On an Australian street, one wouldn’t even give Mr Rivers a second glance whereas in Hong Kong, he’s akin to a movie star and one of the film industry’s most recognisable, Cantonese-speaking foreigners.
Originally from Gympie in country Queensland, Mr Rivers said he had chucked in his medical degree to take up acting in Hong Kong, eventually becoming a household name there.
He told SBS Chinese that his parents had initially been “confused” by his decision to drop out of university and head for Hong Kong in 1986.
Gregory Rivers acting as a missionary on a television drama. Source: Facebook/ Greogry 河國榮
“They didn’t understand, but didn’t object (either),” Mr Rivers said.
As a 22-year-old tourist with HK$5000 (equivalent to approximately AU$800 at the time) in his pocket, Mr Rivers said he had had no job, friends, or career pathways in mind.
He said he was so nervous about using up all of his savings, he had decided to explore the foreign city by foot.
“I didn’t even dare to spend the money on transportation,” he told SBS Chinese.
To others it may have sounded impulsive, if not ludicrous, but Mr Rivers said he had arrived in a new land with a plan – to become a singer and entertainer.
Gregory Rivers at a younger age. Source: Facebook/河國榮
‘Two-third Hongkonger and one-third Australian’
In 1988, he joined Television Broadcasts Ltd (TVB), a local television station, where he started landing roles as the token Cantonese-speaking “gweilo” ("foreigner" in Cantonese) for Hong Kong soap operas.
I read the screenplay in Chinese, totally Chinese, without the help of a translator. If I didn’t know a particular character, I would look it up the dictionary and memorise its pronunciation.
“Every time we filmed, I learnt more new words,” Mr Rivers said.
Given his lifelong love for Cantonese pop songs, or “Cantopop”, and Hong Kong movies as a student at the University of New South Wales, the rehearsals for his TV roles perhaps started long before the auditions.
“I stayed at the International House during uni, where I met many Hong Kong international students, plus a few friends at medical school were also from Hong Kong,” Mr Rivers said.
Through the influence of his peers, he said he then started taking part in numerous Cantopop singing contests and in social activities organised by the Hong Kong Students Association, before taking his singing skills to the streets.
Mr Rivers said he would perform Cantonese pop songs in Sydney’s Chinatown, a place he would also frequent to buy Hong Kong records and cassettes.
In the mid-80s, legendary Hong Kong singers Leslie Cheung and Alan Tam toured Australia and Mr Rivers was invited to be their “chauffeur” for a couple of days.
It was after being absorbed into the atmosphere of the duo’s performances that Mr Rivers said he started seriously considering a move to Hong Kong.
Gregory Rivers and his father. Source: Facebook/河國榮
Fitting into Hong Kong
More than 200 television dramas and 30 years of living and working in Hong Kong later, Mr Rivers told SBS Chinese he felt “two-third Hongkonger and one-third Australian”.
“If I don’t look at the mirror, I’d forget that I was a gweilo,” he said.
“Friends around me are all local Hongkongers, none of them are ‘gweilo’. I don’t get to speak English in my daily life (here).”
Mr Rivers said he often observed the lifestyles of other gweilo living in Hong Kong and how they went about their lives in an “English bubble”, meaning no changes to their lifestyle, cultural traditions, rituals or language.
“This is a pity,” he said.
To date, Mr Rivers has been awarded “the best Hong Kong male singer” on an alternative award show in Hong Kong and appeared on stage next to beloved Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng, moments that were celebrated by his relieved parents back home.
“No words can explain how happy I was (receiving the award),” he said.
In 2016, Gregory Rivers was awarded “the best Hong Kong male singer” on an alternative award show in Hong Kong. Source: Feed from NowTV
“It wasn’t obtained through trade or transactions, nor was cemented through siding with anyone or pulling strings. It was purely an indication that people thought you deserved it."
That was significantly meaningful.
Rhetorically asked if the move to Hong Kong ago had paid off, Mr Rivers said had SBS Chinese posed the question three decades ago, he wouldn’t have been at all sure.
Luckily, he said he had had a back-up plan.
“At that time, I was only 22 years old, plus I paid for my (uni) tuition by myself. So, I could (have) still come back to Australia and continued my studies if I had happened to change my mind,” Mr Rivers said.
Gregory Rivers with his wife and friends in Hong Kong. Source: Facebook/ Gregory 河國榮
