The Cathay 1-for-1 movie tickets for Singtel customers on 19 May, first-come-first-serve!
Limited to the first 500 customers on every Thursday till 30 June. No app required
The Cathay Cineplex 1-for-1 Movie Deal For Singtel Customers on 19 May 2016
Have a Better Thursday and go on a 1 for 1 movie with a friend or loved one at The Cathay Cineplex, Handy Road. Exclusively for Singtel customers
In a press release on Wednesday (May 18), national family council Families for Life said 10 per cent of 700 respondents it surveyed in the first three months of the year said that they spend only 6 hours or less a week with their immediate families.
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A total of S$66 million will be made available to firms over the next three years under WorkPro schemes.
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Taiwanese actress-host Kate Pang’s miscarriage in between her hosting gigs at Star Awards Show 1 and 2 last year spooked Andie Chen so much that he’s treating her second pregnancy with more care, concern and caution.
She’s due to give birth to their second child, a girl, next month.
The couple have a son, Aden, who turns two on June 30.
The 30-year-old local actor told The New Paper at yesterday’s press conference for If Only I Could: “When my wife was expecting Aden, I wasn’t very worried and I kind of took it in an ‘everything is going to be fine, nothing is going to happen’ attitude.
“But after Kate’s miscarriage, it suddenly dawned on me that I shouldn’t take this for granted because there are risks involved in every pregnancy for the baby and the mother.
“There’s always a little bit of fear in me but hopefully everything is going to be fine.”
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When Aden was born at home in Pang’s native Taiwan, Chen flew there as quickly as he could from a film shoot in Ipoh, Malaysia.
But this time, Chen will be by Pang’s side.
“Kate is giving birth naturally again but I heard that the second time can be quite sudden,” he said.
“I will be busy with filming but it will be easier for me to rush over as the shoot is in Singapore.”
He added that he will definitely be including his daughter on the couple’s parenting site Kandie Network when she is older.
He is also thinking of changing Aden’s Instagram handle (@aden_kandie) into a combination of both his kids’ names in future.
This article was first published on May 18, 2016.
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SINGAPORE – Elderly workers who are not offered re-employment when they turn 62 could receive a higher one-off payment to tide them over while they seek new jobs, under revised guidelines issued on Wednesday (May 18).
This sum of money, called Employment…
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Aircraft rides and aerial displays will take centrestage at the Singapore Air Force’s Open House at Paya Lebar Air Base from May 21 to 22.
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On the second day of the Coroner’s Inquiry into Benjamin Lim’s death, the court heard the 14-year-old told police he initially did not confess to touching an 11-year-old girl as he was “scared”.
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More than a year after quitting Mediacorp to spend more time with his family, Gurmit Singh is back on the small and big screens as well as on stage.
He is hosting a memory game show, Don’t Forget To Remember, which airs on Channel 5 on Monday nights. In a new Singapore movie, Young & Fabulous, which opens on May 26, he plays a teacher.
On July 9 and 10, he is in Laugh Die You – The Karaoke, a stand-up comedy show with Singapore’s Kumar and Malaysia’s Joanne Kam.
But this is no full-fledged comeback – his loved ones remain his top priority. “The reason I come back is personal. And I still have to buy bread for the family so I have to do odd jobs here and there to put some food on the table,” he tells The Straits Times.
He took on Don’t Forget To Remember for friendship’s sake – its production team was behind another variety show he did, Our Makan Places: Lost & Found.
Young & Fabulous was filmed before his contract as a full-time artist with Mediacorp expired at the end of 2014. And Laugh Die You is a “one-off production”.
Recalling his hectic days as a full-time entertainer, Singh, 51, says: “As far as priority was concerned, my family was at the bottom of the list. That was the way the system worked.
“But now, it’s the opposite. My family is at the top of the list and we make long- and short-term plans.”
The bright lights of show business? “I don’t miss it. In the past 20 years, I had so much of it. I once told reporters I had enough to last me four lifetimes.”
He and his wife Melissa Wong, 46, director of show production company Indahouz, have three children – daughter Gabrielle, 18; son Elliot, 14; and daughter Mikaela, three. He declined to share personal photographs of his family for this story.
The actor remains best known for his turn as the titular Ah Beng contractor in the comedy Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd (1997-2007), for which he won the Asian Television Award for best comedy actor five times.
Singh points to a recent interview in which his elder daughter was asked what it was like to have a famous father.
“Her answer was, ‘To me, when I was growing up, my father was a mythical creature, didn’t know when he would be in or out.’ I read that with a heavy heart and it confirms that my decision to leave was right. It’s never too late to do something good again, to rectify things.”
While he does not play a parent in Young & Fabulous, his teacher character is a nurturing one and that is how Singh sees his parenting role in real life.
When it comes to his children’s interests and career choices, he says: “I told them that as long as it’s legal and it’s something they have an interest in, that’s fine. When it comes to life choices, it’s their call.”
He deadpans: “But as a parent, I have to be here to advise them, ‘No, drug-smuggling is not appropriate’.”
And if they choose to go into entertainment, well, they already know first-hand how demanding the industry is.
“Unless you want to be a performer nobody really knows, where you go for events and nobody turns up, then that’s fine. You will have a lot of time with your family.
“But I’ve told them that if you want to do something, you must give it your all, so you know how far you can go and you don’t waste anybody else’s time.
“Give it all you can because that’s your responsibility.”
Ultimately, he just wants his children to be happy. “If they have the passion, they can do whatever they want. As parents, we want to see our kids going to work happy and not dragging themselves out and cursing the world. Then we didn’t do our job right, we didn’t guide them.”
In some ways, he is “not your average father”.
He introduced his children to the multiplayer online game Defence Of The Ancients and they would happily play it together.
When it comes to social media platforms, he says: “I follow them, they follow me, so we’re all on the same page. If you want to be in touch with your little ones, you have to be on their feed as well.”
It sounds great to have a friend for a parent, but there are boundaries. “They know I’m the parent and, if something is wrong, penalties will be meted out,” says Singh, who takes turns with his wife to be the disciplinarian.
The important thing is that lines of communication are always open within the family. “Our elder daughter is at the age where she may or may not date – we don’t want to force it.
“We’ve asked her to please let us meet the boy if it happens, talk to us if there’s any boy she’s interested in and we can share what mum and dad have gone through.”
Gabrielle graduated from the School of the Arts last year.
Singh’s son is in Secondary 3 and “interested only in studies and media and robotics”.
With a comedian’s instinct for a quip, he adds: “The youngest is three years old. She wants to get married soon, but we said no.”
Along the way, Singh’s idea of being a good parent has changed. “I always thought I was being a good dad by providing for the material stuff. Money was never an issue – I made sure of that. I didn’t realise there was more important stuff. I kind of knew it, but I was in denial.”
The birth of his third child in 2013 was a wake-up call.
When he decided to make a break with entertainment as a full-time job, he told his children: “If papa does this, no more business-class air tickets. Income won’t be fixed every month, so we have to do some adjustments in terms of lifestyle.”
He sold his Lamborghini and downgraded the family from a bungalow to a three-bedroom condominium, which is fully paid for “so I don’t have to look behind my shoulder every month wondering if the bankers are coming after me”.
They have since gone on family vacations together, including a memorable one to Finland at the end of 2014.
For many years, he hosted the local television station’s countdown show on Dec 31 – “I was the only one apparently who could count backwards”.
But in 2014, he was with his family on an airplane flying back to Singapore.
“At the stroke of midnight, for the first time in 20 years, my family and I got together, hugged one another and said happy new year.”
He muses: “My family is very blase about my career and what I do for a living. They would rather have their dad back. My two older ones pointed out that the littlest one will grow up not knowing how famous her father was.”
And that is perfectly fine with him.
BOOK IT /LAUGH DIE YOU – THE KARAOKE (R18)
WHERE: Resorts World Theatre, 8 Sentosa Gateway, Resorts World Sentosa
WHEN: July 9 & 10, 7.30pm
ADMISSION: $73 to $375 from Sistic (call 6348-5555 or go to www.sistic.com.sg)
Young & Fabulous opens in cinemas on May 26.
Don’t Forget To Remember airs on Channel 5 every Monday at 7.30pm.
This article was first published on May 18, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
Quan Yi Fong, that fiery and straight-talking television host on Channel 8, is the same on and off screen – except to her daughter.
With 16-year-old Eleanor, she is just as hilarious and quick-witted, but her serrated edges are buffed out.
Often during their interview with The Straits Times, she seems more a friend than a parent to her daughter – laughing together, poking fun at each other, fighting to tell funny anecdotes and sharing a video of themselves goofing around in the car during the daily school runs that Quan makes for Eleanor.
But their chumminess ends where Quan’s professional expertise begins.
One rare time she snapped at her daughter was when the girl, who has started acting, messed up her lines on camera.
Quan, 42, recalls: “A Chinese television station had requested a clip of Eleanor saying Chinese New Year greetings. She kept messing it up. That’s when I lost it.”
Eleanor adds: “The more she got mad at me, the more stressed I got and I couldn’t memorise the script.”
Both mother and daughter have since agreed to keep their work and personal lives separate.
They did not visit each other on the set of their projects. Quan is in upcoming Singapore movie Young & Fabulous and Lee is making her acting debut in a Chinese period drama called Tribes And Empires.
“My mother respects me. She did ask if she could visit me. I said no. She just advised me to be respectful and punctual,” says Eleanor, who has taken the surname of her godfather, celebrity hairstylist Addy Lee, instead of her biological father Peter Yu’s.
Quan, a Taiwan-born Singaporean who divorced ex-actor Yu in 2009, interjects: “If my parents were breathing down my neck when I started out in show business, I wouldn’t be able to perform well either.
“My concern for Eleanor may turn into pressure. If I follow her, nag at her, it will give her stress. I’d rather give her the freedom to reach her potential. I trust her.”
While Quan is an acclaimed host who has won two Best Variety Show Host prizes at the annual Star Awards – in 2005 and 2014 – she is not completely immune to the jitters in front of the camera.
She returns to acting for the first time in seven years, playing a mother in the youth dramedy, Young & Fabulous.
“I have no confidence when it comes to acting. I fear I will overact. I’m worried I will sound like I am interviewing someone when I’m saying my lines,” says Quan, who last starred as a workaholic TV executive in Channel 8 Drama The Illusionist (2009).
It does not help that the mother she plays in Young & Fabulous is not the mother she is in real life.
In the movie, for instance, Quan’s character Mei Feng secretly accesses her son’s computer to add herself to his friends’ list on Facebook.
In real life, Quan does not need social media to track her child’s activities. With a hint of glee, she says: “I’m aware of everything my daughter does, what she eats, plays and wears.”
Eleanor says she freely discusses her dreams and even boys with her mother. “I’m the one who created my mum’s Facebook page. We are Facebook friends. Anyway, I have nothing to hide from her,” she adds.
Neither is Quan a kiasu mum like Young & Fabulous’ Mei Feng, who disapproves of her son Royston’s (Aloysius Pang) cosplay hobby and his ambition to become a fashion designer. Believing that good grades and a stable career are a sure route to a good life, the character wants her straight-A student son to be a doctor.
In contrast, Quan says: “My wish for Eleanor is for her to pursue what she loves. She has always loved to draw. I hope she can draw for passion and not to make a living.
“She can travel the world with her art materials and be a street artist. I don’t need her to become someone with status. I hope she can live for her passion.”
While she believes Eleanor should get her basic education, she does not think it is a must to get a bachelor’s degree.
She does not seem overly worried about grades or examinations either. This interview is done in the midst of Eleanor’s examination period at an international school.
Both mother and daughter look relaxed, sharing the same belief that there is only so much help that last-minute studying can do.
Quan’s parenting style towards Eleanor can perhaps be summed up in one sentence: Take responsibility for your actions.
“I’ve always told her she must be in charge of her studies. If she gets sick because she doesn’t cover herself with a blanket, then she deserves it. If she doesn’t score well in examinations, she just has to work harder,” says Quan matter of factly.
After Eleanor completes the International General Certificate of Secondary Education – an internationally recognised qualification equivalent to the O levels – they will discuss whether the girl will further her education here or in China, where Eleanor’s career opportunities lie.
What if Eleanor decides to put her studies on hold to pursue an acting career? Instantly, Quan says: “Then she’d better be good at her job. She’d better be a popular star.”
Eleanor got her foot in the door of show business last year after beating thousands of hopefuls to snag a commercial in China for technology giant Apple.
She has since won an ice-cream commercial job in China and her debut acting role in Tribes And Empires.
Signed to Beijing Shen Yi Entertainment, she already has a fanbase. Her fans call their club Kai Xin Guo, which means delight and is a play on her Chinese name Kai Xin.
They welcome her at airports in China and set up social media accounts plastered with her photos.
It seems that the doe-eyed girl exudes an effortless star appeal.
Quan recounts a travel programme she filmed in China a few years back, before Eleanor’s big break last year.
“My daughter accompanied me when I was filming overseas. I realised that people were secretly taking photos of me. They kept staring at me. I’m used to the attention.
“Later, the passers-by went up to the film crew to ask the identity of the celebrity. They thought my daughter was the celebrity and I was the minder.”
Young & Fabulous opens in cinemas on May 26.
This article was first published on May 18, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.
PARIS – IOC president Thomas Bach said Wednesday that “dozens” of athletes could be banned from the forthcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro after new tests on samples from previous games.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has decided to re-examine samples from the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and the London games in 2012 “using the most recent scientific methods”, Bach said in an opinion piece in the Le Monde daily.
“This decisive action will probably prevent dozens of athletes who have doped from competing in the Rio Olympic Games in 2016,” added Bach.
The re-examination is part of widespread measures taken by sporting bodies after a wave of new doping scandals to hit international sport with Russia at the centre.
The IOC will apply a policy of “zero tolerance,” Bach told Le Monde.
The committee had said on Tuesday that up to 31 athletes from 12 countries could face bans from the Rio event after new tests from the 2008 Games in Beijing.
These athletes were caught in new tests on 454 Beijing samples. Around 4,000 tests were carried out in total during those games, meaning the number of retroactive failures could well increase.
In addition, results from 250 retests on samples taken at the 2012 London Games are due “shortly,” according to the IOC.
