Rumours can be blown out of proportion without warning. However, Hong Kong actress Kathy Chow (周海媚)’s case is a particularly difficult one as no one has been able to verify the rumour of her passing!
Yesterday (11th December), a netizen suddenly claimed on Weibo that the much loved 57-year-old actress had passed away. While netizens urged Kathy Chow and her staff to make a statement to clarify the issue, they remained mum. Even stranger, Kathy’s last post a few days ago gave no indicator that anything was wrong.
Kathy Chow has faded somewhat from the entertainment scene in recent years, yet she has not been forgotten and is still much loved. As such, when rumours of her passing came to light on Weibo, netizens flew into a tizzy immediately. Several tagged Kathy and her staff, asking for an explanation and a refutation. Things got more hectic when some claimed Kathy had been found dead before even being brought to the hospital.
However, Kathy remained silent while her staff allegedly refused to comment on the matter with one supposedly hanging up on a reporter, claiming they were busy socialising. The lack of response left netizens furious and worried as Kathy Chow reportedly has a history of poor health and suffers from autoimmune disease lupus erythematosus.
Chinese media also reached out to Kathy’s friend who claimed they had spoken on 10th December and alleged they had not noticed anything wrong then. But, when they tried to contact Kathy after, the call supposedly didn’t go through. Weirdly enough, Kathy’s social account, made for her pet dog, uploaded a post around 6pm yesterday evening.
However, others later claimed the rumour was false. Allegedly, Kathy Chow had collapsed at her home in Beijing and was then found by her staff who sent her to the hospital for treatment. According to the source, Kathy is supposedly out of danger now but still in a coma.
The latest news has seemingly been backed by Chinese producer Tan Fei (谭飞) who shared the post saying: “Kathy Chow is not dead. Please do not spread such rumours.” Additionally, the person who initially started the rumour about Kathy’s passing has reportedly taken down the post and changed their user name.
It should be noted that the news of Kathy Chow’s coma and recovery in the hospital has also yet to be confirmed. Regardless, we sincerely wish the actress well and hope to hear good news about her soon.
Sources: China Press (1)(2), Oriental Daily, Sin Chew Daily
