logo
Penang-born actress Lim Pik-Sen from ‘Mind Your Language' passes away at 80

Penang-born actress Lim Pik-Sen from ‘Mind Your Language' passes away at 80

Straits Times14-06-2025

The 80-year-old British actress was born in 1944 to businessman Lim Cheng-Teik. PHOTO: THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
Penang-born actress Lim Pik-Sen from 'Mind Your Language' passes away at 80
PETALING JAYA - Penang-born Lim Pik-Sen, who shot to stardom for her role in British sitcom Mind Your Language, passed away on June 9.
The 80-year-old British actress was born in 1944 to businessman Lim Cheng-Teik and pursued her early education in the state before leaving for the United Kingdom to study acting when she was just 17.
Her given birth name was Lim Phaik-Seng, but she changed it to 'Pik-Sen' since her British friends would mispronounce 'Phaik' as 'fake'.
Well-known for her acting in Mind Your Language from 1977 to 1986, she played Chinese student Chung Su-Lee in the sitcom and spoke broken English in a Chinese accent for the role although she was fluent in the language.
Portraying herself as a staunch follower of Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong in the sitcom, she was known to hilariously whip out a 'little red book' and dictate verses on communism.
Apart from the sitcom, she also acted in over 30 other movies, dramas and TV series between 1964 and 2023, such as Dr Who, General Hospital and The Professionals.
Among the shows Lim had acted in in recent years were TV and drama series such as Vampire Academy, The Nevers and This Way Up.
She also played the 'killer cleaner' in the 2011 movie Johnny English Reborn alongside actors Rowan Atkinson, Gillian Anderson and Dominic West. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Singer Wang Leehom invites ‘twin brother' Aarif Rahman as guest performer at Beijing concert
Singer Wang Leehom invites ‘twin brother' Aarif Rahman as guest performer at Beijing concert

Straits Times

time7 hours ago

  • Straits Times

Singer Wang Leehom invites ‘twin brother' Aarif Rahman as guest performer at Beijing concert

Wang Leehom (left) invited Hong Kong singer-actor Aarif Rahman as the guest singer on the first night of his show in Beijing. PHOTO: AARIF_964/INSTAGRAM Fans could be forgiven if they thought they were seeing double at Taiwanese-American singer Wang Leehom's concert on June 20. The 49-year-old star invited Hong Kong singer-actor Aarif Rahman, 38, often dubbed 'Little Wang Leehom' due to his resemblance to Wang, as the guest singer on the first night of his show in Beijing. Wang is currently staging his The Best Place concert tour in China, with three sold-out shows in Beijing from June 20 to 22. 'Is there something wrong with the camera? Why are there two overlapping images?' Wang jested when Aarif, dressed in clothes similar to his outfits, appeared on stage on June 20. 'Or are my eyes seeing things?' Aarif joked that it could be due to artificial intelligence (AI). 'AI is very powerful now, and the technology of face-swopping is very scary,' he said. 'The AI filter is so powerful that it makes me 10 years younger today,' Wang replied. Aarif quipped: 'And you will grow taller.' Wang is 1.8m tall, while Aarif is 1.75m tall. Wang said many people have remarked on their resemblance, as the two artistes positioned themselves together on stage for the fans to make their judgment. 'Thank you, my 'twin'. We really look alike,' Wang acknowledged. Aarif – who is of Arab, Malay and Chinese descent – said that since the age of 16, he has often heard comments that he is a Wang lookalike. He attended his first Wang concert in 2008 when he graduated from university, he said, adding that both of them have finally appeared on stage together after 17 years. At the concert, they performed Wang's songs Still In Love With You (2011) and One World One Dream (2008). Wang posted photos of the concert on Chinese social media platform Weibo on June 21. 'Brothers performed a 'lookalike show',' he wrote . 'Were you surprised by today's guest performer Aarif Rahman?' Under Wang's post, Aarif thanked him for inviting him to the concert. Aarif also posted several concert photos on social media. 'Performing your songs on the same stage with you was something I never imagined when I was watching your concert during my younger days,' he wrote on Weibo. 'It has come true in Beijing. I look forward to meeting you next time.' Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

Actress Hong Ling leaves honeymoon planning to husband Nick Teo
Actress Hong Ling leaves honeymoon planning to husband Nick Teo

Straits Times

time13 hours ago

  • Straits Times

Actress Hong Ling leaves honeymoon planning to husband Nick Teo

Hong Ling and Nick Teo went for their honeymoon more than one year after their marriage. PHOTOS: NICKK_TEO/INSTAGRAM SINGAPORE – Home-grown actress Hong Ling did not mind leaving all the planning for her recent honeymoon to her husband, actor Nick Teo. The Mediacorp celebrity couple said on social media in May and June that they had travelled to Switzerland and Italy for a two-week honeymoon. As she is the eldest child in her family, Hong, 30, usually plans the itinerary for her family's overseas trips. However, her honeymoon was totally arranged by Teo, 35, whom she married in December 2023. 'I have not organised things after being with Nick,' Hong told Lianhe Zaobao on June 18. 'In his eyes, I am a girl who is a little confused and does not know anything.' The actress was speaking to the Chinese-language newspaper during a coffee session with the media for Mediacorp's new TV series The Spirit Hunter. 'I have always been the one in charge of planning at home,' Hong said. 'Perhaps I have someone to rely on after meeting him, so I'm willing to let go and let him do the planning.' Revealing the reason for delaying their honeymoon, she said: 'We took on acting roles at different times, so it just dragged on for a year and a half.' The actress starred in the crime drama Unforgivable (2024), for which she has been nominated for Best Actress at the upcoming Star Awards on July 6, alongside co-star Jesseca Liu. Meanwhile, Teo acted in pet and marriage drama Furever Yours (2024) and the blockbuster series Emerald Hill – The Little Nyonya Story (2025). Hong told Zaobao that she cannot forget the snow-capped mountains of Switzerland, which was chosen as her husband was looking forward to visiting the country. She recalled that both her agent and actress Jeanette Aw had told her it would not be very cold in Switzerland. Instead, it rained for several days when she and Teo arrived in Switzerland, with the temperature on the mountains dropping as low as minus 11 deg C. She was saved by Teo's advance planning; he had taken along a puffer jacket that kept her warm. On Mother's Day, Hong went public on social media about her miscarriage. She disclosed to Zaobao that she felt relieved after opening up about the heart-breaking incident. With enough time to rest, she said, she has recovered well. The actress recently fell in love with pickleball, and she and Teo would invite friends to enjoy the sport together. 'I felt it was fun and went to learn it,' she said. 'I finally stepped out of the room to play last week. I quite like it and will likely continue to play.' In The Spirit Hunter, which premieres on Channel 8 on July 3, Hong plays an ordinary young woman embarking on a journey to eliminate ghosts and malevolent spirits after receiving a sword. The Spirit Hunter also stars Ferlyn G, Richie Koh, Tyler Ten and Elvin Ng. Hong will be involved in action scenes again in the new drama, just like in Unforgiven. She does not feel her stamina has improved, though. 'On the contrary, I felt as if I have become weak,' she said. 'It was very tiring filming the fighting scenes and I didn't want to move at all after I was done with them.' Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

London museum opens vast ‘on-demand' storehouse to public
London museum opens vast ‘on-demand' storehouse to public

Straits Times

timea day ago

  • Straits Times

London museum opens vast ‘on-demand' storehouse to public

A visitor looking at the artefacts exhibited in the newly opened museum V&A East Storehouse in East London on June 12. PHOTO: AFP LONDON – Imagine being able to visit a museum and examine up close thousand-year-old pottery, revel alone in jewellery from centuries past or peer inside a Versace bag. Now, London's V&A has launched a revolutionary new exhibition space, where visitors can choose from some 250,000 objects, order something they want to spend time looking at and have it delivered to a room for a private viewing. Most museums have thousands of precious and historic items hidden away in their stores, which the public never gets to see or enjoy. But the V&A East Storehouse, which opened on May 31 in a specially converted warehouse, has come up with a radical new concept. And it is totally free. Senior curator Georgia Haseldine said: 'Museums should be and are for everybody... the V&A's collection is for everybody. It belongs to everybody, and everyone should be able to have free, equitable and meaningful access to it. 'So, this is a world first. Never has anyone been able to be invited freely, without having to book into the same space as a national collection, on this scale.' One-fifth of the museum's total collection is now available to be viewed and enjoyed in the four-storey building on the former site of the 2012 London Olympic Games. No protective glass British drummer Keith Moon's drum kit is among some 250,000 objects available to the public for viewing. PHOTO: AFP 'It's fantastic, it's so much better than an ordinary museum,' said retired physics teacher Jane Bailey as she toured the floors. 'I'm just really, really impressed by it. We've only just heard about it, but it's phenomenal.' She was transfixed by the sight of the drum kit which belonged to Keith Moon from English rock band The Who, saying it would be great to be able to resuscitate the legendary drummer – who died in 1978 – to play a set for them. Jostling for space side by side on shelves in a massive hangar – which resembles a do-it-yourself commercial warehouse and stretches for more than 30 basketball courts – are everything from ceramics and tapestries to paintings and toys from the Tudor period. There is even the whole 15th-century gilded wooden ceiling from the now-lost Torrijos Palace in Spain; and the Kaufmann Office, a panelled room which is the only complete Frank Lloyd Wright interior outside the United States. The gilded ceiling from the now-lost Torrijos Palace, originally from the town of Torrijos near Toledo in Spain, at the V&A East Storehouse. PHOTO: AFP Hanging on display is the stunning stage front cloth made for Le Train Bleu – a copy of a Pablo Picasso painting that was specially designed for the 1924 Ballets Russes production. Its huge size means it has rarely been seen since its stage debut. There is no protective glass. The stage front cloth made for Le Train Bleu – a copy of a Pablo Picasso painting that was specially designed for the 1924 Ballets Russes production – at the V&A East Storehouse. PHOTO: AFP One of the first visitors to the Storehouse was Princess Catherine, a patron of the V&A and keen art lover, who took a tour on June 10. She described the collection as 'eclectic' as she used the 'order an object' system to look at a samples book from renowned 19th-century English textiles designer William Morris, as well as rolls of ornate textiles and a musical instrument. An example of a Frankfurt Kitchen, which is the first type of fitted kitchen, on show at the V&A East Storehouse. PHOTO: AFP All the works are available to the public seven days a week, and can be reserved via an online booking system for a private viewing at a date and time of your choice. Members of staff are on hand paying close attention as visitors don purple gloves and satisfy their curiosity, spending time with the object of their choice. A love letter to objects It is a huge departure from the usual admonishment of 'Don't touch!' found in most museums seeking to protect their objects from damage. Dr Haseldine acknowledged 'we have certainly met with some levels of scepticism and worry'. But she said once the idea was explained properly, including how meaningful it is to start to open up and give collections back to a community, 'people just start to think creatively about how we can do this'. American national Manuel Garza, who lives in London, thought the V&A Storehouse was 'one of the most interesting spaces that just opened up here in London'. One-fifth of the V&A museum's total collection is now available to be viewed at the V&A East Storehouse, which is in the four-storey building on the former site of the 2012 London Olympic Games. PHOTO: AFP Dr Haseldine said 'this building is a love letter to objects'. 'To be able to see around the back of an object, to be able to look inside a dress, to be able to see the bottom of a pot – all these things are how we really learn about our material culture,' she added. A Glastonbury Festival painted bin at the V&A East Storehouse. PHOTO: AFP Expert Kate Hill, who teaches cultural history at Lincoln University, said it is unusual for museums to open up their storehouses. 'Most of the time, they offer some 'behind-the-scene' tour, but their objets are not accessible. It's visible, but not accessible.' Ms Bailey said: 'I would hope that this is the museum of the future because some are very, very stuffy. We went to one recently and it was excruciating.' AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store