HONG KONG – Leung Oi, the veteran Hong Kong actress affectionately known as the “go-to maid” for her decades of supporting roles on television, has died at a nursing home in Shenzhen, China. She was 87. Her death was confirmed Tuesday by veteran producer Yeung Siu-hung on social media, who posted a photo of his final visit to her bedside with the words: “This was the last time I saw you, speechless. Dear Sister Oi, go in peace. If fate permits, we will work together again in the next life.”
Leung had largely retreated from the public eye in recent years. Following the deaths of her husband and son, she lived alone in Hong Kong’s Shui Chuen O Estate. However, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, she decided she could no longer care for herself and relocated to a senior care facility in mainland China.
Rather than pursue aggressive Western medical treatment, Leung chose to coexist with the disease. She attended regular checkups and relied on traditional Chinese medicine for comfort. Known for her pragmatic wisdom, she once said of death: “Life and death come and go as they please. If heaven sends you a notice, you go to work. If they take the notice back, you say goodbye. It’s simple.”
Her health deteriorated rapidly under the illness. At one point, her weight plummeted to less than 70 pounds. In her final days, she was extremely frail before passing away at the nursing home.
A Life of Struggle and Resilience
Leung’s life story was one of hardship and perseverance. Born into poverty, she was abandoned by her parents. Though a wealthy Hong Kong family later adopted her, financial ruin within that household led to mistreatment. At just 12 years old, she left home to fend for herself, working as a factory worker and a street-stall waitress.
She entered the entertainment industry at 19 as an extra. In the 1960s, she married Cantonese film director Zuo Ji and enjoyed a brief period of affluence. That ended in 1967 when the couple was bankrupted by the impact of the 1967 Hong Kong riots, forcing Leung back into factory work.
Leung joined TVB in the 1970s, where she became a familiar face in countless dramas, often playing domestic helpers—earning her the nickname “the designated maid.” She worked tirelessly, using her earnings to send her son, Wong Sum, to study in the United Kingdom. She later emigrated to Canada, but her husband died there in 1997.
She returned to Hong Kong in 2000 and joined rival broadcaster ATV. Her later years were marked by tragedy: a fall in 2019, followed by the sudden death of her son from a heart attack. Retired and living alone, she kept a low profile until her cancer diagnosis in late 2024 prompted her move to Shenzhen.
A Legacy on Screen
Leung appeared in dozens of films and television series, including the movies Pointing the Finger at the Thief, A Roarsical Twice, and The Perfect Match, as well as the classic TV dramas The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, The Brothers, Yesterday’s Glitter, and The Breaking Point. Her most beloved role was likely “Auntie Fong” in the 1989 TVB hit The Breaking Point. Her final on-screen credit was the 2025 film The Reversal of the First Half.
Despite a life marked by loss and poverty, Leung Oi remained stoic and grateful. She once told friends that she had no regrets, accepting whatever life—or heaven—sent her way. Her passing closes a chapter on a generation of character actors who helped shape the golden age of Hong Kong television.
