WE READ THE TABLOIDS SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO
The story so far...
Our unelected leaders are 'failing us as usual', commented Apple Daily (as usual), 'Hong Kong looks for role models in those it has anointed as stars and celebrities.' But Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing, the artist who embodied the city's boom years, jumped to his death on April Fool's Day. Jackie Chan, reportedly spooked by Sars, is in Germany. And this week we find that cockroaches have crawled into the celebrity bubble...
Saturday, April 5
Ching Ming Festival. Alas, reports Apple Daily and Oriental Sunday, few fans lay flowers on the graves of dead stars such as singer Roman Tam, movie star Fu Shing and singer Wong Kar-kui. It's the first of many bad omens.
Sunday, April 6
The Hong Kong Film Awards go on. And the tabloids watch closely for Sars hygiene tips. Andy Lau Tak-wah (above) - possibly Hong Kong's most respected resident star - aptly demonstrates the community's current mask-wearing policy. He dons one for his speech, then takes it off, then puts it on again and then takes it off, then stuffs it in his pocket. Eason Chan Yick-shun (right) - who hasn't worn a mask all week - arrives wearing a US Army gas mask and a T-shirt bearing the slogan 'No War'. The city's uber-babes - Karen Mok Man-wai (right), Kelly Chen Wai-lam, Cecilia Cheung Pak-chi (far right) and slimming star Chu Yan - perform better. They wear no masks, but their $50,000 Fendi-sponsored outfits are stunning. Express Weekly brings us pictures of the unflushed toilets and brimming rubbish bins. Are our celebrities safe, it wonders?