'Did she also come to see the new Chanel releases?' Fan runs into Maggie Cheung in Paris

Maggie Cheung is an enigma.

Best known for her roles in movies like As Tears Go By (1988), Irma Vep (1996) and In The Mood for Love (2000), the former actress largely disappeared from the public eye after her retirement from showbiz in 2004.

Fans were excited when she got a Douyin account last year, though she largely shares old home videos. Her latest one, titled Making Dinner, shows footage of her in the kitchen from years ago.

So when one user on Xiaohongshu ran into the 58-year-old recently, netizens rejoiced.

"Saw Maggie Cheung in Paris!" user Lu Buzhi posted on Wednesday (Sept 13). "Did she also come to see the new Chanel releases?"

In the photo, Maggie is facing away from the camera, looking at shoes in the luxury store. She can be seen wearing a cap over her short auburn hair, a black blazer and trousers.

She is no stranger to Paris either, having lived there even after divorcing her former husband, French director Olivier Assayas. Her location on Douyin however shows her as being in the UK.

Lu Buzhi added that nobody else in the store recognised Maggie, and they went up to ask for a photo together after Maggie was done shopping for shoes.

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"Because she didn't wear makeup to go shopping by herself, she declined the photo," they wrote. "Then I shook hands with her happily!

"She was a really nice person. When I talked to her, she always answered with a smile."

When asked by a netizen about Maggie's condition, Lu Buzhi responded: "There are some traces of time. She was much taller than I thought, I feel about 173cm.

"She has great charisma. She didn't wear makeup and had spots and wrinkles, but she is very beautiful."

Coincidentally, Maggie was last seen at another Chanel store, in London this time, by another netizen back in July.

Though the photo was again taken from the back, Maggie can be seen dressed casually once again, wearing a cap, light pink or white sweater and wide-leg jeans.

The netizen also asked to take a photo with her but was declined, being offered a handshake by Maggie instead.

"The probability of meeting a star in London is really high," they wrote, adding that they had run into Benny Chan and Chingmy Yau recently as well.

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drimac@asiaone.com

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