Some of the more popular posts from my other (now defunct) blog were the Bruce Lee walking tours. These things age pretty quickly given the speed at which things change in Hong Kong, so porting them over to this new site is gives me a chance to revisit the places and provide useful updates.
The sites we are visiting for this Tsim Sha Tsui walk are as follows:
1. Bruce Lee statue on the Avenue of Stars
2. Bruce Lee plaque on the Avenue of Stars
3. KCR Clocktower
4. Heritage 1881 - the former Marine Police HQ
5. Grand Ocean Theatre
1. Bruce Lee statue on the Avenue of Stars
2. Bruce Lee plaque on the Avenue of Stars
3. KCR Clocktower
4. Heritage 1881 - the former Marine Police HQ
5. Grand Ocean Theatre
6. Hongkong Hotel
7. Ocean Terminal Carpark
8. Ashley Road
9. Hankow Road
10. Peking Road
11. The Peninsula
12. Mariner's Club
13. Chungking Mansion
14. former site of Hyatt Hotel
15. Mirador Mansion
16. Hanoi Road
17. Golden Crown Court
18. Tsim Sha Tsui Mansion
19. former site of Tung Ying Building
20. Champagne Court
19. former site of Tung Ying Building
20. Champagne Court
21. Mira Place
22. Hong Kong Observatory
23. St Andrew's Church
1. Bruce Lee's statue on the Avenue of Stars
One of the first major updates to this walk is the locations of Bruce-related items on the Avenue of Stars. The Avenue (AoS) was revamped and reopened in January 2019 and the Bruce Lee statue - formerly a prominent piece on the harbourfront - has now been relegated to a side show for the nearby Starbucks. So, this is where the walk starts.
In case you don't know the history of the statue it was not part of the original design for the AoS. The original AoS was a typically naff piece of Hong Kong tourism: badly designed, badly implemented and poorly managed. The English signage was full of errors and embarrassing spelling mistakes (who remembers Patsy Kar Ling having her name written as Pasty?).
The statue was commissioned by the local Bruce Lee Club with donations from fans from around the world and went on to become the most popular part of the "attraction". The fact that this privately funded statue became the Avenue centrepiece made a lot of people lose face and this might explain why, following the revamp, the statue (along with Anita Mui's) has now been moved to the side outside the coffee shop. Luckily for us, you might need a shot of caffeine before you start this walk, especially if you are unfortunate enough to be doing it on a particularly hot day, so fill up, get your pictures and move on down the Avenue to the next point on the walk.
2. Bruce Lee's plaque
Another change to the AoS is that the order of the plaques has been swapped, so Bruce's new plaque is no longer where the old one was. The plaques, especially the ones that actually had handprints in them, were a bit of a health and safety hazard encouraging people to stoop down on the floor in the middle of a busy promenade to compare hand sizes. I'm not aware of any major incidents but I'm sure - given the way some people walk along glued to their phones - that the odd knee to the head must have happened. Fear no more, the new plaques have been given a funky metallic upgrade and have been moved to the railings by the waterfront. Obviously, Bruce's plaque won't ever have hand prints, but to be honest the new handprints on other plaques don't look particularly realistic to me. The outlines seem to be genuine, but they are filled with obviously fake lines/creases. Bruce does have a slick mug shot made from stars and a QR code that links to the AoS website entry for him. (if you enlarge the image below you can scan the QR code for yourself - it will take you to his entry on the official Avenue website).
3. KCR Clocktower
Walking west along the waterfront, take in the view across the harbour and remember that by the time Bruce had died the tallest building on Hong Kong side was the Connaught Centre - it can be seen under construction in the opening credits of Enter the Dragon. Now renamed to Jardine House and recognisable by its circular window apertures, the former "tallest" building is now just one of the smaller ones that front the harbour.
Our next stop doesn't have a direct link to Bruce but is included because it appears in the background of some publicity shots he had taken for Golden Harvest on top of the Ocean Terminal carpark. We'll get to that location shortly, but in the meantime you can check out the clocktower in closeup. It's been a landmark on the waterfront here for more than a century but was originally attached to the old KCR terminus that stood where the ugly and windowless Cultural Centre now stands. This is something Bruce would definitely have seen throughout his childhood and even after he moved back in the early 1970s because the station wasn't demolished until 1978.
Crossing Salisbury Road, the next location is another site without a direct link to Bruce (that I know of) but one he would have seen on a daily basis. I've included it here because I once read an anecdote about the Lee family from the time of the Japanese Occupation (1941- 1945). Apparently, Bruce's parents lived in constant fear of being accidentally bombed by the US air force because of the family home's proximity to this particular site. Although a base for the Marine Police in the inter- and post-war years, during the occupation it was taken over by the vicious Japanese military police, the Kempetei, and so became a target for American bombers. If you don't feel that the US Bombers were capable of accidentally bombing places at this time, then please feel free to search out what happened to the Stanley Civilian Internment Camp in the closing stages of the War. (Hint: it was accidentally bombed by the Americans killing several internees).
5. Grand Ocean Theatre
Walking up Canton Road and we get to what was originally known as just the "Ocean Theatre". It opened in February 1969 with a 1772 seating capacity and was located inside the first floor of the Hongkong Hotel (our next port of call). This was the venue chosen for the premiere showing of The Big Boss. Although still around, the venue is a much-reduced version of the one that Bruce knew. In 1994 a large portion of the stalls and lobby area were redeveloped into the short-lived Planet Hollywood (which, incidentally, had some Lee related articles inside including a replica of Black Beauty - the car from the Green Hornet - hanging from the ceiling). Following the closure of the restaurant, the area was then turned into the Lane Crawford store that remains today. I suppose the Lee link continues to this day because it is still managed by Golden Harvest.
6. Hongkong Hotel
Feel free to walk into the Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel. It was first opened in 1969 and is the next stop on our walk for two reasons. The first is because it gives us easy access to the carpark located on the Ocean Terminal rooftop, so we need to go through the lobby and use the lift anyway. But actually, there is a much better Bruce Lee link.
According to Dr Craig D Reid (in a Black Belt Magazine article titled: "Little Known Details about the Five Films of Bruce Lee") it was within the Hongkong Hotel's coffee shop that Stephen Tung Wai (the film director and actor who played Lee's student "Lao" in Enter the Dragon) was first introduced to Bruce by their mutual friend Lam Ching Ying (more on Lam in a short while). This was also the location where Bruce celebrated his 31st birthday.
I haven't been in for a while, but when I first posted this guide, I walked to the back of the lobby/foyer and took the lifts (that's elevators to the US peeps) on the right hand side (go up some steps first). Go to floor 6 and kind of bear right. Go through the glass doors and out into the (usually) blazing heat of the car park on top of Ocean Terminal.
7. Ocean Terminal Carpark
Fans will have seen the publicity stills taken on top of Ocean Terminal (such as Bruce leaning against his red Mercedes, kicking Wu Ngan, and with Nora Miao) with the Hong Kong Hotel in the background. Built in 1966, the Ocean Terminal is attached to the rear of the Hong Kong Hotel and has a large carpark on the roof. One which has been seen in many movies I've included on my locations blog (even Chuck Norris did some filming up here).
Bruce at the carpark, clocktower in the background
Similar view today
Looking back towards the rear of the hotel.
8. Ashley Road
From the hotel (retrace your steps back onto the road), turn left (north) and turn right onto Peking Road. Walk along and negotiate the rather annoying underpass that takes you under Kowloon Park Drive and onto the other side of Peking Road. The next stop is Ashley Road because it was here, on the corner of I Chang Street, that there was once a Japanese restaurant called "Restaurant Yamato" that Bruce was known to have visited.
In the Hong Kong Heritage Museum's Bruce Lee exhibition there are (or at least were, I haven't been for several years) some choreography notes on display that show how Bruce had used stationery from the restaurant to design a fight scene for one of his films (I believe it was the Sammo fight at the beginning of Enter the Dragon). Back in 2011 when I first posted this tour, there was still a Japanese restaurant at this location called the "Osaka Restaurant". At the time it was the longest serving Japanese restaurant in Hong Kong. Unfortunately, like many other local businesses, the pandemic (and the resulting highly restrictive Govt policies) proved too much and the Osaka went out of business. The space stayed empty for a while but has been filled once again by a new restaurant called the "Hong Kong Cafe".
From the hotel (retrace your steps back onto the road), turn left (north) and turn right onto Peking Road. Walk along and negotiate the rather annoying underpass that takes you under Kowloon Park Drive and onto the other side of Peking Road. The next stop is Ashley Road because it was here, on the corner of I Chang Street, that there was once a Japanese restaurant called "Restaurant Yamato" that Bruce was known to have visited.
In the Hong Kong Heritage Museum's Bruce Lee exhibition there are (or at least were, I haven't been for several years) some choreography notes on display that show how Bruce had used stationery from the restaurant to design a fight scene for one of his films (I believe it was the Sammo fight at the beginning of Enter the Dragon). Back in 2011 when I first posted this tour, there was still a Japanese restaurant at this location called the "Osaka Restaurant". At the time it was the longest serving Japanese restaurant in Hong Kong. Unfortunately, like many other local businesses, the pandemic (and the resulting highly restrictive Govt policies) proved too much and the Osaka went out of business. The space stayed empty for a while but has been filled once again by a new restaurant called the "Hong Kong Cafe".
9. Hankow Road
Continuing along I Chang Street will bring you out onto Hankow Road. Again, not a great direct Bruce link but we do see some scenes of Hankow Road in the opening credits of Enter the Dragon. The screencaps I've included from that film are the view (from Roper's POV) looking south down Hankow Road. Obviously it's changed significantly since then as you can see from my own image below.
10. Peking Road
Like Hankow Road, Peking Road can be seen in Enter the Dragon as Roper (John Saxon) is being pulled along in a rickshaw. Although actually, this view is probably better seen when you first arrive on Peking Road after taking the underpass under Kowloon Park Drive. Hankow Road can be seen on the left hand side in my image below.
From here, walk along Peking Road towards Nathan Road and then turn right and down to our next stop.
11. The Peninsula Hotel
According to rumours, Bruce was a frequent visitor to the Peninsula Hotel and was apparently a patron of Gaddi's restaurant and bar. At the time of Bruce's patronage though, Gaddi's was on the ground floor - a space now taken up by the Peninsula mall - and so now it is located on the floor above. The entrance (and this plaque) is on the Nathan Road-side, which you will pass as you walk down towards the pedestrian crossing at the bottom of Nathan Road.
12. Mariner's Club
Use the crossing the cross Nathan Road and walk back up to Middle Road. It's at the very end here that the Mariner's club is located, and this is supposedly where Bruce used to go to make international calls back to California when he was in talks with William Dozier about his "warrior/kung fu" series.
Sadly, the old Mariner's Club known to Bruce has only recently been knocked down (circa 2020) and is currently being replaced by something quite monstrous by comparison. I've included an old photo for posterity but the new building replacing it looks to be twice the size and just another ugly addition to Kowloon's increasing number of unnecessary skyscrapers. Booooo!
In a more tenuous link to Bruce, a fight scene was filmed at the rear of the club (on Minden Row) for Game of Death.
Here's a comparison of what Bruce would have seen, compared to what is there today.
13. Chungking Mansion
Built in 1962, I was told that Bruce used to frequent a basement club here called the "Bayside". Given that he was in the US for most of the 1960s I am sure the story is perhaps an exaggeration - perhaps he briefly visited when he returned for his visits in 1963 and 1965?
However, I do know that Mona Fong was once a club singer here. You can see a newspaper advert for one of her performances here. In case you didn't know, Mona went on to become the girlfriend (and later wife) of Sir Run Run Shaw. Her promotion at Shaw brothers to head of production was the spark which caused Raymond Chow, Leonard Ho and Leung Fung to leave Shaws and set up Golden Harvest.
Continuing along I Chang Street will bring you out onto Hankow Road. Again, not a great direct Bruce link but we do see some scenes of Hankow Road in the opening credits of Enter the Dragon. The screencaps I've included from that film are the view (from Roper's POV) looking south down Hankow Road. Obviously it's changed significantly since then as you can see from my own image below.
10. Peking Road
Like Hankow Road, Peking Road can be seen in Enter the Dragon as Roper (John Saxon) is being pulled along in a rickshaw. Although actually, this view is probably better seen when you first arrive on Peking Road after taking the underpass under Kowloon Park Drive. Hankow Road can be seen on the left hand side in my image below.
From here, walk along Peking Road towards Nathan Road and then turn right and down to our next stop.
11. The Peninsula Hotel
According to rumours, Bruce was a frequent visitor to the Peninsula Hotel and was apparently a patron of Gaddi's restaurant and bar. At the time of Bruce's patronage though, Gaddi's was on the ground floor - a space now taken up by the Peninsula mall - and so now it is located on the floor above. The entrance (and this plaque) is on the Nathan Road-side, which you will pass as you walk down towards the pedestrian crossing at the bottom of Nathan Road.
12. Mariner's Club
Use the crossing the cross Nathan Road and walk back up to Middle Road. It's at the very end here that the Mariner's club is located, and this is supposedly where Bruce used to go to make international calls back to California when he was in talks with William Dozier about his "warrior/kung fu" series.
Sadly, the old Mariner's Club known to Bruce has only recently been knocked down (circa 2020) and is currently being replaced by something quite monstrous by comparison. I've included an old photo for posterity but the new building replacing it looks to be twice the size and just another ugly addition to Kowloon's increasing number of unnecessary skyscrapers. Booooo!
In a more tenuous link to Bruce, a fight scene was filmed at the rear of the club (on Minden Row) for Game of Death.
Here's a comparison of what Bruce would have seen, compared to what is there today.
Old Mariner's Club
New Mariner's Club (still under construction 2022)
13. Chungking Mansion
Built in 1962, I was told that Bruce used to frequent a basement club here called the "Bayside". Given that he was in the US for most of the 1960s I am sure the story is perhaps an exaggeration - perhaps he briefly visited when he returned for his visits in 1963 and 1965?
However, I do know that Mona Fong was once a club singer here. You can see a newspaper advert for one of her performances here. In case you didn't know, Mona went on to become the girlfriend (and later wife) of Sir Run Run Shaw. Her promotion at Shaw brothers to head of production was the spark which caused Raymond Chow, Leonard Ho and Leung Fung to leave Shaws and set up Golden Harvest.
14. iSquare - former site of Hyatt Hotel
The iSquare mall (or as I like to call it the "iSore") sits on the site of the former Hyatt Hotel. This was the hotel where Bruce is rumoured to have first been introduced to Betty Ting Pei. Paul Li also once told me that the Braithewaite/Lee briefing scene (Guns! Now, why doesn't somebody pull out a .45 and, bang, settle it?) was filmed in one of the hotel's rooms but I haven't been able to verify.
You can see what the hotel used to look like over on Gwulo.com.
15. Mirador Mansion
Any serious student of Bruce Lee's early life will know that Mirador Mansions is supposed to be the location of a rooftop fight where Bruce inflicted some damage to an opponent in one of his many challenge fights. It's certainly possible this was the venue because Mirador Mansions opened in 1959, the same year Bruce left Hong Kong for the US. In 1959 and even in 1958, the building would've still been covered in bamboo scaffolding receiving its finishing touches before opening, so access to the roof without anyone really noticing would have been fairly easy.
16. Hanoi Road
This is a new addition to this walk because since I first created it (in 2011) I found out about the "Siu Lam Kung Restaurant". This was the eatery where Chaplin Chang was first introduced to Bruce. Chaplin told me about this the first time we met and said it was the venue arranged by Raymond Chow for them to meet so that Chaplin and Bruce could discuss the upcoming project that turned into The Way of the Dragon.
In terms of location I am a bit confused. I was under the impression it was located at #6, but judging by the image below (a shot from the I Spy series), it was quite obviously located next door to the "Fairyland Bar", which was located at #18. I believe a version of the restaurant still exists on Austin Road but obviously this is a different location to the one visited by Bruce.
Actually, it no longer matters where it was exactly because this side of the street, as well as the whole block between Hanoi Road and Bristol Avenue, was razed to make way for the K11 "Masterpiece". So, by all means wander along Hanoi Road for the Bruce pilgrimage (and several movies have shot scenes here anyway) and share the space he walked, but sadly there is nothing left here from his lifetime.
This is a new addition to this walk because since I first created it (in 2011) I found out about the "Siu Lam Kung Restaurant". This was the eatery where Chaplin Chang was first introduced to Bruce. Chaplin told me about this the first time we met and said it was the venue arranged by Raymond Chow for them to meet so that Chaplin and Bruce could discuss the upcoming project that turned into The Way of the Dragon.
In terms of location I am a bit confused. I was under the impression it was located at #6, but judging by the image below (a shot from the I Spy series), it was quite obviously located next door to the "Fairyland Bar", which was located at #18. I believe a version of the restaurant still exists on Austin Road but obviously this is a different location to the one visited by Bruce.
Actually, it no longer matters where it was exactly because this side of the street, as well as the whole block between Hanoi Road and Bristol Avenue, was razed to make way for the K11 "Masterpiece". So, by all means wander along Hanoi Road for the Bruce pilgrimage (and several movies have shot scenes here anyway) and share the space he walked, but sadly there is nothing left here from his lifetime.
Hanoi Road looking north (November 2022)
Siu Lam Kung (小杬公) on Hanoi Road (I Spy 1965)
There is a well-known image of Bruce and Raymond Chow taken in a restaurant with Chuck Norris, Bob Wall and Andrew Vajna (often mistaken for Bob Baker). See below (grabbed from this excellent resource), Apparently, this was taken at the old Chinese restaurant at Golden Crown Court. The restaurant is long gone but the building is still around and the old restaurant space is now taken up by a branch of the Standard Chartered bank (see lower image).
Bob, Chuck, Andrew Vajna, Bruce and Raymond
18. Tsim Sha Tsui Mansion
I've included Tsim Sha Tsui Mansion as a brief interlude on the walk because it is where Bruce's friend and stuntman, Lam Ching-ying lived. The only problem is that I have no idea when or how long he lived here for. Lam, along with Bee Chan and Yuen Wah, was originally a member of Han Ying-chieh's stunt team, which is why they were working on both The Big Boss and Fist of Fury. Following the latter film, Bruce recruited them all into his own stunt team just in time for Enter the Dragon. Lam had the extra role of doubling for Shek Kin for his harder-to-execute manoeuvres as Mr Han. He later went on to make a name for himself in the Mr Vampire series of movies before succumbing to cancer in 1997.
19. The One - former site of Tung Ying Building
The Tung Ying Building was a commercial block built by Bruce's famous great uncle, Sir Robert Ho Tung. It even had a bust of Sir Robert in the entrance lobby. It was here that Golden Harvest, and Concord, kept offices. The building also had a branch of the Bank of America where Bruce and Linda kept an account. If you have seen the donation cheque Bruce wrote for the 1972 Po Shan Road landslide disaster appeal, you'll see the cheque has the bank's Tung Ying Building address on it. There was also a cafe on the ground floor- entrance on Granville Road - where Bruce used to eat sometimes (apparently). By the time of my first trip to HK in 1995 this was a branch of Oliver's.
The year I moved here permanently (well, what I thought would be permanent...) the building was demolished and replaced by another fugly skyscraper called "The One".
I've included Tsim Sha Tsui Mansion as a brief interlude on the walk because it is where Bruce's friend and stuntman, Lam Ching-ying lived. The only problem is that I have no idea when or how long he lived here for. Lam, along with Bee Chan and Yuen Wah, was originally a member of Han Ying-chieh's stunt team, which is why they were working on both The Big Boss and Fist of Fury. Following the latter film, Bruce recruited them all into his own stunt team just in time for Enter the Dragon. Lam had the extra role of doubling for Shek Kin for his harder-to-execute manoeuvres as Mr Han. He later went on to make a name for himself in the Mr Vampire series of movies before succumbing to cancer in 1997.
Tsim Sha Tsui Mansions
19. The One - former site of Tung Ying Building
The Tung Ying Building was a commercial block built by Bruce's famous great uncle, Sir Robert Ho Tung. It even had a bust of Sir Robert in the entrance lobby. It was here that Golden Harvest, and Concord, kept offices. The building also had a branch of the Bank of America where Bruce and Linda kept an account. If you have seen the donation cheque Bruce wrote for the 1972 Po Shan Road landslide disaster appeal, you'll see the cheque has the bank's Tung Ying Building address on it. There was also a cafe on the ground floor- entrance on Granville Road - where Bruce used to eat sometimes (apparently). By the time of my first trip to HK in 1995 this was a branch of Oliver's.
Tung Ying Building
The year I moved here permanently (well, what I thought would be permanent...) the building was demolished and replaced by another fugly skyscraper called "The One".
"The One"
20. Champagne Court
Here's another place that will soon be redeveloped, imminently as I understand. It’s Champagne Court at #16 Kimberley Rd and was the location of the Champagne Nightclub - one of the places Bruce used to go to for his cha cha dancing. It's made the papers in the last few years for mainly being used by single room prostitutes, but the ground floor used to have some shops selling antique and used cameras. I walked past in November 2022 and a large section of the building's windows were already boarded up, but half still seemed to be occupied. Anyway, here are a couple of images for posterity.
For the next location you need to turn back towards Nathan Road and make a right to walk north. Just before you get to the brightly coloured colonnaded building that used to be the Kowloon British School (now used by the Antiquities and Monuments Office) you can turn off into the entrance of the next site.
Here's another place that will soon be redeveloped, imminently as I understand. It’s Champagne Court at #16 Kimberley Rd and was the location of the Champagne Nightclub - one of the places Bruce used to go to for his cha cha dancing. It's made the papers in the last few years for mainly being used by single room prostitutes, but the ground floor used to have some shops selling antique and used cameras. I walked past in November 2022 and a large section of the building's windows were already boarded up, but half still seemed to be occupied. Anyway, here are a couple of images for posterity.
(image of Kimberley Road circa 1970s, credit unknown)
21. Mira Place - former site of the Miramar Hotel
Back when Bruce was a frequent visitor, the Miramar Hotel was still located on the north side of Kimberley Road and contained the Kane Tanaka, one of his favourite restaurants. This hotel was also the venue for the Unicorn Fist press conference which saw Bruce attend with many of his Way of the Dragon co-stars also in attendance. Sadly for Unicorn Chan, Bruce was very much the centre of attention at this event despite Unicorn being the star. In Chaplin Chang's interview book (released in Chinese only, but Chaplin was kind enough to provide me with a translated copy), Charles Lowe also mentions that he would come here often with Bruce for drinks and dinner and who can forget that the Miramar was the location where George Lazenby was supposed to meet Bruce on the day of his death.
With that all said it should now be noted that the old hotel is no longer around. Sometime in the early 1990s the hotel moved across the street to its current location (although now it's only called the "Mira") and the north block was redeveloped into the Mira Place shopping mall. Again, you can see some old snaps of the place over on gwulo.com.
22. The (former Royal) Hong Kong Observatory
This one is tricky because it’s officially off-limits to the public unless you join a pre-booked tour. I did try to get on one of these tours just this month, but these things are so popular that they always end up as a ballot - and I've never been that lucky, unfortunately.
Anyway, this was where Bruce's older brother, Peter, worked as assistant director for a time. The original building is a colonial-style one with columns and verandas which Bruce would have most likely seen when he was growing up here as a youngster. Did Bruce ever visit his brother here? I don't know when Peter started work at the Observatory and it could easily have been after his brother had already passed away, but I've included it here as a bit of Lee family history anyway.
(old aerial image of the Observatory, credit unknown)
By pure coincidence, Siu Sifu was filmed giving lessons in the exact same location for the Kung Fu Killers documentary which I covered many years ago. Sadly, much of the space that was utilised for those outdoor lessons has now been subsumed by the "Life Centre" building.
Well, this is the end of this walk. I will, when time allows, add my other walking tours to this site in the near future. They all need an update anyway.
Coming soon:
The Bruce Lee Guide to Yau Ma Tei
The Bruce Lee Guide to (the rest of) Kowloon: Part 1
The Bruce Lee Guide to (the rest of) Kowloon: Part 2
The Bruce Lee Guide to (the rest of) Kowloon: Part 3
The Bruce Lee Guide to the New Territories
The Bruce Lee Guide to Hong Kong Island
2 comments:
I'm sure me and my buddy stayed in the Champagne Court on my first trip to Hong Kong in 1994. Had a couple of nights in a hotel then moved over to Kimberley Rd. This is the information taken from The Rough Guide To Hong Kong & Macau "On Sun Tat, 7th Floor, Champagne Court, 16 Kimberley Road (behind the Miramar Hotel; =723 9143). The pleasant people here have lovely rooms with bath and TV for $250 ask in the travel agency). There are also cheaper, less spacious $150 rooms on the 3rd floor." We could have stayed on the third floor. I don't remember the room having a bath.
it was in the news quite a lot over the past few years for being a hive of single room brothels i.e. each room having a prostitute. You might have got an hour for $250 at that time...
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