Eighty-five years ago, a boy was born in a village in Yuen Long. His father named him Lam Kam-yiu, which means 'colourful and shining', and he hoped that the boy would lead a life filled with these qualities.
His wish came true. Mr Lam went on to live an extraordinary life. He was in Nanjing during the Nanking Massacre, where he worked as a spy during the second world war. Later, he signed up to work for the Kuomintang and retreated with the party's air force to Taiwan where he stayed for years.
Mr Lam said his father gave him much more than the blessing of a name.
'My father was a police officer, in charge of a police station near the village where we lived,' he said. 'In those days, we didn't expect fathers to have a close relationship with their children. Fathers were responsible for earning money and respect for the family, and mine did that well. We knew that he cared for us, although he only talked to us when we asked him things.'
Mr Lam said his father never lectured him, but taught by example. He worked hard for his family and treated others with respect. And it was this sense of righteousness, Mr Lam said, that led him to fight for his country in the second world war.
Mr Lam returned to Hong Kong with his wife in the 1950s, when the city was still recovering from the war. After a few years, he decided that England would be a better place for his five children. So he packed off for Britain in 1957 in the hope of eventually getting his family over there. It took him 10 years.