Rare sighting: Former actor Xie Shaoguang appears in Singapore with Pan Lingling

With life and work at a standstill in many countries around the world because of the current pandemic, several of our overseas-based local celebrities have grabbed the opportunity to come back home.

Actress Yvonne Lim cried at Changi Airport when she arrived from Taipei with her husband and two kids in August, after being away for around two years.

And earlier this month, Mandopop star JJ Lin posted on social media about having coffee with his mum in Singapore and cycling around the CBD area with his friends.

Now, even former Channel 8 actor Xie Shaoguang has returned.

Yesterday, veteran actress Pan Lingling posted on Instagram two photos taken with the elusive 60-year-old at LingZhi Vegetarian restaurant at Velocity@Novena Square.

"We don't meet often but we will chat for hours when we meet! He is one of my very favourite screen partners," she wrote.

In the photos, Shaoguang appeared with a shaved head and smiled only slightly for the camera.

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Needless to say, many netizens — as well as local celebrities like Huang Biren, Irene Ang, Christopher Lee, and Chen Xiuhuan — were surprised and delighted to see Shaoguang, often regarded as the best actor local TV ever had.

Several netizens said they miss him, and there were others who wished he would return to acting.

It's not certain if he's back for good and if he will take up any acting roles. No other celebrity appears to have posted about meeting him also.

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After retiring from showbiz in 2005, Shaoguang moved to Johor Bahru, Malaysia, and stayed mostly out of the limelight.

Only little snippets of information about him emerged every now and then, like how he opened an animal shelter in JB, was ordained as a Buddhist monk in 2013, returned to secular life more than two years later, and worked as a chef in the vegetarian eatery Three O Cafe.

In an episode of the meWATCH talkshow Hear U Out telecast in January, Biren told host Quan Yi Fong that she had called Shaoguang a few times between 2008 and 2009 when he was running an eatery in Malaysia. The two were screen partners in many dramas.

"He was either busy in the kitchen or occupied with other matters. Moreover, he's very low-key and didn't want to be in contact with others. He picked up a few of my calls and told me he was busy and would call me back. But he hasn't till now. I'm not complaining, I just really miss him," Biren had said in the talkshow.

Then in July last year, she met an industry colleague who bumped into Shaoguang serendipitously at a market. It was not mentioned whether it was in Singapore or Malaysia. The two took a photo together, and the colleague showed it to Biren.

"He's put on weight," Biren had said. "A lot of emotions ran through me when I saw the photo and I want to tell him so many things. But I'm contented knowing he is well."

We are hoping Biren can finally meet Shaoguang this time round for their long overdue tête-à-tête.

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kwokkarpeng@asiaone.com