The Queen of Caldecott Hill is back. After a 2-year hiatus,  Zoe Tay, MediaCorp’s Big Sister (阿姐), as she is affectionately known to fans, makes her comeback to the local drama scene in the 25-episode series “Devotion”.

And it was clear that her status as the Queen remained unchallenged. At a press conference for the media at Goodwood Park Hotel, she had the honour of being the last woman to appear onstage. Actor Brandon Wong, who hosted the conference, imposed a 3-minute limit for the cast to introduce themselves. “This is to prepare you for Star Awards,” he jovially referred to the practice of award winners exceeding the time limit allocated for thank-you speeches.

To that, the rest of the cast offered to let Tay speak throughout the conference, to which Wong jokingly quipped, “You see, how much love they shower on you!”

The cast of Devotion, seated during a press conference at Goodwood Park Hotel.

Indeed, love is what Tay’s character, Liu Zhao Di, envisions. Zhao Di is a woman born in the 1960s who suffers abandonment from her family and the hardship from raising 5 adopted children, one of which turns against her.

The show, which goes by its Mandarin Chinese title of “Ah Di” (“阿娣”), airs after police drama C.L.I.F. ends it’s run on Monday, Jun 27.

And in what is seen as an effort to bring younger stars to recognition, executive producer Soh Bee Lian brought 3 existing, well-known artistes into the cast – Zhang Zhen Huan, Kate Pang (both starred in A Tale of Two Cities) and Shanghainese-born actress Zhou Ying (from blockbuster series Breakout), together with former Star Search 2010 finalist Adeline Lim debutant Jeffrey Xu.

Xu plays Zheng Yi Min, an autistic person in the drama. In order to understand his role better, he took it on himself to observe children suffering from autism, an experience which pained him emotionally. “It hurt me when I saw these autistic children with accidental, self-inflicted injuries and just looking at how lonely they were, I really feel for them.”

The youthful cast of Devotion, with the girls (behind, from left) Kate Pang, Adeline Lim, Cynthia Wang, Zhou Ying and the guys (front, from left) Jeffrey Xu and Zhang Zhen Huan.

Besides these young talents, Zoe Tay took the opportunity during the 2-hour press conference to give special mention to even younger stars – child actors. And it seemed to her that those kids were already showing signs of a competitive streak. “The children would be extremely serious about their roles, even fighting among themselves over who is a better actor!” She exclaimed in disbelief.

The same degree of disbelief was also displayed by Zhou, who allegedly baulked upon reading the script. Referring to her previous role in Breakout as Tang Ying, a girl who wakes up from a decade-long coma, Zhou said, “It was easier (acting as Tang Ying) back then, but this script requires me to evoke stronger emotions.”

The strong emotions Zhou had to portray were through her character Wang Yuan Fang, an adopted daughter of Zhao Di, who harbours resentment and hatred to her benefactor so strongly that she plots against her when Zhao Di reunites with her childhood love, Huang Da Ke, played by veteran actor Chen Hanwei. One part of her plot involved a bed scene with Chen, in an attempt to tear their love apart.

(From left) Chen Hanwei, Zoe Tay and Zhou Ying could not control their laughter as they rambled on about Zhou's bed scene with Chen.

Discussing that particular scene drew laughs from the entire cast, as Chen revealed that Zhou, who is known to be usually shy, became a little ‘too absorbed’ into her role. “She would get overly passionate at some points in time – the filming crew, mostly guys, were shocked when they watched how she acted!”

In defence, Zhou jokingly retorted, “But you know, when Hanwei knew that we had to perform that scene, he assured me by saying “Don’t worry, I’m very experienced in this!”", drawing laughs from Tay and the rest of the cast. In an attempt to ‘salvage his reputation’, Chen ‘fought back’. “At least I took care not to touch sensitive areas!”

According to Chen, the bed scene was not the hardest aspect of the show. “It’s acting as a 20-something for someone my age,” said the Malaysian-born artiste, who turns 42 this year.

Chen Hanwei as Huang Da Ke. The 42-year-old had to don a wig and put a considerable amount of makeup to look like a man in his 20s.

So how did he and Tay both pull off the retro, youthful looks? “Zoe and I both went for Botox together,” he joked. “No, rather, it was the wigs and makeup. But even if they blurred the camera focus, or shot from far away, viewers would still know that we’re ‘old’!”

But another actress who felt anything but old was Lin Meijiao. The 44-year-old plays Zhang Yu Xi, the wife of Brandon Wong’s character, Wang Rui Ji. Despite her absence, Wong filled the members of the media regarding her role and how she took to it. “Meijiao’s still very shy when it comes to filming more intimate scenes, there’s this youthful innocence to her, even though she’s been in showbiz for so long!”

Lin Meijiao as Zhang Yu Xi, the wife of Brandon Wong's character, Wang Rui Ji.

Despite playing just a supporting role, Wong has had his fair share of hardship during the filming process. “There was a point in time I had repeatedly kowtow on a hard surface for a scene. I thumped so hard to create that thumping noise, but as the ground was not hollow, I could not do so. At the end of the day, when I got home, my children remarked “Your head looks like a luohan fish!”, referring to the cichlids kept as house pets as a symbol of good luck. Devotion to carry out his role, indeed.

Wrapping up the conference, the cast gathered at the centre of the stage, giving a thumbs-up. “Devotion, #1 in ratings!”

“Devotion” debuts on Jun 28 and airs from Mondays to Fridays at 9pm, only on Channel 8.

Featuring: Sodagreen, Irene Ang, Josiah Leming, Beatrice Chia Richmond, Darren Lim, Elvin Ng, Shan & Rozz, Dai Yang Tian, Pamelyn Chee, Aileen Tan, Jill-Marie Thomas, The Muttons, West Grand Boulevard, Terence Cao, Adele Wong, Lin Pei Fen, Utt, Michelle Chia, Gurmit Singh, Sylvia Ratonel, Rox, Serene Koong, Jerry Yeo & Andie Chen, Zhou Ying, Tracy Lee, Belinda Lee, Guo Liang
Jeanette Aw, Christopher Lee, Hong Hui Fang, Priscelia Chan, Rebecca Lim, Tay Ping Hui

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The 25-episode show is a first for many of the young stars – Zhou Ying takes on her first lead role while Dai Yang Tian and Jeanette Aw break out of their goody-two-shoes image to star as villains for the first time.

Artistes like Pan LingLing, Zheng Ge Ping, Darren Lim, Lin Meijiao, Belinda Lee and Y.E.S. 93.3FM DJ, Lim Pei Fen, whom we haven’t seen for awhile, will also return to our screens on Dec 6.

1. Synopsis
2. The Characters

• Tang Ying (Zhou Ying)
• Zou Jie Ming (Elvin Ng)
• Yang Zhen Feng (Dai Yang Tian)
• Yang Nian Qing / Ye Zi Qing (Jeanette Aw)
• Situ Dong Cheng (Christopher Lee)
• Yang Tian Wei (Guo Liang)

Synopsis: The story begins with Tang Ying (Zhou Ying) who is a 12 year old trapped in the body of a 25 year old. A victim of a tragic car accident, she wakes from a 13 year coma to find herself the lone survivor and her family dead. A phone call prior to the accident leads her to suspect the death of her family is a result of murder. In her journey to discover the truth, she must face the cruel and ruthless Yang Tian Wei (Guo Liang), and his children, Yang Zhen Feng (Dai Yang Tian) and Yang Nian Qing (Jeanette Aw).

UrbanWire met with the celebs and they reveal juicy details about their characters and the show in a private media conference held at Four Seasons Hotel.

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Here’s a lowdown on the main characters:

1. Tang Ying (Zhou Ying)

Having to grow up 13 years faster on top of dealing with the cruel reality of her family’s death means lots of crying scenes for Zhou Ying.

“I have to cry everyday so when I go home, my head hurts” laughed Zhou Ying. How does she pull it off though? To prepare for the scene, the hardworking actress goes home every night to cultivate her feelings by thinking about sad things.

“When I think back about how I did it, I really can’t remember either! But every crying scene in the show, it’s real emotion and tears.”

There’s even a twist in the show where she falls in love with Yang Zhen Feng only to find out that he is her enemy’s son. You will have to watch the show for the juicy details!

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2. Zou Jie Ming (Elvin Ng)

Zou Jie Ming is Tang Ying’s best friend and companion in the show. Despite being fond of Tang Ying, he is unable to express his feelings for her but remains fiercely protective and loyal towards her.

To portray this role realistically, Elvin did his homework by watching movies like Rain Man, and Ocean Heaven, reading autism-related books as well as visiting the Genesis School for Special Education to observe the children.

“I think to live in your own world, it’s also a very blissful existence.”

“…to other people, it looks like [Jie Ming]’s just sleepwalking through life but when you think about it, what he perceives is different from normal people. Unlike the other characters, Zou Jie Ming isn’t caught up with the notion of revenge so who is it that can see a clearer picture?”, said Elvin thoughtfully.

Zou Jie Ming is also the only person that cannot be influenced by Ya Li Na (Belinda Lee), a witch capable of hypnotizing the characters to commit heinous crimes.

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3. Yang Zhen Feng (Dai Yang Tian)

Dai Yang Tian plays a villain for the first time and doesn’t do all that bad in the show.

“I gave him my first screen kiss… and then he went on to film a passionate love scene with Belinda Lee later in the afternoon!”, Zhou Ying revealed to loud laughs from her co-stars.

He plays sibling to Yang Nian Qing and the both of them assist their father in his evil plans though Dai Yang Tian begged to differ.

Getting a little more serious, the tall actor said, “I don’t think my character is bad at all actually… Yang Zhen Feng doesn’t have many friends. His loved ones died very early so it’s because of his family really – I think his starting point [for the things he does] is love. So anything that stands in the way of love – he will exterminate – It’s very innocent, though in a way that’s different from Elvin.”

“I believe everyone will know why Zhen Feng does the things he does when you watch the show,” he added cryptically.

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4. Yang Nian Qing / Ye Zi Qing (Jeanette Aw)

Part of the show will have Jeanette Aw take on a dual role as mother and daughter, Ye Zi Qing and Yang Nian Qing – or is it 5 new roles?

Jeanette’s character suffers from split personality in Breakout due to the trauma she suffers from having lost her mum at a young age.

Growing up in an unfavourable family environment, “she develops violent tendencies… though her split characters actually helped [Nian Qing] get through certain situations [in the show]”, explained Jeanette.

The cast all had praises for Jeanette, who previously acted as the meek or oppressed damsel-in-distress for shows like Holland V and The Little Nyonya. She had to take note of her body language as well as her speaking tone for her role this time round.

Said Guo Liang, “Acting with Jeanette on the show is a huge challenge we face everyday because when we go on set, we never know what to expect. She can say “I love you, daddy” but… is it a little girl, a demon, some insane person [saying it?]– you don’t know!”

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5. Situ Dong Cheng (Christopher Lee)

Situ Dong Cheng is a down-and-out former lawyer who was betrayed by both his wife, Fan Mei Qi (Lim Pei Fen) and best friend, Wang Lian Zhou (Darren Lim). Like Tang Ying, he loses everything he treasured in life though a romantic plotline between him and Jeanette’s character eventually develops in the show.

“I think for this character… it isn’t tough because of the emotions but because the people I meet are really very strange. I must define this clearly. Beside me, there are crazy people, the murderers, autistic kids – or even amnesiacs. I’m the most normal person in this show!”, the actor declared.

There’s even a slapping scene between Christopher and Pei Fen.

“I heard when she bumped into Fann (his wife), she said sorry from the main door all the way to the 933 studio!”, he laughed.

Pei Fen playfully rebutted, “Oh no, I didn’t tell her about the slap! I only apologized to her for hugging you.”

“I get implicated with the Yang family in the show because of [her and] my scheming buddy,” said Christopher.

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6. Yang Tian Wei (Guo Liang)

This character is one to watch out for. Yang Tian Wei is, in fact, the whole reason for Breakout, and is based on a real-life person as well as the source of inspiration behind the show for story planner, Mr Ang Eng Tee,

Guo Liang even calls his character “a tragedy within a tragedy” and a ruthless character that the audience will hate when they watch the show. He is afterall, the head of the Yang family and father to the evil siblings on the show.

“All I can say is… If you meet a person like my character, then you are really unlucky!”

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Catch Breakout from Monday to Friday on MediaCorp Channel 8.

All photos are taken by Jeremy Lo from Klix Photography and drama stills are courtesy of MediaCorp.