Lily Li () (born 14 June 1950) 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 ...

film and television actress. She is best known for her films '' The Wandering Swordsman'', ''

Executioners from Shaolin ''Executioners from Shaolin'' or ''Hung Hsi Kuan'' is a 1977 Shaw Brothers kung fu film based on the life of Hung hsi Kuan directed by Lau Kar-leung. It is released as ''Shaolin Executioners'' outside of Hong Kong and as ''Executioners of Dea ...

'', ''One Foot Crane'' and ''

The Young Master ''The Young Master'' () is a 1980 Hong Kong martial arts film starring and directed by Jackie Chan, who also wrote the screenplay with Edward Tang, Lau Tin-chi and Tung Lu. The film co-stars Yuen Biao, Fung Fung and Shih Kien. The film was rele ...

'', and television series ''The Bride with White Hair'', ''Blood Debt'', ''

Beyond the Realm of Conscience ''Beyond the Realm of Conscience'' is a 2009 Hong Kong television series. Produced by Mui Siu-ching, the serial is one of two TVB productions to celebrate along with the channel's 42nd anniversary, the other being '' Born Rich''. The drama air ...

'' and ''

Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils ''Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils'' is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It was first serialised concurrently from 3 September 1963 to 27 May 1966 in the newspapers ''Ming Pao'' in Hong Kong and ''Nanyang Siang Pau'' in Singapore. It has been ...

''.

Early life

Li was born in Hong Kong and was educated at a Christian school. At the age of 11, Li started training with Shaw Brothers Acting School where she was taught Mandarin, contemporary dancing, classical dancing, ballet and martial arts.

Career

In 1964 at age 14, Li made her feature film debut ''The Last Woman of Shang'' and was signed to an exclusive acting contract with

Shaw Brothers Studio Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. () was the largest film production company in Hong Kong, and operated from 1925 to 2011. In 1925, three Shaw brothers— Runje, Runme, and Runde—founded Tianyi Film Company (also called "Unique") in Shangh ...

in 1966. After a few years playing supporting roles, Li rose to fame when she played her first leading role in the 1970 film '' The Wandering Swordsman'' directed by

Chang Cheh Chang Cheh (; 10 February 1923 – 22 June 2002) was a Chinese people, Chinese filmmaker, screenwriter, lyricist and producer active in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Chang Cheh directed more than 90 films in Greater China, the majority of them wi ...

and starred

David Chiang use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , body_discovered = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinate ...

. Li became one of the more popular of the Shaw Brothers actresses from the late 1960s through to the 1970s and she appeared in many action films and was at one time the protégé of martial arts expert, director and actor

Lau Kar-leung Lau Kar-leung (28 July 1934 – 25 June 2013), was a Chinese actor, filmmaker, choreographer, and martial artist from Hong Kong. Lau is best known for the films he made in the 1970s and 1980s for the Shaw Brothers Studio. His most famous wor ...

. Early in her career with Shaw Brothers Studio, Li appeared in many martial arts dramas and often played smart and witty heroine roles. She joined the Commercial Television network Jiayi TV and starred in the lead role of the heroine in the television series ''The Bride with White Hair''. After the collapse of Jiayi TV in 1978, Li travelled to Taiwan and starred in martial arts films including ''Relentless Broken Blade/Lyrical Blade'' and ''One Foot Crane''. In early 1980, Li played the lead role in individual episodes for Hong Kong's public broadcaster

RTHK Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) is the public broadcasting service in Hong Kong. GOW, the predecessor to RTHK, was established in 1928 as the first broadcasting service in Hong Kong. As a government department under the Commerce and Econom ...

for the series ''Light and Shadow in My City'' presented by Ivan Ho Sau-sun called 'Under The Roof: Gap', and the sequel presented by Dominic Lam Ka-wah, '' Light and Shadow in My City IIs episode called 'The Half Life of Kam Chi'. Li joined

Rediffusion Television Rediffusion Television (RTV) was the first television station in Hong Kong, making it both the first British colony and the first predominantly ethnically Chinese city to have television.Kitley, Philip. 003(2003). Television, Regulation and ...

in 1980, now known as

Asia Television Asia Television Limited (, also known as ATV) is a digital media and broadcasting company in Hong Kong. Established as the first television service in Hong Kong as Rediffusion Television () on 29 May 1957, it shifted to terrestrial televisio ...

(ATV), and starred in several television series including ''Blood Debt'', ''Super Hero'', ''101 Citizen Arrest'', ''Drunken Fist 2'', ''Fly Over the Ring'', ''The Devil Force'' and ''House Man''. During her time with ATV, Li continued travelling to Taiwan to star in television dramas including ''Elephant Flying Across the River'' and ''Shaolin Disciple'' and appeared in independent Hong Kong films including ''

'', ''Daggers 8'' and '' Dreadnaught''. In 1988, Li left Asia Television and switched to

TVB Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) is a television broadcasting company based in Hong Kong SAR. The Company operates five free-to-air terrestrial television channels in Hong Kong, with TVB Jade as its main Cantonese language service, and ...

. She starred in numerous supporting roles including ''

The Final Combat ''The Final Combat'' () is a 1989 Hong Kong TVB wuxia comedy drama series starring Stephen Chow, Richard Ng, Francis Ng, Jacqueline Law and Yammie Nam as the main cast . It aired on April 3, 1989, to May 12, 1989, with 30 episodes total. Chow a ...

'', ''The Legend of the Invincible'', '' The Blood Hounds'', '' State of Divinity'', '' Better Halves'' and '' Beauty at War''. Li left TVB in January 2020 after deciding not to renew her contract, ending a 32-year relationship with the TV network.

Filmography

: ''Note: Most of the characters' names are in Cantonese romanisation.''

Television (TVB)

Television (ATV)

Television (RTHK)

Television (CTV)

Television (International TV)

Films (Shaw Brothers Studios)

Films (Independent Film Studios)

Awards and achievements

References

External links

*
Lily Li Gallery
at Global Gallery Ladies
李麗麗 Lily Li Li-Li
Hong Kong Cinema
Lily Li
Mtime Chinese {{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Lily 20th-century Hong Kong actresses 21st-century Hong Kong actresses 1950 births Living people Hong Kong film actresses Hong Kong television actresses Chinese film actresses TVB actors TVB veteran actors Shaw Brothers Studio films