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The 5 Show’s Yasminne Cheng and Chua Enlai share a delightful chemistry

SINGAPORE — Having spent the past few months preparing for The 5 Show, hosts Yasminne Cheng and Chua Enlai are knuckling down for crunch time. The new nightly magazine programme, which will see the pair discussing current affairs and hot topics, premieres tomorrow on MediaCorp TV’s Channel 5.

Chua Enlai and Yasminne Cheng on the set of The 5 Show.

Chua Enlai and Yasminne Cheng on the set of The 5 Show.

SINGAPORE — Having spent the past few months preparing for The 5 Show, hosts Yasminne Cheng and Chua Enlai are knuckling down for crunch time. The new nightly magazine programme, which will see the pair discussing current affairs and hot topics, premieres tomorrow on MediaCorp TV’s Channel 5.

There are many things to be preoccupied about, but the chemistry between the co-hosts is not going to be one of them. Cheng and Chua have been friends for 15 years and, presumably, will never run out of things to talk about. In fact, their chemistry is so well-honed that “sometimes, we finish each other’s sentences”, Chua said.

“I think he is the more talkative one,” Cheng said. “He is definitely the louder, funnier one. If I need to tell him to shut up, I’ll just tell him to shut up, lor! (But) Enlai has quiet moments. I know it’s surprising, but he does!”

“If you start talking hair and nails and stuff like that, I can just leave and she can just talk,” came Chua’s rejoinder. “Or corgis, because she’s got one. You won’t be able to stop her. If you do, let her get started on those topics. But of course, we’re not going to talk about silly things like nails and hair.”

The 5 Show is a little more serious than some of the shows the comedian has done, such as The Noose or Say It!. “We’ve had several test pilots in the past couple of months. There was a time people wanted us to be quite serious,” Chua said. “Then we thought, ‘Actually, let’s not.’ We’re going to be talking about issues, some of which may be serious, but I think they want to keep the presentation style light-hearted. I think it’s good that we’re experimenting with the tone of the show.”

Channel 5 has also gone all out to match that tone by building them a spanking new set. “I must say it’s really nice. It feels very homey, which is the right mood,” Cheng said. “They brought in a specialist for the set design and the lighting as well. It’s something I think Channel 5 has never done before, so it’s a big thing, a new thing.”

Which talk show host does Cheng think her style most closely resembles? “I would like to be Ellen, but I don’t think I’m funny that way. I think that would be more Enlai. (He would be) a louder version,” the Class 95FM DJ mused. “No dancing for me, that’s for sure! My bits will not be jiggling.”

Chua’s bits will, though. For one of the show’s pre-recorded segments, he had to do a fitness test. “I think they were trying to kill me. It was Boxing Day, so I was hung over. And I had to take off my clothes on national TV. I was like, ‘Can you tell me advance so I can not turn up?’”

Don’t worry though, Chua will be fully clothed for the rest of the series — for the most part. Although, since it’s a live show, you never know what might happen.

“I think it being (a live show) gives it that extra-special something. The adrenaline is different — it’s like your every sense is on Spidey-mode,” Cheng said. “The best parts are the parts that weren’t planned or scripted.”

Catch The 5 Show starting tomorrow, from Mondays to Fridays, at 8.30pm on MediaCorp TV Channel 5.

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