I wasn't influenced by anyone."

Seeing how agitated Victoria was, Joyce added: "I was just joking before, Victoria had already told us a earlier on that she had decided to go back to her studies and I feel that studying is a good thing because what you learn is your own."

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-12/UL-175019.htm



[The Sun]

With yesterday's Mid Autumn festival, many friends were at Anita Mui's barbecue party, but having to work with Kenix Kwok and Kingdom Yuen at a promotion for "Juk Sai Ching Jan" (Seed of Hope), her junior Patrick Tam says that he had already been to visit Anita beforehand. He says: "I have given a present bag to Anita, with a rabbit lantern and some vitamins. She is actually looking very well and to have work whilst she is ill is a good thing because we don't need to worry about her." He also reveals that he will be marrying his girlfriend at the end of the year, so he is preparing for the wedding at the moment.

As for Kingdom who has her birthday on 9-11, she says she has reduced her high profile celebrations in recent years, but her boyfriend still creates surprises for her: "This morning when I woke up to go to the bathroom, I found a diamond necklace, I was so surprised. (What was he doing in your house so early in the morning?) Yeah, a lot of people come to my house in the morning!" As for her birthday wish, Kingdom hopes that the ratings for her show will be a new high, like her age!

http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20030912/20030912004218_0003.html



[Ta Kung Pao] and [The Sun]

Since Cerina De Graca has been chosen to be spokesperson for a slimming company, she has boldly shed 15 lb in the space of two weeks to become an absolute beauty. She is also arranging for her aunt Tong Lai Kau to join her in getting back into shape after giving birth.

Since shooting some photographs for the autumn promotions, her busy schedule has meant she was not able to follow her schedule so she still had some weight to shed and she was asked by the photographer to come back again after losing the weight. Because of this, she pledged not to be lazy and work hard at her regime and with the support of the company, Cerina has achieved her goal whilst keeping her figure to show off the best of her slim beauty, achieving a 22 in waist, even fitter than when she was in the Miss Hong Kong pageant.

In order to showcase her success, the photographer designed a special concept for her with a horse. Cerina says that to strive for perfection, she has dressed in quite revealing clothes and she says has not dressed quite so sexily since she entered the pageant.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-12/UL-175008.htm
http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20030912/20030912004545_0003.html

CONGRATULATIONS TO JERRY LAMB AND LILY HONG ON THE BIRTH OF THEIR SON - LAMB BO



Jerry Lamb (Ah Lo) and Lily Hong's miracle of love was born yesterday (11th September), making Jerry a proud father, naming his son "Lam Bo". With Lam Bo being born on the Chinese Mid Autumn festival (15th day of 8th month), the boss of the Kee Wah bakery laughed that he can get rid of Eric Tsang and invite Jerry and his son to be their spokespersons.

Lam Bo was born at 2:28pm and weighed 6 lb 15 oz. Jerry was by his wife's side in the labour room together with a video and sound recorder to film the important time when his son was born. Jerry says excitedly: "I watched them operate and watched him being born and I saw that his head was very big. At first, I thought his skin tone was quite dark, maybe because he wasn't warm enough. I found that a baby's crying sound is so beautiful and it seems like he is talking to me when he cries." With revealing the birth details of the baby, is he worried that they will be used to tell his fortune? Jerry says he is not worried because he will not believe these things and the time of the baby's birth wasn't selected in any way apart from the doctor's schedules for the operation. Lily was operated under local anaesthetic and Jerry mentions that his wife couldn't feel anything during the operation but was in some pain afterwards. Jerry says: "Besides the pain, she feels that her belly is rather empty after the birth."

As for his son being born on Mid-Autumn, Jerry laughs that he had met with the boss of the Kee Wah Bakery and when they found out that his son was to be born on Mid Autumn festival, they laughed that they could get rid of Eric Tsang and invite them to be the new generation of spokesperson. With such a great present to his father as he is born, it would appear that the baby is a lucky star. Jerry says: "I hope he is too!" Jerry has received many presents from his friends and family such as toys and clothes. The baby clothes at home are enough for the baby to go for two months without washing clothes, so he asks his friends not to give any more presents and give them cash instead! Also, a bunch of Jerry's good friends such as Ekin Cheng, Stephanie Che, Gillian Chung, Charlene Choi and Joey Yung are all fighting to be the baby's godparents. Jerry says: "I'll make a fortune! Everyone is fighting to offer gifts, it looks like when we have a birthday party, we will have to go to the racecourse for it!" With his newborn son, Jerry has already prepared his future extracurricular activities as he laughs: "My son can learn to play the piano like his mother, he can learn to dance with Jordan (Chan), he can learn to surf with Wong Hap Hei, learn to drive a speedboat with Ekin, learn to chat up girls like Eric - so many people to teach him!"

http://www.singpao.com/20030912/gossip/443357.html


Wednesday, September 10, 2003



[Ta Kung Pao]

Entering September, TVB will be releasing some new variety shows, including game show "Wang So Chin Gam" (Sweeping the Gold), musical drama "Dong Sei Yip Cho Pung Sheung Gim Jim Shi" (When the Clover Meets the Sword Tip) and "San Ding Sat Mo Fo" (Newcomer's Test Dept) as well as the new look "Jade Solid Gold". Yesterday at the press conference, the singers appearing included Leo Ku, Edmond Leung, Alex Fong, Yumiko Cheng and Nnadia Chan.

The new Jade Solid Gold will begin airing on 24th and has been moved to the 7pm slot on Wednesdays with new location host Yiu Chi Ling. Hosting the show since last July, Nnadia Chan has had some bad criticism of her role and was asked whether her pressure has increased as time has gone on. She laughed: "The criticisms from outside are not the real results table and I don't know the reason for their comments, so I will continue to do my own work, changing if it needs it and not if it doesn't. These rumours are very annoying because they will continue as long as I carry on making me like a magnet to rumours."

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-11/UL-174661.htm



[Ta Kung Pao]

This year's Miss Hong Kong winners Mandy Cho, Rabeea Yeung, Priscilla Chik, Selena Lee and Carrie Lee appeared at a promotional event by the sponsoring travel agency and will be heading out to Gau Kau Chai on the 15th on an ambassadorial visit. At the event they demonstrated making cocktails.

Mandy commented that she will be heading out to receive her apartment prize in Zhongshan on the 13th and then heading out with the others on the 15th. Because they will be there for 15 days, she has prepared a lot of protective creams and parasols and because TVB are concerned that they are not used to the hot food there, they will be preparing some food stocks for them, but Mandy herself likes to eat spicy food a lot. Mandy and the others went to see Sir Run Run Shaw earlier and he gave a lucky packet to each of them, however Mandy would not reveal how much was in it, just that it was five figures. During the visit, she shook hands with Sir Run Run and they communicated in both Cantonese and English as he congratulated her. His partner was not present. When asked how she will be spending her lucky money, she smiled: "It will be dealt with the same way as my other prize money, all looked after by my mother. (So you don't have any money then?) TVB has expenses for me and my mom buys things for me, so it doesn't matter."

Also the sponsors reevaled that they will have mystery guests hosting shows to Australia's Northern Islands, coral reef and the Gold Coast to showcase the latest in travel destinations. As to who these guests will be, they would only reveal that Boyz and Shine will be among them.

Although she was the runner up, Rabee'a Yeung was also awarded the Tourism Ambassador and the sponsors will be signing her as their own Ambassador for a year to film advertisements for them. Rabee'a admitted this yesterday but because she was only notified earlier that morning she does not know how much the fee will be.

She laughs: "It doesn't matter how much the salary is, because usually when you are filming on location for a travel company, they will take you to the best places and eat the best food, so even if there was no pay, I would still go." She agrees this is a great opportunity because usually she only has two or three weeks holidays and cannot go to many places, but this time she can combine work with leisure. As for the place she would most like to go, this would be Paris as she would like to buy designer handbags.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-11/UL-174656.htm
http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-11/UL-174655.htm



[Ta Kung Pao]

Liu Kai Chi appeared at a promotion for an independent film yesterday and reflected on his visit in the morning to see his son who is ill with leukaemia. He says that in the past, his son did not like the doctors and nurses at first, but a nurse told him that his son said 'Good Morning' to her yesterday. He says that his son has finished the first course of chemotherapy and he had an infection which led to chickenpox, making him very poorly, but now he has recovered fully and can continue his treatment as normal.

Talking of his son's illness, Uncle Chi says that the first treatment went quite well, he cannot say it was very well, but it wasn't bad. So the next course will be stronger and his son will find it a little harder. He says that he and his wife and family already have their expectations and the most important thing is to care as much as they can for their son. As well as caring for their other sons, his wife is spending all her time at the hospital.

Uncle Chi says that the doctors are very good and when his son's condition improved, they will allow him to go home for a few days. When asked whether his son would be home for the Mid Autumn Festival, he says that the doctors will not let him out of hospital just because of the festival, the most important thing is his condition. When asked whether his son's condition is optimistic, he says that it can be described as carefully optimistic, as the cancer cells are under control at the moment, but the generation of white blood cells is not going well.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-11/UL-174652.htm



Since her appearance in the business, Chiu Chung Yu has only been linked in rumours with Edison Chen and very little others. Actually Ah Yu's criteria for a partner is that they must have a happy personality and be funny, she laughs that if Bobby Au Yeung was younger and not married, then she would consider him.

In her capacity as spokesperson for a French Skincare product, Ah Yu appeared at a promotion with Rosemary and E-kids. Ah Yu says that she has been busy day and night filming for new series "Ching Chu Yu Nam" (From Blue Grows Green) and has only had one or two hours of sleep a day. When reporters laughed that she could die from this, she joked back saying: "I won't die just yet, I can handle it! I have been working with Michael Tao and Bobby Au Yeung and they are very funny guys and know what position will create the funniest results. (Are you afraid as a newcomer you might not be able to keep up?) No, they look after and are willing to teach the newcomers and are very nice so I have no pressure from this performance." Yu plays a student in this show and she is having a good time.

In the show, she secretly admires Michael and Ah Yu reveals that in Form 3, she also had a crush on one of her teachers. When asked if she had a crush on anyone in showbiz, she says: "No, I have only been admired from people outside the industry. (There are plenty of good looking guys in showbiz though.) Good looks aren't everything, to like someone is not just on looks, the most important thing is that we can have a good conversation. I like happy humorous guys. (Bobby is very humorous.) He already has a wife. (If he wasn't married and was younger, would you consider him?) Even if he is ten years older than me that would be okay, but I wouldn't be able to accept him being too old. Also if he has a girlfriend I wouldn't consider it because I will not be the third party, it's a matter of principles, if I did this, then my boyfriend could do the same to me and I don't like relationships being unclear."

http://www.singpao.com/20030911/gossip/442960.html

Tuesday, September 09, 2003



[Oriental Daily]

Nnadia Chan together with Cha Siu Yan, Cutie Mui and Mui Suet Si (Ah De) was at a social services centre to hand out mooncakes and presents to the old people. Nnadia also duetted with Ah De in the Cantonese Opera song "Dai Nui Fa" (Princess Flower) as Cutie and Siu Yan danced along making the old folks very happy indeed.

Nnadia reveals that in the past she has spent Mid Autumn with her friends and family, but this year she will be at a concert together with fellow Universal singers, working on the night of the festival. Nnadia says she really likes the Chinese Festivals, laughing 'the more the better' because each time, she will celebrate with her family and friends and often her neighbours will complain because they are so excited. Later they thought of a useful idea and that was to fine the loudest person, but that didn't seem to work.

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a08cnt.html



[Ta Kung Pao]

Steven Ma headed up to Guangzhou as a guest in a promotional event in a housing estate and his fans all arrived early to wait for him. As soon as Steven arrived the fans immediately enveloped him creating a warm atmosphere. Having performed on an outdoor stage, he said: "The weather in Guangzhou has been very hot and standing on the stage that day, I felt as though someone had switched on a big hose because my clothes were totally soaked."

Although he was drenched in sweat, this did not affect Steven's performance andd when the fans caught sight of him, they immediately praised him and said he looked better than on screen. However the most surprising thing for him was the fans praise for his appearance in "Gam Pai Bing Yan" (Better Halves). Steven laughs: "They used 'very stylish' to describe me. I have never heard this phrase being used on an ancient character."

With Steven receiving such praise, this made him treasure more the chance of a close encounter he had with his fans. In the coming six months, he will be travelling often to the mainland to promote and perform, as well as his records, he will also be filming a series. In order to be in the best condition to face the busy work ahead, Steven is taking Chinese medicine every day to regulate his body and when he goes to China to work later, he will ask his colleagues to bring him some medicinal soup. He says: "In order to have a healthy body, I don't mind being a 'medicine pot'."

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-10/UL-174257.htm



Recently, Cindy Au has been hosting a reminiscing show called "Heung To Yan Ching" (Literal translation - Homeland Feelings) introducing the daily life of the early Hong Kong people and with extracts from the way they lived, such as the old rice shops, cooling tea shops and other memorable features. In the past many young people liked to date on the electric trams and on this occasion we arranged to go for a ride on the classic tram and relive those memories and that atmosphere. Thinking of the olden days, she tells of how she once dated another woman, but in then end she chose the opposite sex.

Cindy says to the reporter on the tram: "Actually I can count the number of times I have been on a tram on the fingers of one hand as I can only count three or four times because my ex-boyfriends and I are Kowloon people. However riding a tram or cable car or going to Ocean Park are great dates." Cindy's first love was when she was in Form 3 and for an unknown reason, her boyfriend often took her to Ocean Park and the most interesting thing happened there.

Since she was young, Cindy has always had short hair and dressed like a boy, so she once tried going with into the men's toilets with her boyfriend and she used the cubicle whilst her boyfriend used the urinal. He found it all rather strange, so she asked him: "Don't you think I am like a guy?" At the time, her boyfriend no longer pursued her. Cindy reveals: "Once when I went into the ladies, the attendant told me to go back to the gents, so I just decided to use the men's toilets and after that I went in a few times, checking before I went in to avoid any embarrassing moments."

Cindy describes herself has having big eyes, thick eyebrows and short hair, like a thug and her love for dressing like a man was down to her parents' influence. Her mother is from Chiu Chow and her grandad always wanted a grandson but her mother had two daughters, so she dressed the two girls up as boys, never buying dresses for them, with the only dress in the wardrobe being school uniform. Her toys were mainly cars and planes and little girls playing with dolls would never be seen.

Cindy's personality is direct and playful and she tells the secret of how she was once pursued by a homosexual schoolmate. She says: "Don't see me as looking like a man, once I was fancied by a masculine looking female schoolmate! After I grew up and thought back, I really couldn't understand why a masculine looking girl would like another masculine woman. She even pushed me to the wall and kissed me for a few minutes! I was scared to death by her..." Although her curiosity made her want to try a lesbian relationship, but in the end it ended after a week because the other girl's personality was too extreme.

In fact, whilst Cindy was in secondary school, there were many boys after her and faced with the choice of homosexual or heterosexual relationships, after a month of conflict, she opted for the latter and recently she has changed her appearance to a more feminine look.

Falling in love with Roger Kwok has caused Cindy to change a lot, they have dated for four years and with fifteen years between their ages, even she admits that they are from two different eras. No matter in life experience or handling situations, Roger will be more mature than her, but Cindy will not let down her guard as she puts all her effort into catching up with him.

http://www.singpao.com/20030910/gossip/442303.html

Monday, September 08, 2003

Em: Yes, I am a Roger fan... so you will probably see a lot of him here and I make no apologies for that! However, I have posted another of his articles on my Roger site, if you would like to take a look, then click on this link: Roger TVB Weekly article with Joey
Here is another quite amusing article I have found .... enjoy!




Article from 3-weekly 06/09/03
Translation by Em (as usual)

TVB's Beckham Roger Kwok

After 17 years hard work, Roger Kwok shot to fame with 'Ah Wong' in "Square Pegs" maintaining an average rating of 37 points for the show and creating a record high for TVB, taking over the top spot from Gallen Lo and with 'Nardo' his new show "Not Just A Pretty Face" the response has not been bad.

With the departure of Gallen Lo from TVB and the return of Michael Tao, the TVB leading male ranks have undergone a reshuffle much like the Spanish soccer giants Real Madrid has done since the addition of soccer superstar David Beckham. With a new arrangement of players, Real Madrid has become a team of six aces, that is Zidane, Ronaldo. Figo, Louis, Carlos and Beckham. TVB also has its six aces (top male leads) in the form of Roger Kwok, Michael Tao, Bobby Au-Yeung, Bowie Lam, Steven Ma and Moses Chan.

Asking 'number 1' Roger Kwok to compare the TVB's six aces with Real's six aces, he claims to be the megastar Beckham! So what explanation does he have for this? Let's 'Go! Go! Go!' and find out.
As the top dog of TVB, why has he only suggested that he is the fourth most valuable player Beckham? He replies first with a question: "Can I say the opposite?" He says he is not handsome enough... he is so modest! Besides being good looking, there are other similarities between him and Beckham.

Roger Kwok = Much Adored Beckham

I feel that Beckham is a man who knows how to grasp his opportunities with his outstanding deadshots being the result of many day's training and not gained from one day. He is also very faithful and although he has been sold by his team, he still did not want to leave; he is devoted in love and a good father. He is modest and although he knows he is a sensation above the other players, he knows his worth and thus takes a reasonable fourth highest salary. He is introverted and despite having many fans, including the 1.2 billion in China, he will still not promote himself as he has his strong ethics.

Does this mean that in the salary rankings at TVB, you are not the top one?

Rankings cannot be ranked in terms of money, Beckham did not transfer for the money, he knows that Real is the strongest team in the world and if he didn't go, this would be his greatest regret in his footballing career. Actors are the same, it is not suitable to rank them in terms of money the most important thing is performance, you are in first place, but the fact that "Square Pegs" won then does not mean that "Pretty Face" will win now, but I will not let this cloud myself.

Are you adored by millions?

My biggest difference with Beckham is that his is adored by millions. I believe that if you asked him, he would reply with the same modest answer, but on the pitch if you asked him if he was a good player, he would say that he was, just like if you asked me if I was a good actor, I would be brave enough to say that I am a professional actor and any work that is given to me I will give my best performance to the audience to watch, in this respect, I am not modest because even if you said you are the best, you still have to convince people to believe you.



You admire Beckham for his devotion, are you going to follow in his footsteps and get married and have kids soon?

Sooner or later is not a problem, the most important thing is to be devoted. Have I made my choice? What does that mean? Stable and safe. I will not envy him for having a complete and beautiful family, what he has to satisfy him, I also have because my satisfaction is a stable family life, without so many worries so that I can put my whole into my career progression and at this point, my situation is the same.

After many people become famous, they have many opportunities elsewhere, will you be working with TVB for a while?

Last year was the first time I signed with TVB as a management contract and this is the first time we have totally co-operated and therefore has become the most perfect year since I entered the industry. This is because my managers in the past may not have had the total understanding of TVB's administration so there were some problems in co-ordinating work but now it is different and things can be worked in many ways so I don't need to worry and when I find out about my work, everything has been organised so for the time being I have not thought about leaving TVB.

Michael Tao = Spirit of Midfield Zidane

Zidane is a player who can improvise and move into the right places and he exists to keep the spirits up in the armies as he is steadfast and calm, but sometimes he will lose his temper, for example: Barcelona vs Real, when the Barcelona players were pushing hard, he lost his temper and wanted to have a fight but you could see that he just wanted the best for the team and had high expectations. Michael like Zidane also has very high expectations and in bringing his co-stars into the scene, he is like the key man in the team taking on a key role in the show, he shows his experience like a big brother. Although there will be a certain pressure on his first show upon his return, his experience will help him to not allow this pressure to affect his work and with his great talent for playing professional figures, he will do well.

Bobby Au Yeung = Happy Man Carlos

Bobby is a well rounded actor and like Carlos, he can play in any position. He knows how to grasp the opportunities and is full of vitality, a player who reacts well to any situation. Among the six main actors, I have worked with him the most, including "Tin Gong Choi San" (Money Just Can't Buy) and "Gam Yuk Moon Tong" (Happily Ever After) and he is the active type of artiste as he injects his liveliness into every show and no matter whether the scene includes him or not, if he finds that his co-star isn't acting too well, he will take the chance to move in. Take for instance when we were filming "Gam Yuk Moon Tong", my character was rather introverted and his was rather outgoing and explosive, in some scenes I played it rather dully and he was afraid that this would be boring for the viewers so he would appear from no-where at suitable times. Working with him was a battle of wits because you had to judge yourself in order to stimulate the other, so working with him was quite hard work, rather like fighting with a master.

Bowie Lam = Intelligent Type Figo

I really admire each of Bowie's different characters that he puts his heart into playing and every time he will bring out the best in it. Take his recent hosting of the travel specials, not only was he totally absorbed, even if he could not communicate by language, he could still perform with such expression and modesty that he made the other person feel at ease. He is a very emotionally stable person, able to control his EQ [Emotional Quotient] very well and this is very similar to Figo as they are both the intelligent type, the focus of a show can be easily placed upon him.

Steven Ma = Scapegoat Raul

As well as filming series, Steven has many different talents so he has more opportunities than most other artistes in the same way that if Raul takes hold of his opportunies then he will not need to work so hard to see results. However, there is still not one role that has made him stand out as most of them have been very upright reserved characters. I believe that given the right opportunities, he will be able to show his talents like Raul and score his goal from an outstanding angle.

Moses Chan = Explosive Power Ronaldo

In his hardworking stage is Moses Chan and like Ronaldo, he is at the point where he is ready to make leaps, and he is a very lovable actor like the lovable Ronaldo he is easily liked and accepted by the audience. No matter if he plays a good or bad guy, he is very confident but knows that he is still fresh so he will not let go of any opportunities and will use his heart to perform. Although he is a foreigner, he is not afraid of working hard and learning as he goes along and he has a very strong potential.

Actually before he entered television, Moses and I had already worked together before and the thing I most admire is that after he has succeeded, he has not changed and is still pretty much the same as he was then. Even though he has been dubbed as the next generation of lady killer, he is still very modest. His greatest strength is his power to break into the home and he needs to develop the power he puts into his acting. When I saw him in "Juet Sai Ho Ba" (The Family Man), acting in a comedy for the first time, he was a little exaggerated and it probably was not too suitable for this type of lifestyle show, he needs to take note of this, but he did a great job in his role of the emperor in "Dai Nui Fa" (Perish in the Name of Love).

Stupid turns Nasty

Which TVB ace do you most want to work with?

I would like to work with Moses Chan again to see what sparks we can create. We had a good experience working together before because he is a very direct person and we can talk bluntly about our work and not worry about bearing grudges.

Recently, it can be heard on the streets all the time: "You save it!" and "Go! Go! Go!", especially coming from little kids who say it so effortlessly, proving that no matter if Roger is playing Ah Wong or Nasty Nardo he is still as well accepted?

If I hadn't played Ah Wong, I would probably be more worried, afraid that the viewers may not accept it, but in fact Nardo is a very three-dimensional role and he learns his lesson in the end that the bad guy never wins so there shouldn't be too much of an effect and the viewers should be able to accept him quite easily.



Never ending soap bubbles

Before the interview, Roger had already been informed that he had to compare the six aces from Real Madrid with TVB's six leading roles so he had prepared himself when the day came, totally au fait with the info on the six aces. When he was asked to strike some poses for the pictures, he immediately became posessed by Nardo and put on his nasty face, showing his total professionalism.

Then when taking the bubble gun for the photo shoot, the gun had lost control when the reporter tried it out and the non-stop gun was testing their patience. When it was Roger's turn to use the gun in the shoot, although he kept failing, he still kept trying it patiently just like the seventeen years in which he has tried time and time again, he finally found success and the shoot went ahead.

To find fame in showbusiness, some people think it is like soap bubbles, you cannot hold it in your hands. The bubbles will burst at any time, if you are lucky they will follow you all your life, but you must have the belief in your hard work and constantly keep changing. Just like the Legend of Ah Wong, success will keep on coming and Nardo is just as great.

http://www.3weekly.com/common/content.htm?link=threeweekly/0204/ent/20030906ent0100/content.htm&topic_id=0301



[Oriental Daily]

Margaret Chung and Vinci Wang have been rumoured to be dating, but they made no reservations yesterday as they continued to laugh and joke at a promotional event yesterday as though the press were not there.

Yesterday, Margaret was invited with Chan Chai Ping to a mobile phone promotion where Vinci was the MC. During the event, Vinci openly joked about Margaret's poor Chinese and then played like lovers as he snatched the phone from her hand. When the press asked for them to be photographed together, they agreed without any hesitation. Margaret was given a handset from the sponsors yesterday but she says she will not use it straight away as she explains: "In the past I have been very clumsy and always lost my phones, I have lost three so far and the last one I lost was a limited edition. I was using it in a restaurant and five minutes later it was gone, I was so angry I wanted to hit someone because not everyone has the new style phones so I won't use this new phone just yet."

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a62cnt.html



[Ta Kung Pao]

Michael Tao and former Cookies member Gloria Chan were filming near Ho Man Tin Secondary School yesterday on location for new series "Ching Chu Yu Nam" (From Blue Grows Green) where the story tells of teacher Michael being late for school and rushing in with one of his students.

Because the weather was very hot yesterday and he was wearing a suit, Michael ran from one end of the street to the other and after a few hours, he was dripping with sweat and wiping it away all the time with tissues and towels as his shirt and trousers were soaked. As Michael wiped away the sweat, he said: "I would rather work when it is raining, the worst thing is to be drenched in smelly sweat, even though someone will wash my costume for me, it will not have dried in time for the studio work in the evening and it smells of stale water that can be very embarrassing."

Talking of the two teachers who have committed suicide even before the new term has started, Michael admits that he has been working and not had time to read the papers, but in his opinion, no matter what happens he will face it optimistically. Although he doesn't know about the background problems of the two teachers, he feels that it is a great shame for them to have chosen this way out and hopes that as a result of this incident it will teach people not to use this way of solving problems. He says: "In the past year in Hong Kong there have been many unhappy incidents and there is no need to add to them." As for Michael's stress-relieving methods, they are to do sports and to chat with friends, he smiles: "I am not bad at basketball and badminton and beaten many people!"

Michael's mother will be celebrating her birthday the day after Mid Autumn so he hopes to be able to take some time out to celebrate with her because recently he has been too busy working and has had little time to spend with her. His mother is already in her seventies, but luckily she is very healthy and can run and eat well, but he still wishes that he could spend more time with her.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-9/UL-173883.htm



[Ta Kung Pao]

Although Gloria Chan So Ying has left girl group Cookies, she has still signed Paco Wong as manager and will be concentrating on developing her acting career, currently working on TVB's "Ching Chu Yu Nam" (From Blue Grows Green). She has already completed her form 5 studies, but afraid of the strange looks she will get from her schoolmates, she would rather enter showbiz than continue her studies.

Despite leaving Cookies, Gloria often keeps in touch with her old friends and talking of rumours of fellow Cookies member Miki dating Shine's Tin You, Gloria defends them saying: "I don't think they are dating, wearing lovers watches? A lot of people have that style of watch. Tin Yau and I are both part of the same record company and are good friends but I don't know why the rumours surround them two. (Miki has had a lot of rumours lately, has she spoken to you about them?) No, I think she can handle them herself."

Also with the recent recruitment for new Cookies memners, Gloria has seen the pictures of the entrants and she feels that their quality is not bad and the best thing is that they are all very talented. Although she backed Number 7 Ho Kong Ho and she didn't make the top three, she feels that the result was reasonable.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-9/UL-173880.htm



[Ming Pao]

The power of Typhoon Dujuan was very great last week, not only did it lead to the typhoon 9 signal in Hong Kong, it also created some great ratings figures for both TVB and ATV last Tuesday. TVB's ratings peaked at 36 points for the 6:30 news and ATV gained a massive 28 points for its coverage of the news at 6pm.

TVB's airing of "Princess Pearl 3" gained an average of 23 points, but a disappointing low of just 18 points meant that it was quickly moved to the earlier 6pm position and shortened to 30 minutes. However, thanks to Dujuan last week, it managed to average 33 points on Tuesday peaking at 36 points helping its average for the week to climb three points to 26. The creator of "Princess Pearl" Qingyao has not been happy with TVB's rescheduling decision and after the ratings were revealed yesterday it was immediately suggested that TVB had made their decision too early and not given the show a chance. She had even considered buying back the rights to the last ten episodes, but TVB has refused and apologised to her for the changes.

TVB's other shows "Virtues of Harmony" and "Not Just A Pretty Face" both rose by two points averaging at 30 points for the week.

As for ATV, their imported show starring Vincent Zhao and Esther Kwan "The Legend of the Book and Sword" was down 4 points compared to last weeks "Legend of the Condor Heroes" averaging at just 7 points, losing nearly 260,000 viewers. As for "A Million Lights of Hope" it rose by one point, averaging at 11 points. "Laughing Eight Immortals" averaged at 9 points, rising by 1 point.

http://hk.news.yahoo.com/030908/12/u2tz.html

Sunday, September 07, 2003



[TVB Weekly - 02/09/2003]

It would appear that thunder and lightning can not only send a person from one dimension to another, it can also connect a mobile phone from 1984 to the year 2004 allowing superintendant Roger Kwok to talk to his father Hui Siu Hung who was a sergeant twenty years ago to chase a criminal from previous times and solve many difficult murder cases.

This series "Gak Sai Jui Hung" (working title) [roughly translates to "Chasing Murderer Through Time"] not only has Roger and Hui as father and son, it also has Kiki Sheung who has recently returned to TVB who plays Roger's mother and also Flora Chan who plays a paralysed wheelchair bound character, so it can be said that the storyline is quite fresh. Other cast members include Shek Sau, Lau Koon Lan, Lee Shing Cheung, Lok Ying Kwan and young stars Patrick Tang, Matt Yeung and Kong Chi Nei. The show is about to start filming so watch out for Roger chasing his murderers!

Courtesy www.TVBspace.net



[Ta Kung Pao]

Flora Chan was out selling mooncakes in Times Square yesterday raising funds for the Chi Lin Monastery. She says this is the second year she has helped at the sale and she has the support of many of her fans.

How will she be spending the Mid Autumn festival? Flora says that her parents will be coming to Hong Kong from America so she will be spending it with them. She sys that her father hasn't been to Hong Kong for two years and mother has not been back for over ten years. Her parents are away from Hong Kong for long periods of time because they are afraid of the people and pollution there. They will be coming this time to take a look at how their daughter is fending on her own. However, Flora laughs that she would never have thought that as her parents arrive, they meet with her schedule showing 33 hours of continuous work, a situation she has never come across before. When asked whether her parents have told her to take on less work, she laughs that they will not, because they are very open minded. On this trip, her parents will take the opportunity to visit their relatives because her father has many brothers and sisters. Talking of the cancelled show in Thailand, Flora who was supposed to be appearing says that she has already received the deposit and will not be chasing for any compensation.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-8/UL-173550.htm



[Ming Pao]

Damian Lau and Shirley Yeung's new show "Ying Hung Do Siu Nin" (Find the Light) has been sent out to rescue the situation as it takes over from "Princess Pearl 3" in the 8pm slot as of Monday and they appeared in a promotional event yesterday. Damian laughs that they should thank "Princess Pearl" for allowing their show to be aired early because he will not be in Hong Kong soon. As for ratings he will not give himself any pressure, because he is just interested in the performance.

Shirley Yeung has been accused of 'playing big sister' in the filming of "Nameless Angels 3D" and when asked about this, she says that she had no such intentions and NG's cannot be avoided. It wasn't that she forgot her lines, but she just wanted to make it better.

http://hk.news.yahoo.com/030907/12/u233.html



[Ta Kung Pao] - Additional

A group of artistes from the new show "Ying Hung Do Siu Nin" (Find the Light) including Damian Lau, Shirley Yeung, Bosco Wong, Ron Ng and Leila Tong took part in a promotional event yesterday. This show is being aired early because of the disappointing ratings of "Princess Pearl 3" but it would appear that the appeal of the mainly newcomers may not be that great.

Damian praised Ron Ng's performance in the show at the event, saying that he is not too worried about ratings. He says: "As an actor, the most important thing is to play your part well so after it is finished there is no stress, it is during filming when there is stress." As for the show replacing "Princess Pearl" Damian says that this will not add pressure. He smiles that bad news must be faced but he is happy that the show is being aired early and says he must thank the 'princess'.

Taking on the lead for the first time, Ron Ng responded to claims that his pull is not great enough by saying that being a newcomer is something everyone has to face, but as well as a bunch of fresh faces, there is also Damian and other more experienced actors. He admits this is his first leading role and feels both happy and nervous and is worried about ratings. As for Shirley, she does not agree with the lack of pulling power because there are a lot of seniors in the show such as Damian and Maggie Siu, so it cannot be said that it is not attractive, maybe the new faces will bring a fresh appeal to the viewers.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-9-8/UL-173546.htm



Nancy Sit has always loved to help people and recently there have been reports that she has been swindled by three men and one magazine has received tip offs that Nancy owes over $600,000 in debt. Nancy feels she needs to clarify the situation and explains that at first she sympathised with the three young men and helped them to start their business, she emphasises that the magazine is not hers and that she knows nothing about the debt that this company owes.

Nancy indicates that at the beginning of the year, a friend introduced her to three men who had been unemployed for nearly a year and although she did not pay them any money, Nancy offered to help by offering her "Ka Yin Ma Ma" name for hem to create a magazine, that appeared on the market in March of this year. However Nancy later found that the three men were too impatient to reap rewards and made a mess of the company and even the cheque made to "Fai Man Beat" for their services as MC at a promotion bounced twice and some of their staff were not paid. The owners could not produce any accounts for her to inspect and finally when she chased them, the answer she received was that the company was for sale and recently she has been unable to contact them.

Nancy says: "The Ka Yin Ma Ma trademark belongs to me, so they cannot sell this, so in May I have already sent a solicitors letter to them to take back the copyright so after three editions, the magazine will no longer be able to use my name." Although Nancy has not lost any money on this venture, her name has been used and some staff only carried on working because they thought she was the boss. In the end she had to pay for her own lawyers to sort this out and she has learned her lesson that she must be more careful when helping people in the future.

Also, regarding the news of Anita Mui's illness, Nancy feels that in the early stages of cell mutation she shouldn't be too scared and the most important thing is to keep happy and a regular diet, keep off the alcohol and not to work too hard. Also early treatment will aid a full recovery.

http://www.singpao.com/20030908/gossip/441263.html




Winnie Yeung was crowned Miss Hong Kong in 1995 and in April this year, she married son of racehorse trainer Wong Tang Ping - Simon Wong Shui Fan and successfully entered the high society, much to the envy of many other girls.

Many young girls see the beauty pageant as a stepping stone to enter showbusiness, find a rich man and live out the rest of their lives in luxury. Winnie is a successful example, having established an acting and hosting career before marrying a rich man with a beautiful love story and she must be congratulated.

Since she was two years old, Winnie had emigrated to America with her family and in 1995, she returned to Hong Kong so her Chinese is only so so, not even understanding the term 'to catch a golden turtle' (marry a rich man) or 'marrying into a rich gate' (entering high society). She says: "I don't know what 'rich gate' means, after getting married, life has not changed a lot, we are an ordinary family and not at all like those shown on TV with the golden staircases in the luxury home. We have three dogs and a cat, so we can't live with my in-laws, but they only live a few streets away and we go back there for dinner every week."

From entering the contest, dating to getting married, Winnie has never thought about the matter of a rich life, she feels that entering the contest was not about meeting rich men, but her relationship with Simon was a destiny arranged by the heavens. She says: "Simon and I were introduced by friends, not as complex as you think, many people have have different incomes and ages can be happy together, the poor can be happy with vacations in Macau or Ocean Park, they don't need to tour the world, they can have chicken soup instead of chicken sharks fin! If your target is to find a 'golden turtle' then you are wasting your life, to have a challenge and fulfilment every day is the road to a great life. Especially as women nowadays have their own career and ambtitions, this business is too much fun, with fresh experiences every day, so I will not be leaving showbiz and I have a goal to write my own book."

Time really flies and Winnie has been married for four months already, with their dogs, cat and maid, the seven have got used to each other. For example, Winnie and Simon like their computer games so often fight over the games - so why can't they both play? Winnie smiles and says: "It's my fault, when I lose I will get mad, men like to play racing games but my reactions aren't quick enough and always lose to him. So I said to him, let me win sometimes to make me happy, so sometimes he will do this for me!"

Basically, Winnie has very similar interests to Simon, not going out clubbing, open minded about eating. Simon likes home cooking and they both like to drink soup, especially chicken sharks fin soup and rice. The chicken soup sharks fin that Winnie talks of is not hard to make, the ingredients are a skinned chicken, frozen sharks fin, cockles and abalone, also add some Kam Wah ham. Usually Winnie will make a big pan and together with a steamed fish dish and some vegetables and this is a substantial meal, Winnie's mouth starts to water just talking about it!

As well as holding onto Simon with her soup, Winnie's strength is ironing shirts. As her parents have a laundry, Winnie has helped her mother out since she was young to earn some pocket money and in time, she has become an ironing expert and can iron a shirt in 30 seconds, two shirts a minute, now that is pretty fast, maybe she should demonstrate this at a charity show!

In Simon's eyes, Winnie is a thrifty wife and although she has married into a rich family, she does not yearn for designer labels or jewellery, the places where she goes are the bookshop, supermarket and pet shop and is very careful with money and even her husband cannot help but ask her: "Why don't you go shopping?" Winnie laughs: "He encourages me to go shopping! He has a lot of clothes already, just in shoes, he has over sixty pairs, together with my sixty pairs makes a house full of shoes so we ordered a special shoe rack. When I buy things, I go for the design, although I don't intentionally go for the labels, but you pay for the quality and the labels do have better quality and last longer. I spend the most money on shoes, bags and dogfood, 500 dollars for a bag of dogfood only lasts for a little over a week, at this rate how can I afford to retire?"

When will she be having a baby? Have the in-laws rushed you? She replies: "Not at all, my husband says that we will have kids when I am ready." Winnie has made an arrangement with her husband that for now they will enjoy their couple's paradise, maybe in two or three years time when they are ready then they will embark on this 'Big Project'.

http://www.singpao.com/20030908/gossip/441279.html


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