Heartwarming homecoming for patriotic stars Yvonne Lim, Harris Baba, Leon Jay Williams and Eileen Yeow
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SINGAPORE - With National Day around the corner, these Singaporean celebrities who have been based overseas – some for decades – are back in town to fly the flag high.
Yvonne Lim: Patriotic actress goes all out for nation's birthday
Yvonne Lim at Merlion Park.
ST PHOTO: DIOS VINCOY JR
Whether she is baking Singa the Courtesy Lion pork floss buns and min jiang kueh (peanut pancake) to ease her homesickness, or singing and dancing to National Day songs on her Instagram to celebrate the nation's birthday, Yvonne Lim has never been shy about her love of Singapore.
The Mediacorp actress, who moved to Taipei in 2015, also ropes in her Taiwanese businessman husband Alex Tien, 42, and their children AJ, seven, and Alexa, five, for the festivities.
The 45-year-old poster girl for patriotism tells The Straits Times: "It has been the same routine since AJ was a baby - buying and donning National Day outfits each year, catching the NDP (National Day Parade) live online, singing along to the songs and waving our flags.
Harris Baba: Heart-throb makes comeback
Last year was the first time Harris Baba had the chance to be in Singapore for National Day since his relocation.
ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
When Harris Baba made his move across the Causeway at the end of 2014, it was because he felt he was forgotten and unappreciated in his own country.
Now, the 30-year-old actor-singer has come full circle - and by accident too.
Harris, who is of Pakistani, Kashmiri-Iranian and Chinese descent, first found fame as the resident heart-throb of the Channel 5 reality singing competition The Final 1 (2013).
Leon Jay Williams: New phase for family and career
Leon Jay Williams now believes being anchored in Singapore is best for his family - and for the new phase of his career.
PHOTO: LEON JAY WILLIAMS
Leon Jay Williams' homecoming, after more than 20 years in Taiwan and China, was always on the cards.
He just did not expect it to happen so soon.
In the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, the actor - then based in Taiwan - decided to "sit it out" in Singapore as he had been away from home for two decades, thinking the situation would end in a few months.
Eileen Yeow: A tourist on home ground
Eileen Yeow at the National Day Parade Preview 2 show on July 30, 2022.
PHOTO: COURTESY OF EILEEN YEOW
There is nothing like a long-overdue family reunion to make the heart grow fonder.
Hong Kong-based TVB artiste Eileen Yeow was last in town for Chinese New Year in 2020, before the pandemic scuppered her regular visits home.
So when the Singaporean finally touched down at Changi Airport early last month, it was "very special and emotional" to get together again with her parents, who are in their 70s, younger sisters and younger brother, who arrived from Dubai.
