Fans of TVB dramas who are of a certain vintage might remember veteran Hong Kong actress Annie Liu On Lai, 66.
She entered showbiz in 1977 after participating in TVB’s sixth artiste training class. She later gained fame for her roles as Song Tian’er in 1979 classic drama Chor Lau Heung and Guo Fu in the 1985 adaptation of The Return of the Condor Heroes.
She was also nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Golden Horse Awards for her role in the 1996 film Floating Life.
After tying the knot with photographer Alain Yip in 1986, she quit showbiz and focused on running their bridal photography studio.
The couple, who have two daughters, Adorna and Mia, eventually divorced in 2012 after Alain left Annie to become a monk.
She later returned to acting and is currently semi-retired.
In a recent interview with HK01, Annie reminisced about her early days in showbiz and revealed that she used to be very shy.
She joined a neighbourhood drama class to overcome her shyness and it was thanks to one of her instructors, filmmaker Raymond Wong, who said she had “acting in her blood”, that she decided to enrol in TVB’s artiste training class.
Annie recalled one incident with screen legend Chow Yun Fat on the set of 1978 drama The Giant that left her very “uncomfortable” and afraid of the star.
Describing Fat Gor as playful, Annie, who was then 22, said the actor liked to fool around on set.
“I wasn’t used to that kind of playful behaviour so I wasn’t comfortable with that kind of boldness. There was an incident involving some physical contact that made me feel very uncomfortable. I was very shy, and that was how I felt at the time,” shared Annie.
Of course, Annie doesn’t mind now and would probably join in the fun, but at the time, she “really couldn’t handle it”.
“I was so scared and shy that I left the set and cried,” Annie said.
She added that she would feel nervous when she saw Fat Gor and avoided him.