Lim Kay Tong
Lim Kay Tong inFragrant Rice (2014)
Born	(1954-07-10)10 July 1954 (age 70) Colony of Singapore
Nationality	Singaporean
Other names	Yiam Kong Leong
Alma mater	University of Hull
Occupations	Actor host
Years active	1974–present
Agent	TheatreWorks(co-founder)
Spouse	Sylvia Tan
Relatives	Neo Swee Lin (sister-in-law)
Family	Irene Lim Kay Han (sister) Lim Kay Siu (brother)
Awards	1982: Singapore Drama Festival Best Actor Award 2010:Asian Television Award Best Drama Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role 2015:Asian Television Award Best Supporting Actor 2021:Pesta Perdana Best Actor in a Leading Role (Drama Special/Anthology)
Chinese name
Chinese	林祺堂
Hanyu Pinyin	Lín Qí-táng
HokkienPOJ	Lîm Kî-tông

Lim Kay Tong (born 10 July 1954) is a Singaporean film, television and stage actor. Notably, he played supporting roles in films includingShanghai Surprise (1986),Noble House (1988), andBrokedown Palace (1999), and was the lead actor inGrowing Up (1996–2001) andPerth (2004). Lim has been called "Singapore's finest actor", "Singapore's best-known actor", and Singapore's answer to thespiansIan McKellen andAlec Guinness.^[1][2][3]

Lim is a co-founder and former board member ofTheatreWorks. He played founding Prime MinisterLee Kuan Yew in1965, a film that was shot to celebrate Singapore's Golden Jubilee.^[4]

Growing up, Lim's parents introduced him to plays, literature, and all things artistic from the many books around their house. Lim's father, a radiologist, wanted him to become a barrister, but was supportive of his acting dreams.^[5]

Educated atAnglo-Chinese School and a boarding school in England, Lim was a national rugby player in his youth, playing the wing-forward position.^[6][7] While servingNational Service, Lim earned aSingapore Armed Forces Colours award for his accomplishments in rugby.^[8]

In 1975, Lim moved toEast Riding of Yorkshire, England, to further his education. He graduated from theUniversity of Hull in 1978 with a Bachelor of Acts (Honours) in English and Drama, where the lateAnthony Minghella was his contemporary and tutor.^[9] In 1980, he earned a diploma in Acting from theWebber-Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London. In England, he had several bit parts for theBBC'sDoctor Who andThe Chinese Detective series. In between these walk-on roles, Lim took on odd jobs like window washing, being a night janitor and washing dishes to earn extra money.^[10]

Lim's acting career began on the stage, when he auditioned for a production while being bored during National Service.^[11] In 1974, he starred inRobert Yeo's landmark play,Are You There, Singapore? for the Experimental Theatre Club.^[12] His other initial acting roles were in the playsEquus (1975) andMarching Song (197?) for the University Drama Society andOne Mad Night (1975) for the Stage Club.

Upon his return from England, Lim played the lead role in the Experimental Theatre Club'sTerry Rex (1982).The Straits Times' Minu Tharoor praised his Terry, writing, "Stage presence is too cliché a term for the imaginative energy with which Kay Tong took control of the play, the stage and his part".^[13] For his performance, Lim clinched the Singapore Drama Festival Best Actor Award.

In the same year, Lim began his career as a journalist withThe Straits Times. While covering the arts, Lim continued acting in plays likeDavid Henry Hwang'sF.O.B. (Fresh Off Boat) (1982), Chandran Lingam'sThe Nuns (1983) andAbigail's Party (1983), for which his "marvellously taut performance" was praised byThe Singapore Monitor's Yap Koon Hong.^[14]

Lim's entry into film began in 1984, when he auditioned for the New York casting agent ofYear of the Dragon (1985) in Singapore. Lim was unsuccessful, but the casting agent remembered him and recommended him forShanghai Surprise (1986). Although the film was not critically acclaimed, it gave Lim the break to star in films likeKeys to Freedom (1988) andFifty/Fifty (1992). Lim also got the role of an interrogator inBernardo Bertolucci'sThe Last Emperor (1987), but had to give up the role due to a scheduling conflict.^[15]

In 1985, Lim tried his hand at directing withDavid Mamet'sGlengarry Glen Ross, retitledParadise Heights, for the Drama Festival.The Straits Times'Rebecca Chua found that Lim's debut as director "displayed some uncertainty".^[16] In the same year, Lim resigned fromThe Straits Times to set up TheatreWorks in February.^[17] TheatreWorks, the first adult professional theatre company in Singapore, was formed to "promote theatre that is relevant to Singaporeans" and create work for English-language actors. Lim served as the company's press and media relations consultant, in addition to acting in several of their plays.^[18] Lim also acted in the English-language versions ofKuo Pao Kun's influential playsThe Coffin is Too Big for the Hole (1985) andNo Parking on Odd Days (1986). Both productions travelled to theHong Kong Arts Festival in 1987. Of the role he originated inThe Coffin is Too Big for the Hole, Lim remembers: "For me, [a one-man show] was panic stations. I had never done a long monologue. In drama school, we had to prepare monologues based on a Shakespearean character. Nothing like this, which was 30 to 35 minutes long. And [Kuo] spent at least a couple of weeks just talking to me. I was worried. Because I thought, when is he going to get down to it?" In preparation, Kuo and Lim visited a coffin-maker and discussed the nature of funerals while Lim memorised the script.^[19]

In the late 1980s, Lim spent a few years in Los Angeles, landing roles inOff Limits (1988) andIt Could Happen to You (1994). He found the city "very cutthroat and very fake. I didn't like the obsession with showbiz there. It wasn't like living a normal life in a normal city. I knew it was tough before I went, but I also knew if I stayed any longer my soul would be destroyed. The truth is that you had to be in the racial majority to get the parts."^[20] Lim also confessed that he's "not one for schmoozing. My career would have been severely hampered if I had hung out there."^[21]

Returning to Singapore for good in 1994, Lim starred inMediaCorp's award-winning TV programmeGrowing Up (1996–2001), set in 1960s and 1970s Singapore. His "outstanding portrayal" as the family patriarch led him to be named byThe Straits Times as one of the top ten dads on TV in 2013.^[22][23] During his tenure onGrowing Up, Lim experienced deaths in his family, which led him to reflect on his role: "You understand grief, loss, redemption, hope...It was a good time to have played that role not only for the experience as an actor, but also [its lessons in] life. If you're to be remembered for a role for the rest of your life, make the most of it."^[24] From 1999 to the early 2000s, Lim wrote a fortnightly column forThe New Paper.

Lim's career-defining lead performance as Harry Lee inPerth (2004) was praised byTODAY's Ross Wallace, who wrote, "If there were any doubts that Lim Kay Tong is Singapore's finest actor, 2004'sPerth should have laid them to rest...[a] towering performance".^[25] Comparing his acting toRobert De Niro andAl Pacino,TODAY also ranked his role as one of the best "male performances of the year in any genre, any country", asking, "Has there ever been a Singaporean performance that surpassed Lim's deranged taxi driver?"^[26]Neil Humphreys called Lim's "world-class performance" inPerth "almost without parallel", writing, "This is not a portrayal; it's a metamorphosis".^[27] Reflecting on his role, Lim said "it was about time. [The film] wasn't commercially successful, but the role was meaningful...I'm still adamant that I should have underplayed certain parts of Harry, but I'm sure [director] Djinn won't back down from his direction."^[28]

In 2007, Lim played the lead inThe Photograph, speakingBahasa Indonesia, a role he considers "significant" in his career.^[29] TheIndonesian feature film won the 2008Special Jury Prize at the43rd Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. In the same year, Lim also served as a jury member of theSingapore International Film Festival.^[30] In 2010, Lim won theAsian Television Award Best Drama Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for his portrayal of Harris Fong in legal dramaThe Pupil (2010–2011). In 2013, Lim received his secondThe Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards nomination for Best Actor forGoh Lay Kuan & Kuo Pao Kun (2012–2013), after his first nod forThe House of Sleeping Beauties (1994).The Straits Times' Corrie Tan called Lim's performance as Kuo "electrifying...Lim was an incredibly charismatic presence on stage as he breathed life into Kuo's characters. He had a very commanding presence".^[31]

In 2014, Lim starred as a fortune teller inHBO (Asia)'s original series,Grace, for which he won theAsian Television Award for Best Supporting Actor for the second time in December 2015.^[32] In October, he became the first local star to grace the cover ofEsquire Singapore.^[33] In the same month, it was revealed that Lim will play founding Prime MinisterLee Kuan Yew in the upcoming film celebrating Singapore's Golden Jubilee,1965. Lim said, "Lee Kuan Yew is a corner of the story. He frames the timeline, as to when the events take place. It is not overwhelmingly undoable, because it's just a handful of appearances stretched over the time in 1965 and maybe one other scene when he is much older. I overcame my cowardice, and said, 'Let's give it a go and see what happens.'"^[34]

In February 2015, Lim reunited with hisGrowing Up co-starWee Soon Hui to play husband and wife again in theChannel 5 telemovieLove is Love: Sunset.^[35]

In July 2015, Lim portrayed Singapore's first prime ministerLee Kuan Yew in the historical film1965, including a re-enactment of the iconic press conference when Lee announced that Singapore would be separated from Malaysia.^[36] In the same month, Lim read Lee Kuan Yew quotes, paired with music, during a one-night performance with theSingapore Chinese Orchestra.^[37]

In August 2015, Lim played the lead role inokto's TV movie,Second Chances, about a group of old folks who break out of an old folks’ home.^[38]

In early 2016, Lim played one of the lead roles, Allen, in Ying J. Tan's feature film,Rough Mix.^[39]

From 2017 to 2018, Lim worked on twoSingtel advertisement campaigns. He narrated the telecommunications company's "Power On" video series in 2017, and in 2018, starred in their hitChinese New Year short film, "Mr Lim’s Reunion Dinner".^[40][41] In 2020, Lim returned as the narrator of Singtel'sNational Day short film.^[42]

In 2019, Lim gave an acting masterclass as part ofManulife Singapore's “Stop the Drama” advertisement.^[43]

Lim is the older brother of fellow actorLim Kay Siu, who he starred with in multiple plays.^[44] His sister,Irene Lim Kay Han, is an actress. He is first cousins with singer-songwriterDick Lee.^[45]

Lim is married to food writer Sylvia Tan Jui Huang whom playwrightMichael Chiang introduced him to.^[46] He is also an amateur photographer.^[47]

• Lim Kay Tong atIMDb

• 1954 births
• Living people
• Singaporean people of Hokkien descent
• Peranakan people in Singapore
• Anglo-Chinese School alumni
• Alumni of the University of Hull
• Alumni of the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art
• Singaporean male stage actors
• Singaporean male television actors
• Singaporean male film actors
• Singaporean journalists
• Singaporean male voice actors

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• EngvarB from April 2015
• Use dmy dates from April 2015
• Articles containing Chinese-language text
• Articles with hCards