Veteran broadcaster Chu Shuit-mui (朱雪梅), best known for voicing Cheung So (祥嫂) in Commercial Radio's long-running radio drama “18/F Block C,” has announced her retirement, bringing decades of broadcasting to a close.
The announcement came on Wednesday (Oct 21), when the latest episode saw Cheung So prepare to leave the fictional Wan Chai cafe that has been at the heart of the drama since it first aired in 1968.
Chu joined the drama in the mid-1980s and became known for her portrayal of Cheung So, a dishwasher whose down-to-earth personality endeared her to generations of listeners. In the farewell episode, cafe owner Chow thanked her for her years of service and assured her she would always be welcome back, offering a heartfelt send-off to a character who had become part of Hong Kong's collective radio memories.
Known affectionately as Mui-jie, Chu began her broadcasting career before Commercial Radio officially launched. She later joined the station as a freelancer, starting with minor roles before becoming one of its veteran voice artists.
Chu once said she had never worked in any other industry, dedicating her career to broadcasting. Her distinctive deep voice meant she was often cast as mothers and aunts from her teenage years. She later joked that almost every broadcaster who had performed in Commercial Radio dramas had played one of her children — a role she said she was proud of.
Beyond broadcasting, Chu is also an accomplished Chinese ink painter. She was invited by the Hong Kong Housing Society to design Chinese New Year lai see packets for the Year of the Pig and the Year of the Ox.
Chu also recalled how Commercial Radio founder George Ho Cho-chi, who died in 2014, helped her career. In the late 1970s, she left the station to pursue dubbing work at Commercial Television (CTV), but the station closed just two months after she joined. Ho had told her she could return if things did not work out, and Chu later expressed gratitude that he had left the door open for her.
