Zhang Tielin (born 15 June 1957) is a British actor and film director. He is best known for portraying the

Qianlong Emperor The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, born Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1735 ...

in the first two seasons of the Chinese television series ''

My Fair Princess ''My Fair Princess'', also known as ''Return of the Pearl Princess'' or ''Princess Returning Pearl'' (), is a 1998–1999 Taiwanese television costume drama jointly produced by Yi Ren Communications Co. (怡人傳播公司) in Taiwan and Hunan ...

''.

Early life and education

Zhang was born in

Tangshan Tangshan () is a coastal, industrial prefecture-level city in the northeast of Hebei province. It is located in the eastern part of Hebei Province and the northeastern part of the North China Plain. It is located in the central area of the Boha ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

and grew up in

Weinan Weinan () is a prefecture-level city in the east central Shaanxi province, China. The city lies on the lower section of the Wei River confluence into the Yellow River, about east of the provincial capital Xi'an, and borders the provinces of S ...

. In 1973, he was sent to

Lintong District Lintong District (), formerly Lintong County, is one of 11 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi Province, Northwest China. The district was approved to establish from the former ''Lintong County'' () by ...

Xi'an Xi'an ( , ; ; Chinese: ), frequently spelled as Xian and also known by other names, is the capital of Shaanxi Province. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong Plain, the city is the third most populous city in Western China, after Chongqi ...

to perform agricultural labour as part of the Chinese government's

Down to the Countryside Movement The Up to the Mountains and Down to the Countryside Movement, often known simply as the Down to the Countryside Movement, was a policy instituted in the People's Republic of China between mid 1950s and 1978. As a result of what he perceived to ...

. Three years later, he became a construction worker in Xi'an. In 1978, Zhang enrolled in the

Beijing Film Academy Beijing Film Academy (BFA; ) is a coeducational state-run higher education institution in Beijing, China. The film school is the largest institution specializing in the tertiary education for film and television production in Asia. The academy ...

and graduated in 1982, after which he worked in the television station

Tianjin Television Tianjin Renmin Guangbo Diantai (), translated as the Tianjin People's Broadcasting Station (TPBS) is a major radio broadcaster in Tianjin, China. They also operate the Tianjin Television station, also known as TJTV. Tianjin Television (TJTV) ( ...

. In 1984, Zhang made his debut in the films ''The Burning of Imperial Palace'', ''Reign Behind a Curtain'' and ''Under the Bridge'', of which the third one propelled him to fame.

Career

In 1987, Zhang went to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

to further his studies at the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

and he graduated in 1990. He became a British citizen in 1997. In the early 1990s, Zhang went to

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 List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

to expand his career and signed a contract with film producer

Tsui Hark Tsui Hark (, vi, Từ Khắc, born 15 February 1950), born Tsui Man-kong, is a Hong Kong film director, producer and screenwriter. Tsui has directed several influential Hong Kong films such as '' Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain'' (1983), the ...

, working together with Tsui on the ''

Once Upon a Time in China ''Once Upon a Time in China'' (released in the Philippines as ''Enter the New Game of Death'') is a 1991 Hong Kong martial arts film written and directed by Tsui Hark, starring Jet Li as Chinese martial arts master and folk hero of Cantonese et ...

'' film series. He joined the Hong Kong television network

Phoenix Television Phoenix Television is a majority state-owned television network that offers Mandarin and Cantonese-language channels that serve mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and other markets with substantial Chinese-language viewers. It is operated by ...

in 1996 and worked there briefly before returning to the Chinese entertainment industry. His portrayal of the

in the first two seasons of the television series ''

'' boosted his fame. Zhang starred together with actors Wang Gang and

Zhang Guoli Zhang Guoli (born 17 January 1955) is a Chinese actor and film director who was a ''xiangsheng'' actor before he started working on films and television series. He is mostly known for his roles playing the Emperor in various dramas involving Qin ...

in many television series and they are collectively known as the "Iron Triangle" in the Chinese entertainment industry. In 2007, Zhang became the dean of the art school of

Jinan University Jinan University (JNU, ) is a public research university based in Guangzhou, China. "Jinan" literally means "reaching southward", indicating the university's original mission to disseminate Chinese learning and culture from North to South wh ...

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, sou ...

.Zhang Tielin's profile
on the Jinan University website

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zhang, Tielin 1957 births Living people Male actors from Hebei Chinese male film actors Chinese male television actors 20th-century Chinese male actors 21st-century Chinese male actors People who lost Chinese citizenship Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom British male actors of Chinese descent People from Tangshan People's Republic of China Tibetan Buddhists Tibetan Buddhists from the United Kingdom Jinan University faculty Educators from Hebei Jinan University alumni Qianlong Emperor The Amazing Race contestants