Hong Kong Veteran Actress Kathy Chow Dies at 57 Years Old

By
Shernice Sim
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Beloved Hong Kong Actress Kathy Chow Passes Away at 57, Leaving Fans in Grief

It has been a grim year for fans of 90s television.

On 12 December 2023, fans of Hong Kong actress Kathy Chow were deeply shocked and saddened by the news of her sudden death. 

The announcement was made through Chinese social media platform Weibo, from which Chow’s work studio made the following statement at 9PM:

“We are saddened to announce that Kathy has left us on 11 December 2023 due to the unsuccessful medical treatment of her illness. May there be no diseases in heaven and that we would meet again in the next life.

Dear Kathy, we hope that you will continue to be happy in the next world and your family will be forever proud of you.”

Image: Weibo (周海媚工作室)

Around the same time, Chow’s family had also uploaded a post on the actress’ Douyin account, expressing similar sentiments.

The actress had just celebrated her 57th birthday on 6 December.

Rumours of Chow’s Death Already Circulating Prior to Announcement

On the evening of 11 December, speculation about Kathy Chow’s death began when a Weibo post was uploaded claiming that the actress had passed away. 

This completely blindsided fans, as the actress had just been updating her social media accounts just three days before the news broke out.

Image: Weibo (小羊不爱喝橙C)

Although the post was later deleted, it gained significant attention on Weibo, sparking mass panic amongst fans and quickly rising to the top of the hot search list.

During this hectic period, media company reporters had tried reaching out to Chow’s studio on multiple occasions, but failed to get a response. 

Chow’s last Douyin post before her passing, a slideshow featuring images from her most iconic roles with the caption “Which work did you know me from?” was quickly flooded with fans desperately begging the actress to address the issue.

Rumours continue to incessantly arise following her tragic death, speculating the mysterious illness her family and studio did not disclose.

One of such rumours brought up the possibility of a lupus relapse, as the actress had reportedly taken a health hiatus to recover from the disease in 1998.

These rumours have yet to be addressed by Chow’s studio or family. 

Kathy Chow’s Life Story

While she may not be familiar to the younger audience, Chow was a household name amongst the older generation, particularly avid watchers of Hong Kong television broadcaster TVB’s dramas in the 80s and 90s.

(For the C-Pop karaoke enthusiasts, you may also recognise her as the female lead of Jacky Cheung’s music video of his hit song Kiss Goodbye.)

Chow first entered show business as a contestant on Miss Hong Kong before going on to star in many female lead roles of iconic Hong Kong works such as 1991’s The Breaking Point and 1997’s Time After Time. 

Chow also lent her talent in many Chinese and Taiwanese works.

Her big break came in the form of the role Zhou Zhiruo in the 1994 TVB drama The Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre, an adaptation of a martial arts novel penned by novelist Louis Cha.

After decades of her contribution, TVB issued a statement expressing deep regret over Chow’s passing and gratitude to her decades of contribution to the film industry.

“The death of a great performer is truly something that the audience will miss forever!” the statement concluded.

Many of Chow’s co-workers and fellow actors also came forward with their tributes to the actress.

Gordom Lam, co-star of Chow’s hit drama Time Before Time, said in an interview that he was “uncomfortable and unhappy” upon hearing the news of her passing. 

He fondly remembers her as a cheerful older sister figure who loves to laugh, and gives his condolences to her family.

Actor Eddie Cheung, who starred alongside Chow in many of her works, told ST Headline via a phone interview that Chow was the actress he had worked the most with, and is also deeply heartbroken by the news.

Chow’s ex-husband actor Ray Liu also states in a Weibo post:

Image: Weibo (吕良伟Ray)

“This is too sudden! Kathy, I bid you farewell. I can’t stay calm for a long time after hearing this news. Thank you for bringing so much beauty to this world. May you continue to laugh in the next world. Condolences to her family members and hope they will take care of their health.”

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Shernice Sim