The Unbelievable (Chinese: 怪談; ''Gwai Tam'') is a
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
TV program about
paranormal
Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Not ...
and other
supernatural
Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the Scientific law, laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanin ...
occurrences mostly in Hong Kong and nearby
East Asia
East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...
countries. It is generally based on Eastern
Buddhist
Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
,
Taoist
Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ...
or
Chinese spiritual supernatural perspective, though not limited to these philosophies.
Name
The Chinese name of the show, 怪談, literally means "Strange Talk" ('Gwaai3 Taam4' in Cantonese). The characters are also used for the
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
word of
Kaidan
is a Japanese language, Japanese word consisting of two kanji: 怪 (''kai'') meaning "strange, mysterious, rare, or bewitching apparition" and 談 (''dan'') meaning "talk" or "recited narrative".
Overall meaning and usage
In its broadest sense ...
.
Format
Generally the format follows that of a
reality show
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...
where live
video taping is done in areas with paranormal activities or
haunting
This is a list of locations that are (or have been) said to be haunted by ghosts, demons, or other supernatural beings throughout the world. Reports of haunted locations are part of ghostlore, which is a form of folklore.
Argentina
* Cinco ...
s. Sometimes re-enactments or experiments are done to explain a specific phenomenon or sightings. At the end of the episodes, live call-ins allow home viewers to ask questions or inform others about their personal experiences. Many guests, fans and specialists are invited to join the programming to provide expertise or participate. The long term success of the show has expanded to fan clubs.
Host
* Generation 1: Simon Lui (雷宇揚)
* Generation 2: Si ming (施明)
* Generation 3: Si ming (施明), Emily Kwan (關寶慧), Nelson Cheung (張學潤)
* Generation 4: Spencer Leung (梁思浩), Monique Au (歐綺霞)
* Generation 5: Spencer Leung (梁思浩), Kaki Leung(梁嘉琪)
* Generation 6: Spencer Leung (梁思浩), Sammie Yue (余思敏) and Rachel Chen (陳曉華).
* Generation 7: Sammie Yue (余思敏), Rachel Chen (陳曉華)
* Generation 8: Spencer Leung (梁思浩), Natalie Mitchell (可宜), Zoie Tam (譚凱琪), Cammi Tse (谢芷蕙), Nelson Cheung (張學潤), Josephine Shum (岑寶兒)
* Generation 9: Spencer Leung (梁思浩), Rain Lau Yuk Tsui (劉玉翠), Lukian Wang (王寶寶)
* Generation 10: Spencer Leung (梁思浩), Maggie Lee (李曼筠), Howard Chan (陳皓雲)
Topics
A very wide range of topics have been covered by the show. Below are some samples
* After death revisits
* Out of body experiences
* Eastern style exorcism
* Ghosts and relationships
* Hauntings
* Spiritual communications
* Bewitching
* Reincarnations
* Proper burial and funeral methods
* Tools and equipment analysis
* Practices, procedures
Film
Some hosts showed in similar film ''The Unbelievable'' (2009) some differences in its Hong Kong and Singapore/Malaysia versions.
References
The Unbelievable show hosts for Generation 6
External links
The Unbelievable forum
The Unbelievable
{{DEFAULTSORT:Unbelievable
Non-fiction television series
1990s Hong Kong television series