Deanie Ip Tak-han

Biography

Deanie Ip Tak-han, known as "Deanie姐", is a Hong Kong singer and actress born on December 25, 1947. She grew up in the staff quarters of the Harbour View Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, where her father was the food and beverage manager. After graduating from school in 1965, she worked as a beautician for Elizabeth Arden and Revlon, then in ground services at Kai Tak Airport for Jardine Airways. Her artistic career began when musician Vic Cristobal discovered her while she was singing with colleagues at a lounge. She officially joined the music scene in 1969 through the TV programme "可乐晚唱" and released her first EP "Deanie Ip" in 1969. She suffered vocal cord surgery which left her voice hoarse, temporarily affecting her singing career. In the late 1970s, she entered acting through television, then joined TVB in 1982 and participated in the programme "欢乐今宵". She gained fame for her "tough policewoman" role in "雙葉蝴蝶" (1980) and appeared as a mother alongside Andy Lau in "獵鷹". She left television in 1985 to focus on cinema. In 2004, she won the Best Song award at the Ultimate Song Chart Awards for "美中不足", a duet with Hui Chi On. In 2014, she participated in singing "撐起雨傘" at the same awards ceremony. In acting, she excelled at portraying ordinary characters and won nine Best Actress awards for the 2011 film "桃姐", including the 68th Venice Film Festival, 48th Golden Horse Awards, 6th Asian Film Awards, and 31st Hong Kong Film Awards. She also won three Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Supporting Actress and two Golden Horse Awards for Best Supporting Actress.