Zhu Houren Says Christopher Lee Would Skip Rope In Beijing Hotel Hallway When They Filmed Condor Heroes To Get Fann Wong’s Attention

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.”

While preparing the ingredients for the braised fish, Chris asked his guests if they are henpecked.

“Actually, for us men, it’s not that we’re afraid of our wives. We respect them," reasoned Chris.

The older actors teased Chris, saying: “If you’re henpecked then just admit it, it’s perfectly okay.”

The cheeky Houren told Chris: “I noticed that you were already super scared of [Fann Wong] when you were wooing her.”

“Really meh? No lah,” laughed Chris. 

“You were! We were filming [The Return Of The Condor Heroes] in Beijing for a few months...” said Houren but was interrupted by Chris who declared that Fann and him weren’t even dating at the time. 

Houren played Guo Jing in the iconic 1998 drama, while Fann and Christopher played lovers Xiao Long Nu and Yang Guo respectively. 

Unbothered, Houren continued: “We stayed in different rooms. Every day we would finish filming at about 9pm and had to set off at 3am the next day, but [Chris] would be there skipping rope everytime I passed by his room!”

Shucheng teased: “You really invited the wrong people here today, he’s airing all your dirty laundry.”

To set the record straight, Chris said: “I was skipping rope in the hallway, I wasn’t skipping in my room!”

“You’re right!" replied Houren. "But why were you skipping rope in the hallway? It was to attract Xiao Long Nu’s attention!”

He continued: “Xiao Long Nu, on the other hand, was cooking green bean paste, red bean paste, and other more expensive stuff in her room. When I walked past, she would give me the green and red bean paste. There was a bowl that contained something more 'precious', it turns out she was saving it for the guy who was skipping rope!”

It wasn't until 2000 that Fann and Chris started dating.

They tied the knot in 2009, and welcomed son Zed on National Day 2014.

Photos: mewatch

To find out more about how the veteran actors met and courted their partners, watch the full episode of Dishing With Chris Lee on mewatch, or catch it below.