Huang Biren hopes to act more regularly

Since leaving Mediacorp in 2008, veteran actress Huang Biren has appeared in only a handful of Channel 8 dramas.

Her role in long-running series Recipe Of Life, which ended in May, came after a four-year break, and she has not received any acting offers since.

In an interview with Shin Min Daily News published on Wednesday, the 52-year-old said: "If I have to wait another four years, it's a bit too long and people on social media will ask, 'When will Biren make a return?'"

"I'm not greedy - if I can be in one drama every year, or even every two years, then I can answer to the fans who have been supporting me," added the actress who made her debut more than 30 years ago.

As a freelancer - she left Mediacorp as she did not agree to the terms offered to her in 2008, and also to spend time with family - she said she understood that roles would naturally go first to those in the company's stable of actors.

A huge ratings draw when she was a full-timer, Huang was the lead actress in seven of the 11 dramas with the highest viewership figures between 1997 and 2007, according to 8 Days magazine in November 2007.

One of her best-known roles was in Stand By Me, which broke viewership records in 1998 and won her the Best Actress trophy at the Star Awards. In the drama, she portrayed a loving wife caring for her paraplegic husband, played by retired actor Xie Shaoguang, 59.

Reflecting on her lack of roles, the mother of three, who is married to civil servant Adrian Quek, said: "Is it because I have a bad attitude? Not hard-working? Bad acting?"

She also joked: "Actually, I'm not very expensive."