A groundswell of reader interest (two e-mails! + one blog comment!) prompts tonight’s blog post …

Hong Kong nation was abuzz earlier this week when rumours emerged on July 6th suggesting that Joey Wang (aka Joey Wong Tso-Yi) had become a Buddhist nun.  Supposedly, Wang entered a Buddhist temple in the Vancouver area and had her head shaved because she had become distraught upon hearing rumours that her old flame Chyi Chin (齊秦) was about to marry model/actress Stephanie Siao (蕭薔).

As he was at the root of the rumour, Chyi Chin reportedly began frantic attempts to contact Wang to confirm the reports.  While Chin was unable to talk with Wang herself, he was able to reach Wang’s uncle who assured Chin that the rumours were false.  Speaking to the press on July 8th, Chin told reporters that Joey Wang wrote “there is no such thing” when she and her uncle exchanged text messages about the matter.  Further, Wang’s uncle told Chin that the talk probably started because Wang joked with her friends recently about becoming a Buddhist nun.

JOEY WANG PROFILE:

Birthday: January 31st, 1967

Past Rumoured Relationships:

• Sam Hui Kwoon-Kit (while working together on WORKING CLASS BLUES)
• Lawrence Ng Kai-Wah
• Tony Leung Chiu-Wai (while working together on A CHINESE GHOST STORY)
• Peter Lam Kin-Ngok (Media Asia chairman, son of tycoon Lim Por-Yen)

Confirmed Relationships:

• Chyi Chin (16 year on-again, off-again relationship that began in 1989 while working together on the film PRETTY GIRL)

First Film: HOW TO CHOOSE A ROYAL BRIDE (1984)

Breakout Hit: A CHINESE GHOST STORY (1987)

Final Film: SHANGHAI STORY (2005)

Retired to Vancouver, Canada area in 2005

Last photographed: September 2005 while shopping with an elderly lady — believed to be her mother — in the Vancouver area

RELATED LINKS:

• Yahoo! News Singapore:  Joey Wong a nun? (English)
• Taipei Times Pop Stop: Joey Wang, Vivian Hsu, more (English)
• Asia One: Ex-actress now a nun? (English)
• China Daily Star Gazing: Joey Wang; Nic Tse/Cecilia Cheung, Lin Miaoke (English)
• Xinhua article about the text message (Chinese)
  
• Sina.com.hk article about Joey Wang (Chinese)
• Xinhua on the life and loves of Joey Wang (Chinese)
• Initial report of Wang becoming a nun (Chinese)
• Profile and Photo Gallery courtesy Xinhua (Chinese)

Image credit: Xinhua

A tidbit on the latest happenings with retired actress Joey Wang, but first some news links:

MICHELLE YEOH:

• Yeoh says she’ll star in John Woo kung fu movie
• Chillingly Smooth: Review of FAR NORTH (Michelle Yeoh, Michelle Krusiec, Sean Bean)
• Actress and model Michelle Yeoh reveals fashion secrets
• PHOTOS: Yeoh, Karen Mok Man-Wai, others at the Shanghai Film Festival

Shu Qi perseveres in love

Gillian Chung blocks Edison Chen on MSN

Jet Li buys S$20 million bungalows in Singapore’s Binjai Park

PHOTOS: Lin Chi-Ling at event in Taiwan

I AIN’T SAYING SHE’S A GOLD DIGGER BUT SHE AIN’T MESSIN’ WIT’ NO BROKE N******:

• Tai tai tie-ups: Isabella Leong is the latest actress turned rich “tai tai” 
• Rich hubby? Not for Singapore celebs 

* * * * *

Retired from the entertainment circle since her appearance in the 2005 Mainland film SHANGHAI STORY, Joey Wang (Wong Tso-Yin) has reportedly been living in Vancouver, Canada studying English and practising Buddhism.  Lately, her name has resurfaced in the Chinese media because, according to rumours, Wang is supposedly interested in a comeback after hearing of the rumoured HK$4.5 million being tossed at Brigitte Lin Ching-Ha to entice Lin to make a comeback.

However, a recent report in Xinhua Daily suggests that a return to the entertainment circle is not in the cards for one of the more famous “It Girls” from the late-1980s/early-1990s.  According to Taiwanese singer Chyi Chin — Wang’s former boyfriend with whom she had an on-again, off-again relationship that lasted for 16 years — the devoutly religious Wang is more likely to become a Buddhist nun than make a comeback.  While Chin has not spoken to Wang personally since the summer of 2008, he has recently had a conversation with Wang’s uncle.  Relaying the details of the chat, Chin revealed that Wang’s aged grandparents are not doing well and that Wang has gone to the Mainland’s Anhui province to visit them.