appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

liveArticle

appConfig

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sectionsV2

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

json

SCMP Reporter

Benny Chia Director and founder of the Fringe Club and Festival awarded the Badge of Honour in the Queen's Birthday Honours List three years ago.

Book: Whatever I'm reading. Currently, I'm reading anything about food because I want to improve the food at the Fringe Club. I'm thinking of introducing a 'comfort hour' after work serving comfort food like like caviar, foie gras, good pate or champagne.

Magazine: Entertainment guides such as The New Yorker, Time Out or Paris Scope to keep me abreast of what's happening. Also Ming Pao Weekly for local gossip: everybody reads it though few admit it.

Film: Gabriele Axel's Babette's Feast about a woman who returns to her home town and cooks a sumptuous meal she's saved up her whole life for. I think about food all the time and this film is about the intensity and redemptive powers of food, how it overcomes the drudgery of our day-to-day existence.

CD: The soundtrack to the film Milou En Mai (May Fools), especially a track composed by jazz violinist Stephane Grapelli which reminds me of eating al fresco.

Car: If I didn't live in Hong Kong, a racing green Morgan V8.

Restaurant: M at the Fringe. They serve the best food in town, have a beautiful ambience, the friendliest staff and a good wine collection which doesn't burn a hole in your pocket.

Method of keeping fit: Half an hour a day of my own stretching exercises, a mix of Callanetics, yoga and massage.

Way to spend a Sunday: Perhaps a long breakfast, reading the morning papers, leisurely shopping and experimental cooking.

Holiday destination: Borobudur in Java where I've found peace, serenity and spiritual revelation. Visit before sunrise: it's a stunningly ethereal sight.

Scent: The bouquet of a really good wine, garlic in olive oil and lavender in my wardrobe.

Cosmetic/beauty product: Aramis face scrub.

Accessory: A Mont Blanc fountain pen.

Meal: A simple curry or pasta dish.

Restaurant: Chairman & Yip in Canberra, the brainchild of Danny and Josiah Yip. They were supposed to become accountants and cook the best rice in the world and wonderful fusion dishes.

Alcoholic drink: A good vintage Montrachet wine.

Shop The antique shops on Hollywood Road.

Artist: Modigliani and a Chinese painter called Bada Shenren. Their lines are simple and true and never lie.

Designer: David Rowland who designed our 40/4 chairs in the Fringe Club Studio Theatre. They strike the perfect balance between function and the aesthetic.



Benny chia