Comediennes: Lydia Shum

Lydia Shum (c. 1945-2008) was a Hong Kong comedian whose recognizable image became a staple on TV screens across Asia. Known as “Fei Fei,” her skills in improv and comedy made her an indispensable figure in TV, movies, and as an advocate for Vancouver immigrant services group SUCCESS.

For Further Reading:

• Hong Kong Heritage Museum: Our Beloved “Happy Fruit” Lydia Sum
• Beloved personality was 'an inspiration' to Vancouver community
• Living With Lydia

This month, we’re talking about comediennes — women throughout history who have made us laugh. They transgressed societal norms through comedy and often spoke out against injustice using their sharp wit.

History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.

Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more.  Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures. 

Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, and Abbey Delk. Special thanks to Shira Atkins. 

Original theme music composed by Miles Moran.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hi from Wonder Media Network. I'm Jenny Kaplan and this
is Wamanica. This month, we're talking about comedians women throughout
history who've made us laugh. They trangressed societal norms through
comedy and often spoke out against injustice using their sharp wit, wingtip,
thick coke, bottle glasses, pillowy perm always combed out on

(00:23):
the sides like a poodle's ears, and an unmistakable laugh.
She was a legend of Hong Kong TV in the
nineteen seventies. Familiar Face broadcast into living rooms across Asia.
Let's meet Lydia Sum. Didn't you say that?

Speaker 2 (00:40):
I don't remember? It's funny, It's funny.

Speaker 1 (00:54):
Lydia was born in Shanghai around nineteen forty five. Her
family soon moved to Hong Kong, and Lydia dan her
acting career In nineteen sixty when Lydia was just a teenager,
she appeared in the comedy When the Peach Blossoms Bloom.
It was the first of many film roles. Over the
course of her career, She would appear in nearly two
hundred movies. But Lydia's real break came later in nineteen

(01:17):
sixty seven, when she became the MC of the popular
variety show Enjoy Yourself Tonight. That was the job that
made her a household name. Every weeknight, Lydia appeared on
television screens, hosting and sometimes singing, dancing, and performing comedic
acts too. Lydia had a distinctive look. Beyond her big

(01:38):
glasses and short poofy perm, she also had a round figure,
which she accentuated. She went by the name Fay Fay
literally it means fatty, and it was a term of
endearment for Lydia. She went on to host award programs
and pageants, star and blockbuster movies, and lead beloved sitcoms.
She also appeared in Drunken tai Chi, inducting her into

(02:01):
the kung fu genre, and she hosted a series in
which she interviewed stars of nineteen sixties Hong Kong and
Taiwan after they'd been out of the spotlight. Lydia most
famously played Lydia Lydia.

Speaker 2 (02:14):
Limb Lam Lydia Lam the Life group. I liked the
song very much.

Speaker 1 (02:25):
She played Anti Lydia in a four part movie series
called It's a Mad, Mad Mad World, and she played
another Lydia in her self titled comedy show Living with Lydia.
It was an English language sitcom and Singapore that followed
what happens when two polar opposites move in together and
bring their children to In the series, Lydia played a
Hong Kong caterer, relegated to infamy after she accidentally poisoned

(02:47):
her clientele with a bad batch of dim sum. In
the nineteen eighties, Lydia moved to Vancouver, where she married
Hong Kong singer and actor Adam Chang in nineteen eighty seven.
They had a daughter, Joyce Chang. The divorced just eight
months later. Joyce would also go on to a successful
career as a singer, writer, and actress in Hong Kong
and Vancouver. While Lydia was in Vancouver, she used her

(03:11):
celebrity for good. She regularly hosted fundraising galas for an
immigrant services group called Success. Over the course of a decade,
she helped the group raise more than five million dollars.
On February nineteenth, two thousand and eight, Lydia died of
liver cancer. She was buried in Vancouver. Today, Lydia is

(03:31):
remembered as a female comedian in a society and industry
dominated by men. She was a staple in household television
and a kind face on and off the screen. All month,
we're talking about comedian ends. For more information, find us
on Facebook and Instagram at Wamanica Podcast special thanks to
Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co creator. Talk to

(03:53):
you tomorrow.