Barbara Yung Mei-ling
Encyclopedia
Barbara Yung Mei-ling was a Chinese television actress in Hong Kong
during the early 1980s. She died at the age of 26, at the peak of her career.
. Her childhood was relatively uneventful until the death of her father when she was aged 7.
Yung left Hong Kong for England
at age 15 (in late 1974) to rejoin her mother who had immigrated to the United Kingdom
(TVB K100 Feature Interview, 1985). Yung, her mother and a family friend whom Yung considered as her "uncle" first moved to Islington near London
. Together as a family, they later settled in Histon, a small village in Cambridge, England. Yung's mother and family friend operated a small fish and chips store at Histon where Yung helped out during the weekends. While in Hong Kong, Yung attended Rosaryhill School
(located at Stubbs Road in Hong Kong), where she had completed her primary and some of her secondary education through Form 4 (TVB K100, 1985). She continued with her GCE O levels at a secondary school in Cambridge
. After the completion of her 'O' levels, she was admitted to a 2-year foundations program at the Cambridge College of Arts and Technology (CCAT). Upon the completion of this program, she went to London to study textile design at the Central School of Art & Design
. She spent 4 years at this school (TVB K100 Feature Interview, 1985).
in 1982, in which she was awarded 9th place (TVB, Miss Hong Kong, 1982). After the pageant, she was offered an acting contract by Hong Kong Television Broadcasts (TVB). She made her acting debut in 1982, in a Cantonese Wuxia
series named Sup Sam Mui also known as The Legend of the Unknowns
based on the Qing Dynasty
period, co-starring Kent Tong
and Simon Yam
in which Yung played a Manchu
rian princess, Princess Sheung (TVB K100 Feature Interview, 1985). This was the TV drama that shot her into the limelight. Although Yung played a relatively small role in this drama, she managed to gain TVB's confidence to cast her in what would become the drama (The Legend of the Condor Heroes
) that would make her a household name in Hong Kong, Singapore
, Malaysia, Indonesia
, Thailand
and Vietnam
in the 1980s. Her popularity persists through present day due to her lead role in The Legend of the Condor Heroes (TVB K100 Feature Interview, 1985).
in which she portrayed the character Wong Yung
. TVB made several costumed/period dramas in the 1980s based on famous martial arts swordplay novels by Louis Cha. Cha's The Legend of the Condor Heroes, has been adapted numerous times to TV dramas and film, but none has attained a popularity as the one made by TVB in 1983. The innocent swordsman, Kwok Ching
was played by Felix Wong
. The cast in this edition also featured Michael Miu
, Sharon Yeung, Patrick Tse and Louise Lee.
Yung's other TV dramas included: The Foundation, The Man in the Middle, The Fearless Duo, United We Stand, The New Adventures of Chor Lau-heung
, The Rough Ride
and The Battlefield
.
, Kowloon
in the morning of 14 May 1985 (Spiritus Temporis, 2007). According to her friend and actor (who was rumored to have begun courting Yung), Stephen Chow Sai-lung, Yung had called him on the night of 13 May 1985. Chow asserted that she was troubled by her failing relationship with Ken Tong
. After hanging up, Chow was concerned and he went to her home. However, he could not gain entrance to her apartment. He then thought that nobody was home and subsequently left. Chow returned to Yung's apartment on the morning of 14 May 1985. He knocked on Yung's door again but no one answered. Chow said he smelled gas fumes through Yung's apartment door. He then climbed up the exterior apartment building wall to her second floor apartment and pried open her front window. He entered Yung's apartment (from the window) and discovered her unconscious and sprawled on the living room floor. Chow immediately alerted the building's security and police. Yung was rushed to the nearby Baptist Hospital, Kowloon where she was pronounced dead on arrival. There were many rumors regarding the cause of her death. Some had attributed it to an accident, suicide or perhaps even foul play. One of the most widely circulated rumors was that her suicide
was the result of her depression over her supposed broken relationship with then TVB actor, Ken Tong Chun-yip. (It is to be noted that in an interview conducted by a Hong Kong radio station on 14 March 1985, when asked about rumors regarding her relationship with Ken Tong, Yung had explained that he was merely a friend and respected colleague.) The rumors concerning the association of her death with Ken Tong were largely based on Stephen Chow's account of her last 24 hours. There were also rumors which claimed that Stephen Chow was Yung's boyfriend. According to Yung's TVB colleagues, she had not behaved abnormally in the days before the incident and that there was no hint that she was depressed or suicidal. Yung also sounded very optimistic about her future in her radio interviews both on 14 March 1985 and one conducted two weeks before her death. Yung did not leave a suicide note. At the time of her death, Yung was involved in filming the final chapters of the TVB drama, The Battlefield. Filming was due to conclude in June 1985. TVB had also cast Barbara Yung and Kent Tong in another period drama, Kings of Ideas (橋王之王). Her role in this drama was replaced by Maggie Cheung
.
Yung's funeral
was a big event and was attended by throngs of fans and many prominent Hong Kong celebrities. Her remains were situated at the World Funeral Parlor, Hung Hum, Kowloon for fans and friends to pay their final respect. Her friends and co-stars in her TV dramas such as Michael Miu
, Felix Wong
, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Andy Lau
were pallbearers for her casket. Yung had a Catholic
funeral. She was cremated in Hong Kong on 19 May 1985 and her ashes are laid to rest at the New Market Road Cemetery in Cambridge, England (You Tube, Fan Video, 2007).
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
during the early 1980s. She died at the age of 26, at the peak of her career.
Education
Yung was born in Hong Kong to a civil service family as an only childOnly child
An only child is a person with no siblings, either biological or adopted. In a family with multiple offspring, first-borns, may be briefly considered only children and have a similar early family environment, but the term only child is generally applied only to those individuals who never have...
. Her childhood was relatively uneventful until the death of her father when she was aged 7.
Yung left Hong Kong for England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
at age 15 (in late 1974) to rejoin her mother who had immigrated to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
(TVB K100 Feature Interview, 1985). Yung, her mother and a family friend whom Yung considered as her "uncle" first moved to Islington near London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Together as a family, they later settled in Histon, a small village in Cambridge, England. Yung's mother and family friend operated a small fish and chips store at Histon where Yung helped out during the weekends. While in Hong Kong, Yung attended Rosaryhill School
Rosaryhill School
Rosaryhill School is a Catholic co-educational institution founded by the Dominican Fathers in Hong Kong in 1959, at 41B, Stubbs Road. It consists of four sections: Kindergarten, Primary, Secondary , and Business Studies .-History:In early 1960 Fr...
(located at Stubbs Road in Hong Kong), where she had completed her primary and some of her secondary education through Form 4 (TVB K100, 1985). She continued with her GCE O levels at a secondary school in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. After the completion of her 'O' levels, she was admitted to a 2-year foundations program at the Cambridge College of Arts and Technology (CCAT). Upon the completion of this program, she went to London to study textile design at the Central School of Art & Design
Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design
Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London. The school has an outstanding international reputation, and is considered one of the world's leading art and design institutions...
. She spent 4 years at this school (TVB K100 Feature Interview, 1985).
Beginning of career
Yung returned to Hong Kong and joined the Miss Hong Kong pageantMiss Hong Kong Pageant
The Miss Hong Kong Pageant , or MSHK for short, is a beauty pageant organized by the leading Hong Kong television station, Television Broadcasts ....
in 1982, in which she was awarded 9th place (TVB, Miss Hong Kong, 1982). After the pageant, she was offered an acting contract by Hong Kong Television Broadcasts (TVB). She made her acting debut in 1982, in a Cantonese Wuxia
Wuxia
Wuxia is a broad genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists. Although wuxia is traditionally a form of literature, its popularity has caused it to spread to diverse art forms like Chinese opera, manhua , films, television series, and video games...
series named Sup Sam Mui also known as The Legend of the Unknowns
The Legend of the Unknowns
The Legend of the Unknowns is a TVB television series, premiered in 1983. Starring: Cecilia Wong, Kent Tong, Sharon Yeung, Barbara Yung, Simon Yam. Theme song "Heroine" composition and arrangement by Joseph Koo, lyricist by Wong Jim, sung by Frances Yip....
based on the Qing Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
period, co-starring Kent Tong
Kent Tong
Kent Tong Chun-yip also known as Ken Tong, Kenneth Tong Kent Tong Chun-yip also known as Ken Tong, Kenneth Tong Kent Tong Chun-yip also known as Ken Tong, Kenneth Tong (Traditional - 湯鎮業 Simplified - 汤镇业）was born on 29 September 1958 in Hong Kong, China. He was a popular TVB actor during the 1980s...
and Simon Yam
Simon Yam
Simon Yam Tat-Wah , born March 19, 1955, is a Hong Kong actor and film producer.-Background:The son of a former police officer of Shangdong heritage, his father was a Hong Kong Royal Police ship captain who was murdered by his colleague....
in which Yung played a Manchu
Manchu
The Manchu people or Man are an ethnic minority of China who originated in Manchuria . During their rise in the 17th century, with the help of the Ming dynasty rebels , they came to power in China and founded the Qing Dynasty, which ruled China until the Xinhai Revolution of 1911, which...
rian princess, Princess Sheung (TVB K100 Feature Interview, 1985). This was the TV drama that shot her into the limelight. Although Yung played a relatively small role in this drama, she managed to gain TVB's confidence to cast her in what would become the drama (The Legend of the Condor Heroes
The Legend of the Condor Heroes (1982 TV Series)
-Track list:-Production:According to the behind-the-scenes featurette on the DVD, the Mongolian scenes were filmed in Lantau Island, Hong Kong....
) that would make her a household name in Hong Kong, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Malaysia, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
in the 1980s. Her popularity persists through present day due to her lead role in The Legend of the Condor Heroes (TVB K100 Feature Interview, 1985).
Ascension to fame
Yung's most famous TVB swordplay series was The Legend of the Condor HeroesThe Legend of the Condor Heroes (1982 TV Series)
-Track list:-Production:According to the behind-the-scenes featurette on the DVD, the Mongolian scenes were filmed in Lantau Island, Hong Kong....
in which she portrayed the character Wong Yung
Huang Rong
Huang Rong is a fictional character in the wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong. She plays a supporting role in the sequel The Return of the Condor Heroes.-Character description:...
. TVB made several costumed/period dramas in the 1980s based on famous martial arts swordplay novels by Louis Cha. Cha's The Legend of the Condor Heroes, has been adapted numerous times to TV dramas and film, but none has attained a popularity as the one made by TVB in 1983. The innocent swordsman, Kwok Ching
Guo Jing
Guo Jing is the fictional protagonist of The Legend of the Condor Heroes, a wuxia novel by Jin Yong. He plays a supporting role in the sequel novel The Return of the Condor Heroes as well...
was played by Felix Wong
Felix Wong
Felix Wong Yat-wah is a Hong Kong actor and singer. Wong is best known for his performances in many Hong Kong wuxia television drama series produced by TVB, such as The Legend of the Condor Heroes , in which he played the protagonist Kwok Ching...
. The cast in this edition also featured Michael Miu
Michael Miu
Michael Miu Kiu-wai is a Hong Kong television and film actor. He was considered as one of the most popular young actors of the 1980s, and along with Tony Leung, Andy Lau, Felix Wong, and Kent Tong, he was a member of TVB's Five Tigers...
, Sharon Yeung, Patrick Tse and Louise Lee.
Yung's other TV dramas included: The Foundation, The Man in the Middle, The Fearless Duo, United We Stand, The New Adventures of Chor Lau-heung
The New Adventures of Chor Lau-heung (1984 TV series)
The New Adventures of Chor Lau-heung is a Hong Kong television series adapted from Chu Liuxiang Xinzhuan of Gu Long's Chu Liuxiang novel series. Michael Miu starred as the titular protagonist, Chor Lau-heung . The series was first broadcast on TVB from November 12, 1984 to January 4, 1985...
, The Rough Ride
The Rough Ride
The Rough Ride is a TVB television series, premiered in 1985. Theme song "Me and You, He and Me" composition and arrangement by Joseph Koo, lyricist by Wong Jim, sung by Anita Mui.-Cast:* Tony Leung* Barbara Yung* Lau Dan* Ray Lui...
and The Battlefield
The Battlefield (1985 TV series)
The Battlefield is a Hong Kong television series based on the events in the Chu–Han contention period of Chinese history. It was first broadcast in 1985 in Hong Kong on TVB.-Plot:...
.
Death
Yung was found unconscious due to gas inhalation in her apartment on Broadcast DriveBroadcast Drive
Broadcast Drive is a road in Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong. The road is notable as it is only 1 km long but having played host to all five broadcasting outlets in Hong Kong at one point in the 1970s, and the hill on which the road is located was known in Chinese as Ng Toi Shan during that time...
, Kowloon
Kowloon
Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...
in the morning of 14 May 1985 (Spiritus Temporis, 2007). According to her friend and actor (who was rumored to have begun courting Yung), Stephen Chow Sai-lung, Yung had called him on the night of 13 May 1985. Chow asserted that she was troubled by her failing relationship with Ken Tong
Kent Tong
Kent Tong Chun-yip also known as Ken Tong, Kenneth Tong Kent Tong Chun-yip also known as Ken Tong, Kenneth Tong Kent Tong Chun-yip also known as Ken Tong, Kenneth Tong (Traditional - 湯鎮業 Simplified - 汤镇业）was born on 29 September 1958 in Hong Kong, China. He was a popular TVB actor during the 1980s...
. After hanging up, Chow was concerned and he went to her home. However, he could not gain entrance to her apartment. He then thought that nobody was home and subsequently left. Chow returned to Yung's apartment on the morning of 14 May 1985. He knocked on Yung's door again but no one answered. Chow said he smelled gas fumes through Yung's apartment door. He then climbed up the exterior apartment building wall to her second floor apartment and pried open her front window. He entered Yung's apartment (from the window) and discovered her unconscious and sprawled on the living room floor. Chow immediately alerted the building's security and police. Yung was rushed to the nearby Baptist Hospital, Kowloon where she was pronounced dead on arrival. There were many rumors regarding the cause of her death. Some had attributed it to an accident, suicide or perhaps even foul play. One of the most widely circulated rumors was that her suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
was the result of her depression over her supposed broken relationship with then TVB actor, Ken Tong Chun-yip. (It is to be noted that in an interview conducted by a Hong Kong radio station on 14 March 1985, when asked about rumors regarding her relationship with Ken Tong, Yung had explained that he was merely a friend and respected colleague.) The rumors concerning the association of her death with Ken Tong were largely based on Stephen Chow's account of her last 24 hours. There were also rumors which claimed that Stephen Chow was Yung's boyfriend. According to Yung's TVB colleagues, she had not behaved abnormally in the days before the incident and that there was no hint that she was depressed or suicidal. Yung also sounded very optimistic about her future in her radio interviews both on 14 March 1985 and one conducted two weeks before her death. Yung did not leave a suicide note. At the time of her death, Yung was involved in filming the final chapters of the TVB drama, The Battlefield. Filming was due to conclude in June 1985. TVB had also cast Barbara Yung and Kent Tong in another period drama, Kings of Ideas (橋王之王). Her role in this drama was replaced by Maggie Cheung
Maggie Cheung
Maggie Cheung Man yuk is a Chinese actress from Hong Kong. Raised in England and Hong Kong, she has over 70 films to her credit since starting her career in 1983...
.
Yung's funeral
Funeral
A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor...
was a big event and was attended by throngs of fans and many prominent Hong Kong celebrities. Her remains were situated at the World Funeral Parlor, Hung Hum, Kowloon for fans and friends to pay their final respect. Her friends and co-stars in her TV dramas such as Michael Miu
Michael Miu
Michael Miu Kiu-wai is a Hong Kong television and film actor. He was considered as one of the most popular young actors of the 1980s, and along with Tony Leung, Andy Lau, Felix Wong, and Kent Tong, he was a member of TVB's Five Tigers...
, Felix Wong
Felix Wong
Felix Wong Yat-wah is a Hong Kong actor and singer. Wong is best known for his performances in many Hong Kong wuxia television drama series produced by TVB, such as The Legend of the Condor Heroes , in which he played the protagonist Kwok Ching...
, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Andy Lau
Andy Lau
Andy Lau MH, JP is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer, actor, and film producer. Lau has been one of Hong Kong's most commercially successful film actors since the mid-1980s, performing in more than 160 films while maintaining a successful singing career at the same time...
were pallbearers for her casket. Yung had a Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
funeral. She was cremated in Hong Kong on 19 May 1985 and her ashes are laid to rest at the New Market Road Cemetery in Cambridge, England (You Tube, Fan Video, 2007).
TV dramas
| Year | Chinese Title | English Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 十三妹 | The Legend of the Unknowns The Legend of the Unknowns The Legend of the Unknowns is a TVB television series, premiered in 1983. Starring: Cecilia Wong, Kent Tong, Sharon Yeung, Barbara Yung, Simon Yam. Theme song "Heroine" composition and arrangement by Joseph Koo, lyricist by Wong Jim, sung by Frances Yip.... |
Princess Sheung | |
| 1983 | 射鵰英雄傳 | The Legend of the Condor Heroes | Wong Yung Huang Rong Huang Rong is a fictional character in the wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong. She plays a supporting role in the sequel The Return of the Condor Heroes.-Character description:... |
Part 1: The Iron-Blooded Loyalists (鐵血丹心) Part 2: Eastern Heretic and Western Venom (東邪西毒) Part 3: The Duel on Mount Hua (華山論劍) |
| 夹心人 | The Man in the Middle | Tung Pui-man | ||
| 1984 | 決戰玄武門 | The Foundation | Chun Sik-sik | |
| 天師執位 | The Fearless Duo | Lam Chor-yin | ||
| 生銹橋王 | United We Stand | Lam Pui-ying, Ho Doh-wan | ||
| 楚留香之蝙蝠傳奇 | The New Adventures of Chor Lau-heung The New Adventures of Chor Lau-heung (1984 TV series) The New Adventures of Chor Lau-heung is a Hong Kong television series adapted from Chu Liuxiang Xinzhuan of Gu Long's Chu Liuxiang novel series. Michael Miu starred as the titular protagonist, Chor Lau-heung . The series was first broadcast on TVB from November 12, 1984 to January 4, 1985... |
Princess Wing-ching | ||
| 1985 | 挑戰 | The Rough Ride The Rough Ride The Rough Ride is a TVB television series, premiered in 1985. Theme song "Me and You, He and Me" composition and arrangement by Joseph Koo, lyricist by Wong Jim, sung by Anita Mui.-Cast:* Tony Leung* Barbara Yung* Lau Dan* Ray Lui... |
Tse Bik-wah | |
| 楚河漢界 | The Battlefield The Battlefield (1985 TV series) The Battlefield is a Hong Kong television series based on the events in the Chu–Han contention period of Chinese history. It was first broadcast in 1985 in Hong Kong on TVB.-Plot:... |
Yuk Dip-yee | ||
| 橋王之王 | Kings of Ideas (also named The Feud That Was) | Uncompleted due to death. |
External links
- Television Broadcasts. (1982). Miss Hong Kong Pageant 1982. Retrieved 12 August 2007
- Television Broadcasts. (1985). Biography Feature on Barbara Yung. Retrieved 12 August 2007
- You Tube. (2007). Fan video of Newmarket Road Cemetery, Cambridge. Retrieved 12 August 2007