The latest episode of Dishing With Chris Lee saw veteran actors Chen Shucheng, 74, Richard Low, 72, Marcus Chin, 70, and Zhu Houren, 69, spilling some serious tea when they hung out with host Christopher Lee at his kelong.
The stars assisted Chris, 52, every step of the way as he prepared Teochew fish dishes, all while engaging in lively banter as they reminisced about past times.
Chris got the ball rolling by asking the actors what they were doing prior to joining showbiz.
The youngest of the quartet, Houren, shared that he used to be a camera assistant who “followed the cameraman around from start to finish”.
Curious, Chris asked: “What gave you the courage to start attending the acting course?”
Marcus then pointed at Houren, triggering his memory. “I participated in a speech training course in 1976. My speech is still not great, because my teacher back then was none other than Marcus,” explained Houren, causing the others to burst into laughter.
Shucheng revealed that his showbiz career began with hosting on Singapore’s pioneering radio station, Rediffusion (丽的呼声).
He narrated stories on radio and later acted in black-and-white shows, working with Marcus, who was then a screenwriter.
Unbeknownst to Chris, Marcus was the writer behind the first local colour TV drama, Deng E (灯蛾), which aired in 1980.
Marcus also started out in radio, with Houren adding: “He entered showbiz really early, he’s only two years older than me, but he was my teacher.”
Richard, too, began his showbiz journey as a host on Rediffusion. Prior to joining the industry, he worked as a construction site supervisor.
Chris joked: “He would later go on to play villainous characters, that’s probably where he developed that skill.”
Richard chuckled, agreeing: “You’re right, I used to be really fierce in the past.”