Crystal Yu is a
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
-born television, film and stage actress. She played
Lily Chao
Lily Chao is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama '' Casualty'', played by actress Crystal Yu. She first appeared in the series twenty-eight episode "Bedside Manners", broadcast on 3 August 2013. Lily arrives at Holby City hospital ...
on the British BBC medical drama ''
Casualty
Casualty may refer to:
*Casualty (person), a person who is killed or rendered unfit for service in a war or natural disaster
**Civilian casualty, a non-combatant killed or injured in warfare
* The emergency department of a hospital, also known as ...
'' from 2013 to 2017.
Life and career
Yu, born in Hong Kong, came to London at the age of 11 when she was offered a place at the
Elmhurst School of Dance and Performing Arts (formerly known as Elmhurst Ballet School).
As well as acting in theatre, films and TV, she gives up her spare time to work closely with
The Royal Academy of Dance and
The Jack Petchey Foundation, bringing dance programmes to secondary schools, Special Educational Needs schools and Pupil Referral Units.
Yu is fluent in
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...
,
Mandarin
Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to:
Language
* Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country
** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China
** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
and English.
In 2016, Yu was nominated for the Female Actress of the Year honour at the ''BEAM Awards'', an organisation that celebrates minority talent, for her role as Dr. Lily Chao. After four years in ''Casualty'', Yu left the role and her final episode was broadcast on 4 November 2017.
In 2022 she appeared in episodes of ''
Doctor Who
''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...
'' and
Neil Gaiman's ''
The Sandman
The Sandman is a mythical character in European folklore who puts people to sleep and encourages and inspires beautiful dreams by sprinkling magical sand onto their eyes.
Representation in traditional folklore
The Sandman is a traditional charact ...
.'' The following year she appeared as Ms. Cheng in another Gaiman project, ''
Good Omens
''Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch'' is a 1990 novel written as a collaboration between the English authors Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.
The book is a comedy about the birth of the son of Satan and the c ...
.''
Filmography
Television
Film
References
External links
Official Website
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yu, Crystal
Living people
1980s births
21st-century Chinese actresses
21st-century English actresses
British actresses of Asian descent
English film actresses
English people of Hong Kong descent
English television actresses
Hong Kong film actresses
Hong Kong television actresses
Hong Kong emigrants to England
People educated at the Elmhurst School for Dance