Article requested by greeniceflower:
Annie Man and Michael Tong are forced to be affectionate as they share a coat
Oriental Daily 17/10/03

Annie Man, together with Michael Tong, Lily Lei and Kwok Fung took a cruise liner up to Shanghai earlier to film a travel special and it turns out that this is Annie's first trip to Shanghai and on the night that she arrived at her destination and they filmed the night scenes, she was immediately captivated. Annie said: "There was a breeze that night and although I didn't bring enough clothes, I still had to bear it and take photos, however when we started filming, it was too cold. Luckily, Michael Tong brought a thick coat with him and he was very gracious in lending us his coat so that whoever wasn't needed in front of the camera could wear it."

Coincidentally, Michael and Annie were playing a pair of lovers in the special and sometimes when the cameras where placed a little distance away, they were mistaken by the other passengers on the boat as a real couple on holiday. When asked whether she was embarrased or worried that she would be linked with Michael in rumours, she replied calmly: "There was no embarrassment because we are here working. We weren't hiding when we were doing this action and my past record is quite good in that I rarely have any adverse press, so I have no worries."

On the cruise ship, although there were only two shops, it was still able to satisfy Annie's shopaholic tendencies and she would visit the stores every day and almost every time she would come back with something. No wonder that Michael was shocked that the two shops would have the same attraction as the whole of Granville Street making women so happy!

Original Article posted by YIP on Annie Man forum
http://forums.cinple.net/annieman/index.cgi?read=14843

[Ming Pao]

TVB's new series "Triumph in the Skies" (Chung Seung Wan Siu) offers the attraction of a uniform as it creates many dashing airline pilots! Donning the pilot's uniforms are Francis Ng and Joe Ma and together with the new recruits Ron Ng, Sammul Chan and Kenneth Ma, there is certainly a fine collection of handsome pilots to send you into the clouds; together with Shek Sau who is improving with age playing Francis and Ron's good looking chef, then we have three generations together to complement the beautiful glare from the ladies in the show.

Collecting together love, family, friendship and encouragement in one show, "Triumph" has something for everyone. Francis, Joe and Flora Chan find themselves in a two man one woman triangular affair and forms the main storyline. The attraction of the Best Actor Winner Francis is so great, so how could TVB treat him badly on his return? Creating a co-pilot who is totally devoted to Flora, but is also the target of 'youngster' Myolie Wu's secret affections and all over object of many desires and oozing with charisma! Sammul Chan is the most outstanding out of the newcomers as he is well suited to his rich boy image. His love line crosses with Michelle Ye as they face challenges together with other young enterprising air service personnel.

The story tells of how Tong Yik Sam (Francis Ng) and Ling Wan Chi (Joe Ma) are determined to become the first Chinese airline captains and they strive towards their goal. One is faithful with his love and the other is the flirtatious pilot, but they both fall in love with Lok Yi Shan (Flora Chan) at the same time, whereas So Yi (Myolie Wu) who works at the airline authority is a secret admirer of Sam. On the other hand, a group of newly recruited trainees are sent to Australia to undergo training and their many experiences lead them to focus their determination and become superior pilots.

http://hk.news.yahoo.com/031018/12/uv6v.html

[Ta Kung Pao]

Ada Choi appeared a fashion show for her sponsors on Friday and wore a sexy tube top, not only causing stirs from the audience, but also plenty of applause. When reporters laughed that she has a great figure, like a second puberty, she laughed: "I feel that my figure now is even better than when I was in the beauty pageant, but as long as it is a natural and healthy sexiness, then I don't mind."

After filming a series in the mainland for six months, Ada will be filming for a Gospel film "The Date Under the Rainbow" where she will play Dr Tse Yuen Man (SARS Heroine and Victim) and as this is reflecting a true person, then there will be some pressure on her; as for Kathy Chow's previous role as Dr Tse, Ada says that you should not compare the performances and she will see this only as a personal challenge for her acting skills."

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-19/UL-188018.htm

[The Sun]

Ada Choi appeared with Catherine Hung and Chow Man Kei in a Catwalk show for Moiselle to showcase their new Autumn/Winter range. During the show, spokesperson Ada brushed away her coat to reveal a tube top underneath and this caused some wows from the audience. Later, Ada laughed "My figure has always not been bad! However I was a little frightened by the sounds of 'Wah!' coming from the audience. Being sexy is not a problem, but it mustn't be gratuitous."

Recently there have been rumours that Lawrence Ng has been sacked from "Healing Hands III", but Ada supported her partner, saying: "What are you talking about? It is not been confirmed so I don't need to comment. As Lawrence's friend, then of course I will support him." Ada has just returned from filming on the mainland and she is immediately working again in a gospel film playing Dr Tse Yuen Man and then working with Dayo Wong in TVB's new series "Dung Duk San Tam" (Stand-up Sleuth).

http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20031019/20031019003013_0003.html

[Ta Kung Pao]

Stars from "Fei Sheung Ngoi Fu" (The Driving Power) including Adam Cheng, Michelle Ye, Joyce Tang, Wayne Lai, Lau Siu Ming and Angela Tong appeared at a promotional event yesterday in Tsing Yi. However, Adam was half an hour late and he explains that he was busy at TVB filming a promotional clip. During the event, the artistes played games and tested each other's dancing technique, with the winners emerging as Michelle and Lau Sir's team. Adam's character "Mui Gor" in the series has been very well accepted and at the event there were many fans who were holding placards with his name on as they were all happy to see Adam after some time away.

With reports that Adam's new series has not succumbed to the ominous "Ding Hai Effect", with the stock market still doing well, Adam laughs that this is now the "Mui Gor Effect". However he has not upped his investments due to the recent bouyancy because he was a little wary of the "Ding Hai Effect" and wasn't sure whether he should invest at this time, but as he invests in Blue Chip, it is not as susceptible to the ups and downs of the market.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-19/UL-188019.htm

As there isn't much news today I've scanned in a few more pics from the TVB City Grand Opening and Anniversary pre-show for you from TVB Weekly Magazine. (Sorry if it's a bit fuzzy, I need to save up for a new PC and scanner!) Enjoy:



Joe Ma and the "3D Angels" Charmaine Sheh, Sonija Kwok and Shirley Yeung fly in with a strong opening to the show.



Song and dance routines from Anne Heung, Bernice Liu and Melissa Ng for the girls and Moses Chan, Bowie Lam and Roger Kwok.



Shek Sau doesn't show his age at all as he carries Lo Yuen Yan in one of the sketches and also joins in with the dance routines!



Nancy Sit celebrates the success of "Virtues of Harmony".



Roger Kwok and Jessica Hsuan reprise Ah Wong and his Lo Por Jai!



Highlight of the evening - comedy with Moses Chan, Kwong Wa and Bobby Au Yeung.

[Images hosted by www.tvbspace.net]

[Sing Pao]

Usually girls don't like their boyfriends to talk about their past love affairs, but Joyce Tang is very open minded and when she went with boyfriend Marco Ngai to a bird's nest banquet on Thursday, Marco's old flame Elaine Ho was also there, but Joyce encouraged him to go and say hello to her, showing total openness - it is little wonder that Marco has given her all his love!

Marco and Joyce took part in a banquet at the Miramar Hotel and as they were invited by Chan Man Na, they appeared dressed quite casually, but only when they arrived did they realise it was a formal occasion as they laughed: "Luckily we are artistes and they just took it as a fashion statement!" Having recently successfully completed a slimming regime, Joyce's figure is looking fitter and fitter and Marco is looking ever more brawny. When Joyce was asked whether she has taken her boyfriend with her to go slimming, she said: "Muscle cannot be slimmed and there is no men's section. (With you all wrapped up tonight, you won't be able to show your quali.) I already showed it at the TVB anniversary show, the weather wasn't so cold then so I could show off."

As Marco and Joyce stood together, his ex-girlfriend Elaine Ho arrived on the scene and although they were not going to the same event, Marco still said hello to her and chatted a little, before happily taking a photo together. When Elaine asked Marco if Joyce would be jealous, Marco said: "It was her who told me to come and say hello!" Later, Elaine asked whether she should have a photo taken with Joyce and whether she will be angry. Marco later replied: "The past is the past and we are all adults. I am very happy today because Joyce mentioned I should go and say hello, she is not a person with hidden agendas and I don't know how many good things I must have done in a former life to have met her in this one. I love her forever and ever." With Joyce bringing together these two lovers from over ten years ago for a photograph, it is litle wonder that Marco offers her words of undying love.

Elaine also says that she has not seen Marco for eight years. She is now acting as agent for some animal foods and is not dating, nor does she have this intention. She has not been in touch with her former husband because arguments when dating and arguments in marriage are two very different things.

http://www.singpao.com/20031018/gossip/462933.html

[Ming Pao]

Myolie Wu appeared in a light green dress at a promotional event for her sponsor's beauty product as the company's chief executive flew in especially from Italy to watch the premiere of her television ad that is part of her six-figure deal. The next ad will be filmed in Italy because this one has done so well. Recently Myolie has been busy filming for series "Choi Hung Kiu" (Rainbow Bridge) and she laughs that she is not trying to hard sell her product, but with two whole weeks of having just two hours sleep every night, her skin is still looking fine and she is planning on promoting the product to her colleagues.

As for her new show "Chung Seung Wan Siu" (Triumph in the Skies) that is due to begin airing soon, she is very happy about it and feels that she is starting to reap some of the rewards to her previous hard work. She also hopes that she will gain an award at the TVB anniversary celebrations. When asked if she is confident about gaining the top female role, she says she will think about this later because after all it is down to the recognition from other people.

http://hk.news.yahoo.com/031016/12/uttf.html

[Ta Kung Pao]

Eddie Kwan, Mimi Lo, Jason Chu, Yumiko Cheng, Lee Lung Yi and Ng Ho Hong were among the artistes who took part in a promotional event for TVB's latest set of travel shows. Among them, Eddie and Mimi went to South Africa and Eddie took his wife along with him in preparation for 'making' their third child, as their other two children were conceived in Harbin, but they do not know yet whether or not they were successful.

Eddie says that they went for twelve days and originally their focus was on diamonds and abalone, but because every diamond they saw was at least £200000, they just brought back some abalones. When asked whether they had managed to make a baby, he says he does not know yet. Although the lost city was very romantic and the hotel provided them with some red wine, it was all a very rushed affair. However the fortune tellers have said there will be good news at the end of the year. Mimi Lo who was beside him revealed that he ate a lot of high protein foods over there such as ostrich eggs and oysters, so the chances of him having another girl will be very high!

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-17/UL-187307.htm

[Em: I apologise for this awful pic of Michael, but it was the best I could find...................]

[Ta Kung Pao]

With recent reports that Jordan Chan allegedly assaulted a reporter after being followed to a meeting with Cecilia Cheung and is under investigation with the police, his good friend Michael Tse was asked about this incident. When asked whether he has tried to persuade Jordan into calming down, Michael admitted that if he was going to listen, then he would have listened a long time ago. He adds that this is not the first time it has happened and this is probably just Jordan's 'image'. Michael hopes that both sides are okay and that they will settle their differences out of court. He feels that a peaceful settlement will be the best for everyone and also hopes that the press will not be too pushy when they are interviewing so that incidents like this will be prevented.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-17/UL-187298.htm

[Additional from The Sun]

In response to Jordan Chan's reports, good friend and former co-member of the group "Wind Fire Sea" Michael Tse said: "His personality has always been like that and it can't be helped, I don't know why he is so bad-tempered, I really don't understand him. Problems can be solved by talking it over, but we can't talk him round, if we could then this would never have happened in the first place." Michael laughs that in the past, they would use drinking games to settle arguments, as for whether they were violent, he says: "I have Jason Chu on my side, otherwise I'd never beat him!"

Michael says that it should not be as serious as the report indicates and adds: "Sometimes just a touch is taken as an assault, but I hope that they are both okay and will settle out of court. In the future, the press should not be so pushy and the artist should not be so bad tempered." He also jokes that reporters need to prepare protective pads and knee pads when they do interviews!

http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20031017/20031017003225_0003.html

[Ta Kung Pao]

Hollywood's 'strange director' Quentin Tarantino's latest creation "Kill Bill" premiered in Hong Kong on Wednesday and as one of the film's stars Gordon Liu was present together with his brothers Liu Jialiang and Liu Jiarong who were there to support him as the "Liu Clan" stole the show.

Gordon has previously been to New York to appear at the premiere there and the reception upon release in the US has been very good. However, some of the more violent shots had been put into black and white and he doesn't know whether it will be the same situation in the Hong Kong version. This was the first time that Gordon had worked with Tarantino and he feels that Quentin does not have any director snobbishness about him and has something special in that every time they start filming he will play some music to create a relaxing atmosphere in which to start work and increase productivity.

"Kill Bill" has generated some good results at the US box office and when Gordon was asked whether he feels there is pressure for the film to do well in Hong Kong, he says that he will not be too worried about it as he is more concerned with the response from the viewers and this is what is giving him pressure.

Gordon is currently filming series for TVB and when asked if he will be making any more Hollywood films, he says not for the moment. When he received the script for "Kill Bill" there was another six months before he started work on it. When asked about previous news of a remake of "36th Chamber of Shaolin", Gordon says that this is going ahead, but there are a lot of elements to consider because the film previously directed by Liu Jialiang has become a classic now and if they remake it, they will have to inject something new into it. He personally hopes that they can mix the old and the new to make some new impact and he will not take on the lead role again. Gordon says: "I don't rule out the possibility of using foreign actors or even a foreign director as long as it meets the needs of the market." He is not worried that a foreign director making a Chinese filming will result in a clash of styles as he says these films are ultimately made for a foreign audience.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-17/UL-187303.htm

[The Sun]

Anne Heung was wearing jewellery worth a seven-figure sum and the latest Autumn fashions on the catwalk yesterday as she says: "I only have to model one set of clothes this time, so it is more comfortable. I remember when I was in the Miss HK competition, we had to get changed very hurriedly. (So you've had time to take a look around?) Not intentionally." She adds that everyone is very busy backstage and they do not have time to watch other people: "I am not perverted, I don't need to look at what I already have! (Male models?) I'm not interested in male models." However she will learn the tricks of the trade on how to get changed quickly in case it comes in handy in the future. She emphasises that she has a bottom line when it comes to Catwalk modelling as she will only reveal her back, her legs and a little of her chest. As for whether she was pleased with this performance, she says: "Of course I passed the test, when I have time I will watch a lot of fashion shows and I know a lot of models will seem very cool, but I am not a professional so I will give a little smile."

http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20031017/20031017003733_0003.html

[The Sun]

This year's Miss Hong Kong winner Mandy Cho was interviewed yesterday by a group of students from the Chinese University and she reveals that when she was studying at the Polytechnic University, she also interviewed some famous designers so she feels very at home with this interview as she remembers the good old days as a student.

Mandy says: "They were doing a project on 'The Rise and Fall of Miss Hong Kong' and they asked me about some of my experiences of the beauty pageant, but I have already told these many times. When I was a student in Hong Kong, with a group of my friends, we interviewed some designers and I think they must have felt the same way!" She reveals that she will be wearing a swimsuit to film for TVB's Sales Presentation: "I don't know what it will be for, but with the weather starting to get cooler now I am scared of catching cold if we are filming outside."

http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20031017/20031017002936_0003.html

[Oriental Daily]

Anne Heung, Kenix Kwok and Wayne Lai were among the artistes from "Juk Sai Ching Jan" (Seed of Hope) attending a charity event promotion yesterday and they all brought along presents for the children at the Salvation Army's Children's Homes to try and encourage people to care for children.

When Anne was asked about the incident where her credit card was cloned by some criminals and a lot of money was charged to her account, Anne said: "Last month, the bank called me asking whether I had been to Korea and spent over $17000 dollars on my card, but I have never been to Korea and did not lose my card and only then did I realise my card had been cloned. The bank said I did not have to pay this amount and they would investigate this. I only used my card in places like karaokes and gas stations, but although the bank has cancelled and replaced the card, I daren't use it just yet." Even though she did not lose out, it would appear that Anne still had a shock from the incident.

It turns out that Anne has four cards, but now she understands the concept of cloning, she is considering cancelling one or two of them. As for internet banking and ATM's, she says she is still not confident with shopping over the internet as she is worried her information will stolen. Anne says: "As I am too lazy to queue up in the bank, I often use the ATM, so I will just have to be more careful."

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a04cnt.html

[Oriental Daily]

China's Shenzhou V launched the country's first man into space today and all Chinese people around the world are excited about this. Currently busy filming for "Ching Chu Yu Nam", Kenix Kwok not only took time to appear at a promotinal event for "Juk Sai Ching Jan" (Seed of Hope), she was also very interested in the news of the rocket launch as she said: "The 15th of October is definitely a very special day to remember, to have been stringently chosen by the country to be the first Chinese astronaut is a lifetime honour. Space is so full of mystery and secrets and I hope there will be a day when we can go on vacation into space. I once tried a floating game and the feeling was great, if there are space vacations in the future, then we can see so many things and if there are any aliens."

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a03cnt.html



[Ming Pao]

Flora Chan was filming a promotional special for her sponsors Neutrogena and appeared in a pure white image to reflect that of the product. The crew had prepared some aloe plants for props on the set of the show and the nature-loving Flora cut open one of the plants to share the goodness of the plant with everyone. In the show, she adequately shows off her hosting abilities.

http://hk.news.yahoo.com/031015/12/ut2b.html

[The Sun]

Myolie Wu was earlier linked with Tse Kwan Ho because she was filming with him and also rumoured to have commented on Rain Li being 'not good enough' but when they all appeared at yesterday's blessing ceremony for "Choi Hung Kiu" (Rainbow Bridge), Rain and Myolie were chatting and laughing and Myolie and Tse Kwan Ho were not avoiding each other. In response, she said: "Don't be silly, not talking to a guy is taken as avoidance, not talking to a girl is taken as disrespecting her, none of this happened at all." Tse Kwan Ho said: "There was no such thing, they just made it all up and my wife has total confidence in me!" Later they openly had their photo taken together.

As for Rain, she continued to deny that she was dating former member of VRF Ting Chi Go and when it was mentioned that Alex Fong (Lik Sang) was very concerned with her relationship, Rain laughed: "He is like the motto for TVB's news - concerned with everything! Like I am with him, we are all just good friends."

http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20031016/20031016003249_0003.html

[Sing Pao]

Modern day people are gaining more and more confidence in traditional Chinese Medicine, but many young people have little knowledge in this field. With a modern outward appearance, Sammul Chan has had the care of his family since he was young and has gained an insight into Chinese herbs, so unlike many young people who run away at the smell of a herbal remedy, he loves this unique fragrance.

Recently Chinese Medicine food and drink remedies have become available in many restaurants and this has attracted many customers eager to seek out healthy eating options. Recently the Maxim's group has also introduced a range of such foods and together with fellow Metro Radio DJ's, Sammul has been to sample it. The three of them tried nine different dim sum dishe and don't be fooled by Sammul's active nature, it turns out that he knows a lot about Chinese herbs, with some of the dishes he could tell what was in it just by looking at it.

It turns out that Sammul's parents like making herbal soup and when he was young, he would be taken along to the herbalists in Kowloon City to pick out some ingredients and developing his interest in this. He says: "Ever since I was young, I love the scent of Chinese herbs and I know how to use them to make soup." Many people will take Chinese Medicine for good health and having used them since he was young, does Sammul find they are beneficial? He says: "It is really good! Your cheeks turn nice and pink and drinking herbal soup in winter will make you feel much warmer!"

Many young people are afraid of the strong smells of Chinese herbs, but Sammul has a love for it as he laughs: "Why would I be afraid of herb smells? I have even tried wild game and drank cat soup!" He explains that once he visited the mainland in winter with some friends and someone suggested that they tried some wild game. At the time he thought it might be armadillo or snake, but only afterwards was he informed that they had drunk Cat Soup and he was very shocked. He says that Cat Soup doesn't taste any different, but afterwards he felt very warm inside all night.

Sammul Chan loves his herbs and has tried wild foods, but he is very afraid of eating fish because he does not like the fishy smell. He says: "As I am a Chiu Chow person, my family have always liked cooking very smelly fish and after eating it so much, I have become very afraid of that fishy smell."

On the day of the tasting, Sammul immediately went to learn how to make "Winter Worm Grass, Fresh Lotus Glutinous Rice Balls" from chef Master Wong and although he is a man, he seems to know how to cook. He say that he does cook usually and his speciality dish is Satay Beef that has gained much acclaim from his friends. However he laughs that the dish he cooks most often now is instant noodles.

http://www.singpao.com/20031015/gossip/461273.html

[Oriental Daily]

Gordon Liu (Lau Ka Fai) has appearing at promotional events in New York and Denver for the movie "Kill Bill" and he says that being able to catch up with co-stars Uma Thurman, Lucy Liu and Sonny Chiba was great, but he was disappointed at not being able to see director Quentin Tarantino who was absent due to illness and so he could not congratulate him personally. When asked if he had called Quentin, Gordon says that he could only pass on a Get Well message.

After the premiere in New York, Gordon headed to Denver for another promotional event, where he shared his experiences on filming with three hundred fans, who were very enthusiastic and praised Gordon's performance in the film. Many of them also indicated that they had been fans of his since the days of "36th Chamber of Shaolin" as they shook hands with him and asked for his autograph. Gordon says his fans are spread across three generations and he is delighted as he hopes that the Hong Kong fans will also enjoy "Kill Bill".

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a64cnt.html

Find out more about "Kill Bill" here: http://www.kill-bill.com/

[Ta Kung Pao]

In order to attend TVB's Grand Opening and Anniversary Pre-show, Steven Ma rushed back to Hong Kong from Malaysia, but he got something extra along the way.

Steven was invited by TVBS to Malaysia to take part in a show in Penang that attracted a lively crowd of about ten thousand. As he had to rush back to Hong Kong the next day, Steven had to make a journey over land to Singapore Airport to make the early plane back. When Steven heard he had to make the 'midnight rush', he was a little afraid as he says: "As the trip was eight hours by road, I was worried that my Malaysian friend who was driving would be too tired. Luckily he was on the ball and had another friend to help him so they shared the driving and I was very relieved."

As he had help from these two friends, there was plenty of time to spare with the traffic freely moving along the way, so they acted as tour guides for Steven, driving him around Kuala Lumpur and taking a photo outside the Petronas Towers and the Palace. There was something else on this trip that was particularly memorable. This was when he was travelling to Penang, he had to take a connecting plane at KL and wait there for a few hours. When they wanted to eat something, they realised that no-one had any Malaysian currency with them. Just as they were wondering what to do, a lady ran over and asked Steven whether he was the actor from the TV. It turned out that this lady was a local Chinese and when she heard about their predicament, she offered to buy them all some food! Steven says that this trip to Malaysia has given him a great insight into the friendliness and helpfulness of the Malaysian people and left him with a very good impression of the country.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-15/UL-186482.htm

[Oriental Daily]

With the rapid growth of the entertainment industry in Mainland China, they have latched onto the value of the Hong Kong stars and often artistes can find their names and images fraudulently linked to products to which they do not officially represent. Recently, Flora Chan has been victim to these underhanded promotional techniques, becoming a pornographic star promoting a Mainland adult internet site.

The paid website is one where you can download over a hundred Chinese and Western movies as well as adult films, including the recent blockbuster "Infernal Affairs II". The amusing thing is that one of these adult films claims to star Flora, but it would appear that those who download it will be disappointed. Flora's fans on the mainland were rather shocked to find that she has been portrayed in this way and although they are sure that it is not true, they immediately sent hundreds of complaints to the owners of this site and it was soon closed down. However, within a day of it closing, it was back in business again as before.

Flora finds this incident rather amusing as she says: "I am thankful for them for finding my figure good enough! I am not afraid of it affecting my imaged because everyone knows it isn't real. Just see it as opening a new market in telling people not to be so fooling and fall for it because Flora Chan will not make adult movies. Haha!"

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a60cnt.html

[The Sun, Ta Kung Pao, Ming Pao]

After being accused of having put on a bit of weight for her recent filming of TV series, Joyce Tang is the latest star to have landed herself with a slimming sponsorship. After losing 15 lbs in 6 weeks, she took part in a photoshoot yesterday for a series of ads, wearing 8 sets of designer clothing and accessories, offering a sexy, elegant look that is still full of vitality.

The shoot took 12 hours in all, but throughout, Joyce was drinking pop and eating a pizza. She commented that after losing 15 lbs, she feels very relaxed and does not need to diet any more. She is happy because she feels she looks better in her clothes now and of course at the chance to earn some money.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-15/UL-186485.htm
http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20031015/20031015002527_0003.html
http://hk.news.yahoo.com/031014/12/us6n.html



[Oriental Daily, The Sun]

A group of artistes from TVB's youth show "Dong Sei Yip Cho Pung Seung Gim Jim Si" (Hearts of Fencing) including Wong Yuen Ling (Race), Tai Mung Mung, Lai Lok Yi and Chan Yu Sum were at a promotional event yesterday handing out signed posters and bookmarks, but the atmosphere was lonely as few passers-by stopped to look. When the MC Tong Wing Sze asked the small crowd if anyone was watching the show, the silent reception was more than a little embarrassing. The only small group of fans present were there to see Race, so it was little wonder she was beaming throughout. Later she said: "There weren't many people at this event today, maybe as it isn't a holiday they have to go to school so it is quiet."

As for whether Tai Mung Mung was disappointed that her fans weren't there to support her, she held on saying: "Of course not, my fans did come, but they didn't bring their placards with them! (Didn't they have to got to school?) No it was their day off, but the fan club members had to go to school."

http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20031015/20031015003615_0003.html
http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a68cnt.html

[Ming Pao]

Mandy Cho, Rabee'a Yeung, Priscilla Chik and Selena Lee appeared at a press conference for "Cookies of Love" yesterday and when Mandy was explaining about these cookies, she got her lines in a twist. She later explained that she had been busy filming a music video for Leo Ku into the early hours of the morning and the lack of sleep affected her.

Mandy also revealed that she will be taking a vacation on the 29th and returning to America for a break, returning on the 5th of next month. As well as visiting her family, she will also be meeting up with last year's Miss Hong Kong winner Tiffany Lam to try and learn from her experiences.

Also, Rabee'a will be heading to Hainan Island to take part in this year's Miss World contest on 8th November. When asked how she is preparing, she started advertising, saying she would be attending the slimming centre to get herself in best form to take part in all the evening balls.

http://hk.news.yahoo.com/031014/12/us65.html

[The Sun]

With earlier reports about her father's debts causing much distress to Rain Li, her father has since applied for bankrupcy but Rain is facing everything with strong determination and earlier set free some birds on Victoria Peak to pray for better luck for her family in the coming year. Rain had already tried this earlier in the year and she revealed to friends that this had a calming effect on her emotions and she intended to do it once more towards the end of the year. At around 4pm on Sunday afternoon, wearing T-shirt and jeans, Rain met with geomancy expert Yau Tin Yuen to release some birds at a park on the Peak and although it was rather cloudy with a little rain, this did not affect her mood.

They took a taxi to a small park near the Peak and prepared to release the 49 birds from five small cages. When they were ready, she said a prayer to the heavens whilst Yau recited some scriptures and after about ten minutes, the two opened the cages and let the birds fly into the nearby woods. Then they left soon afterwards, clearing up the empty cages and taking them away with them.

When Rain was asked about this yesterday, she seemed a little frightened at first, saying: "Yes, I did release some birds." However when she was asked further about it, she said: "I did do it earlier with some friends and afterwards, things seemed to go better, I set free 49 birds then as well. The weather wasn't very nice that day, but when I let them go, it suddenly stopped raining and the sun came out. The same thing happened this time as well and the clouds suddenly dispersed. Each month I will just eat vegetarian foods for one day, but if you do more for charity, then you will become happier."

As for Yau Tin Yuen, he commented: "Setting free is a good thing to do and the best is to do it once at the beginning and end of each year, that will make your luck better for the coming year. Rain is a very charitable person and her luck will become better next year. Filming television series is especially suited to her."

http://the-sun.com.hk/channels/ent/20031014/20031014001421_0003.html

[Oriental Daily]

Flora Chan and Roger Kwok were filming for "Gak Sai Jui Hung" yesterday on location in a cemetary and sitting in a wheelchair, Flora's character will soon become a female assassin and there will be some action shots.

Loving action filming all along, Flora once asked the producer to let her do more action shows, so this time she gets to fulfil her wish as the producer gives her character another personality and a chance for Flora to get in her share of action scenes.

In order to ensure her fight scenes are done well, Flora believes that as well as good acting, a good martial arts grounding is important, so she says that after this series, she will be paying for her own basic kung fu lessons in November. However, as her health has been rather unstable and she earlier developed an imbalance in her ears from working too hard causing her to return to the US to recover, wouldn't the hardship of the training cause her some concern? Flora says she is not afraid: "Hard work is expected, but I have to invest in myself. As for health matters, I can handle it, after working for so many years, I haven't been knocked out by it just yet!"

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

[Ta Kung Pao]

Hacken Lee was invited to TVB's special variety show on Sunday as a special guest and he laughs that this is because his salary is the cheapest, but he must thank TVB for giving him so many opportunities. On the night, he sung and had to play the drums as he danced. At first he was quite averse to it, but after some practice he was fine. As the end of year awards ceremonies are drawing near, Hacken's appearance at all of TVB's events stirs up ideas in people's minds, but Hacken laughs: "If that is the case then that would be good, I believe that towards the end of the year everyone will be fighting for any chance of exposure."

Hacken says that working for TVB is a good thing because TVB's coverage is very broad and this is very useful to him. Earlier Alan Tam had reminded him not to think too much about rewards because the more you do, the more you will reap, especially as the current yield of record promotion is poor so the more exposure he has on TV the better, in particular at the end of the year, then you even need to appear on the afternoon lifestyle shows.

http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-14/UL-186093.htm



[Oriental Daily]

Bearing the nickname of "Godson of TVB", Hacken Lee was 'heavily used' at their special celebratory show on Sunday, where he not only carried the burden of being special guest, he was the only singer on the night. With so much attention given to him by TVB, surely this will increase his chance of achieving the "Most Popular Male Singer" award at the end of the year. In response to this, Hacken jokes: "It is because I am so cheap, they have to make up for Liza Wang and Eric Tsang's fees!" When he was asked whether this will have any effect on his chances of getting an award, he says: "This appearance has nothing to do with the awards, even if this has happened in the past, then it is purely coincidental. In work, the more you work, the more you reap and no matter if it is a big show or a little show, I will still do it."

Hacken also says: "I will work just as hard this year to try and get an award and although all the record companies are doing all sorts of things to secure thier awards, the singers themselves will not make any underhand gestures because we all like the openly competitive spirit." Also TVB is interested in gathering Hacken, Nat Chan and Eric Tsang together to host a game show, but Hacken and Eric both say that they have not received notification of this. When Eric was asked about whether he would reduce his fee to host shows, he says: "It depends on what the format will be, the most important thing is being happy and I am sure if I was to work with Hacken and Nat, then it would be a great show with plenty of chemistry."

http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a18cnt.html

[Collaborative summary from Oriental Daily, Ta Kung Pao and Ming Pao]

Bosco Wong, Rain Lee, John Chiang, Sammul Chan and Iva Lo were among the artistes appearing at the costume trial for TVB's new series "Ngo Si Fu Hai Wong Fei Hung" (My Master is Wong Fei Hung) yesterday. Rain plays a tomboy character in the show and is hard at work practising her martial arts moves because she is adamant on not using a stunt double wherever she can, laughing that her friends pointed out it was too obvious in her performance for "Wan Hoi Yuk Gung Yuen" (Lofty Water Verdant Bow). She adds that in some scenes, she has to dress as a man, so she has to wear some big clothes to cover her figure. In response to reports that she has been too poor to be able to buy clothes when she is shopping, she denies this, explaining that since her father has applied for bankrupcy, she no longer has to bear his debts and with the weight lifted from her shoulders, she can now freely spend her money on whatever she likes. Currently also filming for "Choi Hung Kiu" (Rainbow Bridge), Rain admits she has fallen in love with acting in series, so will be putting her singing career on hold until next year.

It has been five years since John Chiang (Keung Dai Wai) appeared on the screen filming for TVB and with his last show working with then newcomer Louis Koo in "Qian Long Dai Di", who was later propelled to stardom, will he have the same effect on newcomer Bosco Wong this time? John agrees that TVB should promote more new actors because after Andy Lau and Louis Koo, there have been few who have really made it big, especially as Tony Leung has been rather selective with his films. John has kept in touch with Louis since working with him and will be calling him out for tea during his three month stay in Hong Kong before he returns to Canada for the Chinese New Year. John will be playing Wong Fei Hung's father Wong Kei Ying and will be shaving his head for the part today. When it was asked whether he would be meeting with his future son-in-law Raymond Cho, who is dating his daughter Yee Lan, John says not to refer to him that way as the future is not yet known, but he will be meeting with him.

Lawrence Ng's girlfriend Iva Lo was also at the event and when she was asked whether the spot on her lip was due to lack of sleep, she replied: "It's obviously down to lack of sleep! (Is it because of Lawrence?) Of course not, I am sleeping quite well." She goes on to explain her lack of sleep is down to working too hard on filming. When asked whether she has been in touch with her boyfriend, she immediately refused to respond: "No comment, I am not his parents or him, so I don't want to say anything if they aren't. (But you are his girlfriend?) So it is not right for me to say anything because as his partner, anything I say will have a big effect so I really shouldn't say anything. I hope this will all blow over soon. (Did Lawrence tell you not to say anything?) As his friend, I shouldn't say anything because if I do, this will all start again."

Also, producer Wong Wai Sing was asked whether he felt any pressure from making a show that has been covered so much in previous series and films and whether he intends to add something new to this production. He says that this show will be covering the stories of Wong Fei Hung's students, such as Chu Yuk Wing and Leung Foon. Also there have been very few productions that concentrate on the youth of Wong Fei Hung, as this has never been done before on TVB so there will be plenty of fresh material. As for his last record breaking work "Ngong Fu Sing Lung" (Square Pegs) doing so well, does he feel any pressure from this? He says there is none, because he will just do his job to the best of his ability and leave the ratings to the elements.

http://hk.news.yahoo.com/031013/12/urdr.html
http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-14/UL-186087.htm
http://www.takungpao.com/news/2003-10-14/UL-186090.htm
http://orientaldaily.com.hk/ent/ent_a14cnt.html



Thanks again to MDN for this pic that shows some of the missing faces for the TVB Grand Opening yesterday...
MDN says: "That's [Bosco Wong] in front, Myolie, Roger Kwok, Eric Tsang, Maggie Cheung, Bowie Lam, Shirley Yeung, Sunny Chan, Louis Yuen, Alex Fong, Moses Chan, Charmaine Sheh, Gallen Lo, Gigi Lai, Kwong Wa...and for the rest I cannot tell."

www.cheunghoyee.com