Bie declines Chinese diplomatic post
Chinese Vice-premier Wang Yang made headlines back in May by begging his countrymen to behave more politely when travelling abroad - no loud talking, no spitting - that sort of thing.
Time for an addition to the list: “Don’t invade the homes of your favourite foreign stars.”
Singer-actor Sukrit “Bie” Wisetkaew has a home in Chiang Mai he shares with his parents when he’s not working in Bangkok. The other day a van full of Chinese tourists pulled up outside and they all wanted to have a look inside, as though it were the Bie Museum. “Someone started ringing the bell,” Bie tells OK! magazine.
The Chinese know him well because he was the first foreign star to win an Anhui TV Drama Award. That was in 2011, and, since then, The House Where Superstar Bie Lives has become a tourist attraction. Local travel guides began bringing more and more fans, especially after the Chinese movie “Lost in Thailand” made Chiang Mai seem somehow appealing. “At first they just drove past the house, but then they started stopping to take photos,” he says.
Bie’s mother was rather amused at the latest incident, calling him to say someone was trying to get in, but he takes it seriously. “It’s my private space! I asked the heads of all the fan clubs to spread the word – ‘Please don’t try to come into my house!’”
Don’t drop in
Some Thais need to heed the same message. A female fan of actor Pakorn “Boy” Chatborirak got in touch to say she wanted to visit his home.
He dissuaded her and she hasn’t shown up yet, “but she very kindly said she wants to give me something,” he says. “I told her it’s better to meet me at a public event.”
Boy explains that a teenage girl came to his home one night and he had to fend her off, more concerned about her safety than his own.
“I do have a few fans over to my house, but they’re mostly the people in charge of my fan page or fan clubs, and we discuss projects.”
Surely those uninvited girls have some projects in mind too.
