Farewell, Fei Fei

Lydia Sum Tin Ha (1947-2008).

Somehow, the mere thought that we will never get to see the jolly smile of Lydia Sum Tin Ha grace our TV and cinema screens again just seems to make the world a little less bright.

Sum passed away at 8.38am yesterday at Hong Kong’s Queen Mary Hospital, after a two-year battle with liver cancer. She was 61.

Sum is survived by her daughter Joyce Cheng, and ex-husband, actor/singer Adam Cheng.

Affectionately known as “Fei Fei” (Fatty) or “Fei Jie” (Fat Sis), Sum was one of the most recognisable icons of Hong Kong cinema, thanks to her rotund figure, jolly smile and iconic horn-rimmed glasses.

Born in Shanghai in 1947, Sum first joined the legendary Shaw Brothers film production studio as a child actress, and made her film debut at age 13. She then went on to appear in more than 100 movies, including some of Hong Kong’s most popular classic films such as Drunken Tai Chi, Millionaire’s Express, and It’s Mad Mad World (1987), and even directed and starred in You are Wonderful.

Although best known for her comedic roles, she was also a prominent dramatic actress, and even had a cameo in the acclaimed police drama Tiger on The Beat. Sum took a break from feature films in 1997, only to return to the silver screen seven years later with the comedy In-Laws Out-Laws.

Besides her prolific feature film roles, Sum was also a regular face on television, hosting more than 5,000 TV variety show episodes, the most famous of which was hosting the TVB variety show Enjoy Yourself Tonight.

She also starred in Singaporean English-language sitcom Living with Lydia, her first English project in her 40-year career.

The role later won her an Asian Television award in 2003 for best comedy performance by an actress.

Sum married fellow artiste Adam Cheng Siu-Chow (another prominent veteran in Hong Kong’s entertainment industry) in 1985 and had a daughter, Joyce Cheng Yan-yee two years later.

The couple divorced within a year of the birth of their daughter.

Sum had remained single ever since.

According to online reports, the actress had been having ongoing health problems since 2002 when an inflammation of her bile duct landed her in hospital. Doctors extracted 36 gallstones from her body at the time.

Subsequently in September 2006, Sum was diagnosed with liver cancer, and had one third of her liver removed. She was re-admitted into the hospital about a month ago (just before Chinese New Year), and eventually passed away peacefully yesterday morning.

Hong Kong chief executive Donald Tsang paid tribute to Sum’s legacy.

“Hong Kong grew up with her laughter. She brought us a lot of joy,” Tsang told reporters in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong performing Artistes Guild chairman, veteran artiste Alan Tam, expressed his sadness at Sum’s passing. Tam had just recently phoned Sum to wish her a happy Chinese New Year, and even made a date to share a meal when she recovered.

Fellow veteran actor Eric Tsang called her death a “tragedy to Hong Kong entertainment”, while referring to her as his big sister, reported online news site www.chinanews.com.

“She was a good comrade and like a sister to me,” he said.