A Cinema in Central Coming Soon

A cinema is planned to replace the space previously occupied by HMV

There are plans for a cinema to be located in a prime Central location, at the bottom of Lan Kwai Fong.

Emperor Group, the entertainment conglomerate owned by Albert Yeung Sau-shing, will lease a two-storey space in the Entertainment Building for HK$1.2 million per month.

It will take over the space previously rented by HMV on the third and fourth floors, occupying more than 16,000 square feet.

There will be a cinema as well as fine dining restaurants, according to real estate agents. It will also be a venue for investment banks or insurers to hold premiere parties.

The interior of HMV when it was in Entertainment Building

"A cinema generally cannot support such high rents through selling tickets," says Michael Chik, managing director of agency Sheraton Values.

Another intriguing fact is that the building is owned by a venture with Angela Leong, the fourth wife of casino tycoon Stanley Ho, as a major shareholder.

It's interesting this space, that was previously retail, is going to be turned into an entertainment one. Landlords also seem desperate to rent out space too, and so they are open-minded about new ideas. Perhaps they can only fit one screen in there, so there is only a limited amount of money the cinema can make.

Nevertheless just the idea of being able to watch a movie in such a convenient location is too interesting to pass up.

Picture of the Day: Happy Birthday Leslie

A large stage set up at Tamar with screens to show the tribute concert

A few days ago I saw posters up on the MTR station advertising Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing's 60th birthday party.

But he passed away in 2003!

However his fervent and loyal fans have decided to get together and celebrate at Tamar tonight so I went to check it out briefly.

Hundreds of fans showed up for the free event

Wow -- it was a huge production -- a massive stage, seating for VIP guests and others stood by the sides. Even though it was free admission, there was a long lineup just to get in. A few of the fans we met had even come from Guizhou and Shenzhen for the event.

They all miss their "Goh Goh" or older brother so much. Some explained they were attracted to him because of his good looks, and later they felt he was very in tune with what people were going through. To them, Cheung was the embodiment of what a man should be like, handsome, sensitive, kind, hardworking and very determined. And they looked up to him like an older brother.

But why hold a birthday party for him when he's not there?

A big birthday card for Leslie from his fans

Perhaps it's a happy occasion for fans to use this as an excuse to play his songs, watch his film clips and reminisce. The other time they gather is on the sad anniversary of his suicide on April 1, 2003 at the Mandarin Oriental...

We're just impressed by not only the setup, but the turnout!

If only he could see his fans celebrating a milestone birthday for him! What would Cheung think?!

Back on the Streets, Back to the Fight

Joshua Wong, Nathan Law and Derek Lam stand near the Kennedy Town MTR

Just before 6pm today I headed out to the gym for a swim when I saw campaign banners of Nathan Law Kwun-chung's face and heard his voice on a not very loud speaker thanking residents in Kennedy Town for voting for him.

It was a nice gesture for him to come out, and a few people shook his hand and wished him well. He was there along with Joshua Wong Chi-fung, and Derek Lam Shun-hin, holding signs thanking people. At the MTR station there were more Demosisto supporters, holding the same sign and bowing as people went past.

As Kennedy Town is a pro-Beijing stronghold, grannies walking by must have been miffed that a 23-year-old had been elected into the Legislative Council last weekend!

Although Law and Wong are thanking supporters, their deputy general secretary Agnes Chow Ting is annoyed that the application for Demosisto at the Companies Registry is still being held up almost six months later without any explanation.

As a result the political party cannot accept donations and instead have to use personal bank accounts which is not very professional, but they have no choice for now.

Their solicitor Daniel Wong says, "The Companies Registry cannot just keep the matter in abeyance forever. If they think Demosisto is not registrable, tell them! At least they can seek an appeal or appropriate relief under the Companies Ordinance.

"Avoiding giving them an answer is the most shameful way of dealing with the matter," he says, adding that the six-month deliberation was "far beyond" the accepted norm, which is usually one month.

In late July, the registry asked Demosisto to explain if it was adhering to the Basic Law by pushing for Hong Kong's "self-determination".

Wong blasted their inquiries at the time as unreasonable as he believed that political views should not be a factor in registering a company. He has also had problems opening a bank account too.

But now that Law has been elected as a bona fide lawmaker, surely these government departments and banks cannot hold things up any longer?

Or is someone else giving them direction on who should and shouldn't be approved?

Fact of the Day: iPhone 7 Sold Out in Minutes

The iPhone 7 is in Hong Kong -- if you can pre-order one...

Crazy but true -- the new iPhone 7 Plus models were all sold out in Hong Kong in less than 10 minutes on Friday, after pre-ordering was available around 3.08pm.

The first to go were the jet black ones -- the new coveted colour -- by 3.13pm, followed by the other iPhone 7 Plus models. Then the regular jet black iPhone 7 models were all gone by 3.21pm.

Those who put down orders will get the new smartphones in three to four weeks, and those who were not early birds will have to wait until November.

Techies not too impressed with the smartphone

Who bought all these phones that are water resistant and need wireless headphones? Probably speculators.

Initial reviews by tech experts weren't keen on the iPhone 7 or 7 Plus, so we'll have to see if speculators were on the money to snap up all the latest iPhone models in the hopes of making several bucks off of it.

Apple must be relieved -- and hopes that kind of response to the sale will be repeated in other markets...