Latest news with #HongLing
CNA
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CNA
Star Awards 2025: Top 10 winner Hong Ling says family, and not work, is her priority now
After winning the Top 10 Most Popular Female Artistes award, guess what were the three things running through Hong Ling's mind? The 30-year-old Mediacorp star, who was also nominated for Best Actress for playing an ill-fated policewoman in Unforgivable, brought home her fourth Top 10 trophy at the Star Awards on Sunday (Jul 6). When Hong Ling happily pranced on stage to receive her award from guest presenter Chow Yun Fat, he surprisingly pulled her towards him. According to Hong Ling, he whispered to her: "You know there's a song called 'Cai Hong Ling'". Basically, poking fun at the actress' name. Needless to say, Fat Gor's unexpected gesture made her night. "I thought: 'Eh, he's really so friendly. He joked with me after hearing my name. I was quite happy because I was the only one who got that interaction," she said to She revealed that she was starving as she didn't have dinner and she couldn't wait to have a post-win feast. "I'm going to eat Haidilao. I also want McSpicy and McNuggets. But not all in the same night lah. I'm going to stagger, one day eat one," she laughed. On the topic of celebrating, how is she planning to thank her fans? "Every time I win, I'll take them out for a meal to reward them. This is fan-service, but I don't know where I would bring them. I'll let them decide," she shared. We jokingly asked if she would be game enough to cook for them, and Hong Ling surprisingly liked that idea. "Nick and I just got a new house. Though I don't want to reveal our address, but that's a very good idea, maybe I can cook for them because I enjoy cooking," she said. Speaking of Nick (Teo, her husband), would Hong Ling have to comfort him given how he went home empty-handed again this year? "I don't think so," she said. "This voting thing is really so tough. Even I'm not confident I can win! I think he can try again. There's always next year". She's also unbothered about being arguably the 'high-achiever' in their relationship because their priority now isn't work. "Our priority is family, so work is secondary. It's not as important," she said. It's been a tough year for Ling, whose mum passed away in February this year. She also suffered a miscarriage 11 weeks into her pregnancy in the same month. We asked if she was hoping to win an award and that it must feel like a morale boost. "Honestly, no. This year, I surprisingly wasn't yearning for an award that much because I realised there are too many things going on. Plus I've been going overseas very often and was working a lot, so I was very distracted," she said. She also wasn't hopeful she was going to win anything. "I thought it was going to be [like in 2023] when I didn't get Best Actress. I also didn't get into the Top 10. After losing Best Actress this time, I told myself: 'Okay, maybe that award won't be mine," she said. Ling said she gave up hope getting into the Top 10 when the eighth name was called. Hers was the ninth name to be announced. "When I really got it, I was so happy!" she said. Was she disappointed about not getting Best Actress again though? In case you forgot, she was also a hot favourite for the award two years ago when she was nominated for Your World In Mine. "I actually harboured hopes of winning for Your World In Mine but this time I didn't. In my heart I knew, I didn't do that well in this show. The audience may not be able to tell but we know it ourselves," she said. "Though many people liked the role I played, even predicted that I would win. I was very touched when I saw it because I didn't even think this role would get nominated," she added.
Straits Times
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
My Perfect Weekend with actress Hong Ling
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Who: Hong Ling is a 30-year-old local actress who picked up two prizes at Star Awards 2025 on July 6. She triumphed in the Top 10 Most Popular Female Artistes category and won the Mypick! Most Emotional Performance award for her role as an investigator in the police's sexual offence department, who grapples with her own traumatic past, in the drama series Unforgivable (2024). Over her 12-year career, the Mediacorp artiste has gained prominence in shows like My Guardian Angels (2020), You Can Be An Angel 4 (2022), Your World In Mine (2022) and All That Glitters (2023). Hong – who is married to fellow actor Nick Teo, 35 – is taking the lead in fantasy drama The Spirit Hunter, showing on mewatch and Channel 8 on weekdays at 9pm. She plays a young woman tasked with defeating malevolent spirits after receiving a sword infused with a spirit. 'A perfect weekend would be, of course, not having to work at all – a full day off. My weekends usually start with a slow morning coffee, before I switch on music and pet my cats. I will then run some errands, have a nice dinner or maybe hang out with friends. Hong Ling enjoys having long meals together with her husband, actor Nick Teo, over the weekends. PHOTO: HONGLINGG_/INSTAGRAM I recently spent the whole day with Nic k. W e woke up around 11am and went for a walk around the neighbourhood. We are moving soon, and were talking about how it had been a long time since we took a walk around. We looked for a place that sells Vietnamese coffee and headed there, and had a very long lunch, chatting for about two hours. I've also picked up a new hobby – pickleball. I love it and have been arranging to play with my friends over the weekends. These meet-ups are quite memorable as it has been a long time since I have gone out because of my busy filming schedule. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. World Trump's ambassador nominee to Singapore Anjani Sinha has a rough day at Senate hearing Asia Dr Mahathir at 100: Still haunted by the Malay Dilemma Singapore Academic paper by NUS researchers withdrawn from peer review after hidden AI prompt found Singapore Apex court upholds SMC's conviction of doctor who gave patients unapproved hormones Multimedia 60 objects to mark SG60: Which is your favourite? Singapore Singaporean fugitive arrested in Thailand for suspected drug trafficking and handed over to CNB World Trump issues tariff notices to 7 minor trading partners, hits Brazil with 50% tariff Business SGX securities turnover up 23% in June, bringing financial year's gain to 28% Downtime is very important for me. When I have projects, I don't have weekends off. So, when I am off work, rest recharges my mind and soul.'
CNA
28-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CNA
On The Red Dot: Finding Lost Recipes
In every home, there are dishes tied not just to flavour, but to memory — lovingly made by someone who may no longer be around. But when that person is gone, can their signature dish ever be brought back? In this series, we follow Masterchef alumnus Jonathan Ng as he helps four individuals on deeply personal quests to rediscover dishes that meant the world to them. For actress Hong Ling, it's the emotional taste of her late mother's Thai-style laksa — a dish that no one else in the family knows how to make. For Belinda, it's a race against time. Her mother Katherine, who once made a unique Nyonya chang (dumpling) every festive season, is slowly losing her memory to dementia. Can the flavours — and the stories that come with them — be recovered before they fade completely? For Kim, who lost her husband Joseph unexpectedly, it's isn't just about the dish. It's about honouring the man who made Hakka Yong Tau Foo not just a meal, but a way of bringing people together — and understanding how he added his own twist to the dish he loved. And for Claresta, it's chasing a taste she can't quite describe — the elusive magic behind her late husband Chef Stefan Liau's Cashew and Banana creation. Even with the original recipe in hand, something is missing. Can Jonathan decode the secret behind the flavour — and the man?
CNA
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CNA
Actress Hong Ling learns how to recreate late mum's Thai laksa: 'It's a memory of her'
In February this year, Mediacorp actress Hong Ling announced that her Thai mother,Kaewsoda Kesorn, died at the age of 52. The 30-year-old actress' mum, who was from Nong Khai in northeast Thailand, was diagnosed with advanced stomach cancer in May 2024. It's been four months since her passing, and Hong is hoping to recreate her mother's lost Thai Laksa in memory of her. So in a recent episode of CNA's On The Red Dot: Finding Lost Recipes, she received help from MasterChef Singapore alumnus Jonathan Ng to bring her mother's speciality back to life. "I really miss her a lot. My mum actually cooked a lot for the family, and one of my favourite dishes is this Thai laksa. Even in her last days, she cooked this dish for me as well, so it's a memory of her," recalled the actress. This is why Hong would visit any Thai restaurant she sees these days, hoping to find the dish similar to what her mum made. Unfortunately, none of their Thai laksas tasted quite the same. The actress also didn't learn to cook the dish as her mother always prepared it for them. "I took it for granted," she said, adding that her mum didn't leave behind any recipes as she wasn't the type who would "cook by reading the recipe". "My future children won't get the chance to meet her. So I'd like to preserve this recipe for my future children," she added. The actress has been married to Mediacorp actor Nick Teo since December 2023. She unfortunately suffered a miscarriage 11 weeks into her pregnancy in February this year. After having a taste test at a restaurant and speaking to a chef from Chiang Mai, Ng and Hong finally learnt that the Thai laksa she had been eating is actually a dish called Kanom Jeen Nam Ya, a spicy fish curry served over rice noodles. The two visited Hong's maiden home, where her mother's kitchen was still left intact. Looking at photos of her mother, the actress confessed that she "feels very different" in her old house. "When I used to come back home, it was very noisy. My mum would be in the kitchen cooking for us and we would talk. Normally I'd smell Thai food around the house because it's very strong. But now, it just feels like [an empty] house," she elaborated. Despite her illness, Hong's mother continued to cook for the family every single day until she could no longer do so in January this year. One of the last few dishes she made was the Kanom Jeen Nam Ya. The duo also took this time to speak to Hong's father, Hong Yishu, to get more clues about her dish. Recalling their love story, he revealed that he had met his late wife in the Sai Yok camp when he went to Bangkok, Thailand, for reservist training for three weeks in 1990. Madam Kaewsoda was working as a dishwasher in a tze char stall in the military camp at that time, and he fell in love at first sight. "Just to take a photo with her, I had to wait at the back for her to throw out the rubbish so that I could see her. They were quite strict about not meeting boys in private," he reminisced. After getting to know Madam Kaewsoda, who was still living in a village at that time, the elder Hong then asked her dad for permission to bring her to Singapore, where they eventually got married. He also shared that his wife was a great cook and was able to recreate any dish as long as she had tasted it. Going back to the Thai laksa, he said that his wife had cooked that dish for a really long time and had made a few tweaks to the recipe ever since. After more intel from Hong's father and a relative, as well as a few attempts at making the dish, chef Ng was finally able to recreate a dish highly similar to what Hong's mother made. After trying it, Hong's father was overcome with emotion, and gushed that "the smell is the same" and that it tastes similar to what his late wife used to make. She agreed as well. The elder Hong then confessed: "I miss her very much" before smiling and nodding at Ng in appreciation. Meanwhile, the actress acknowledged that the noodles "wouldn't be 100 per cent the same, for sure" but being able to create something similar was "good enough". "I'm very happy and touched about it. Thank you so much," she said. At the end, Ng also gifted the father-and-daughter duo with a recipe for the Kanom Jeen Nam Ya they had that day, so that they could recreate it in the future.
CNA
21-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CNA
On The Red Dot: Finding Lost Recipes - Hong Ling's Mum's Thai Laksa
Actress Hong Ling lost her mother just months ago — along with the unique Thai Laksa her mum used to make. Can chef Jonathan recreate a dish made only from memory? And will it taste like home again?
