As Lawrence Ng quoted it aptly in his response, “Life is like a theatre”. For many of us, life may not be as exciting as actors with varied opportunities to assume different roles with different lifestyles. However, for drama-lovers and movie fans, there would always be an unforgettable film which accompanied us and thus hold a symbolic meaning in our lives. As we reminisce the countless TVB films we have watched and shared common memories with others, wouldn’t one be curious to know how this feeling would differ or perhaps seem familiar to our favourite TVB actors and actresses who brought these outstanding films to us?

The Fifth Parlour had the honour of walking down the memory lane with the TVB artistes in an exclusive interview during the Starhub TVB Awards 2015 as they shared their pieces of memories of their favourite TVB dramas, characters and role models in the industry.

“For me, it’s Journey to the West. I love it” — Grace Chan

As part of her memories, Grace Chan shared that she held the deepest impression of the classic TVB drama Journey To The West (1996) starring Dicky Cheung as The Monkey King and Wayne Lai as Pigsy. She revealed that she had watched the drama three to four times while in Canada and never thought that she would be able to work alongside Wayne.

Journey To The West (1996) starring Dicky Cheung and Wayne Lai Credits: TVB

Speaking of Wayne Lai, a well-respected veteran actor in the industry, he held vivid memories working on set of No Regrets (2011) with Sheren Tang. During the interview together with Moses Chan and Edwin Siu, they never failed to amuse us with their great sense of humour, teasing each other with a trending Chinese slang which describes young good-looking males as 小鲜肉  (translated directly to mean “young fresh meat“).

Over years or decades in their acting careers, TVB artistes have brought to the viewers many renowned dramas that have become classics as viewers recalled. For Kenneth Ma who have joined the career since 1999, he recalled his most unforgettable production to be A Fistful of Stances (2010), a kungfu drama with countless fighting scenes he “could never forget”. He also described it to be “emotional” as he portrayed a character who was faced with various disheartening happenings as the plot developed.

And at the center of all dramas lies the very cast who supported the plot development and engaged the audience through their lively depictions of fictious characters from scripts to individuals whom viewers can relate to in thier lives.

“I did not dare to wear so short but in that drama, everything worn has to be revealing”— Tavia Yeung

Tavia Yeung recalled her most vivid breakout character to be MiMi from Dicey Business (2006). She recounted that it was her first production which required her to be skimpily dressed. It took her great efforts to prepare herself for the role and to step out of her comfort zone. Nonetheless, she was proud and grateful for the challenge which shaped her to be a more professional actress.

Amongst the many characters played by Tony Hung, he chose his character from Captain Of Destiny, winner of this year My Favourite TVB Drama, as the most unforgettable role he has played, as a Chinese pirate from the 1800s. As he went on to praise that he is actually much better looking in real-life, Priscilla could not help but looked down in embarrassment while Grace took the opportunity to tease his over-confidence.

Being an actor, one is frequently challenged to portray roles distanced from one’s true self. Yet in order to bring these characters to life, TVB artistes often have to search deeper into their personal lives for inspiration to perfect their roles. When asked to cite examples from her past works, Linda mentioned Sheung Joy Sum from Heart of Greed (2007) and Gwai Choi-Chi from Legend of the Demigods (2008) as characters closest to her true self.

And along this long arduous road of acting, enduring pain and tiredness unlike other occupations with irregular work-life balance, TVB artistes remain rooted to the ground and motivated by their initial passion for acting. When asked about role models who inspire them to perform better, Vincent Wong expressed that his role model has always been Chow Yun-fat and, inevitably, had the greatest fondness for Chow Yun-fat’s works, particularly in A Better Tomorrow (1986).

“We may not know who we have influenced, but we hope that there may just be an individual who remembers us after ten years”– Nancy Wu

Selena Li and Nancy Wu made special mentions of Liza Weng as a senior in the field they looked up to, motivated by her dedication and, as included in Liza’s acceptance speech, perseverance without shunning away from challenges or downs in her life and career. It is commendable that Selena and Nancy may have been in the industry for more than a decade yet they remained humble and expressed that the greatest thing they hope for is to be remembered by the audience after many years, alike Liza Weng.

This year, Ruco Chan clinched two most prestigious awards, My Favourite TVB Actor and My Favourite TVB Drama with Captain Of Destinty (2015). When asked about his breakthrough roles, he gave no hesitation to mention Captain Of Destinty, and The Other Truth (2011). He expressed great joy and appreciation for the warm welcome he received upon his arrival in Singapore. He was also eager to share about his upcoming work Heroes of the Walled City, which is currently under production. As he answered, “working hard to present the best is the best way to repay the viewers, especially my fans.”

It was a great delight reminiscing about past TVB dramas with the artistes who were part of the team involved in creating them. It may be another long year until they return for the annual ceremony in 2016 but viewers can continue to catch them in their works shown on StarHub channels.

The Fifth Parlour would like to thank StarHub for the invitation and all the above TVB artists for their time.