# Brigitte Lin

Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia (Chinese: 林青霞; pinyin: Lín Qīngxiá; born 3 November 1954) is a Taiwanese actress. She is regarded as an icon of Chinese language cinema for her extensive and varied roles in both Taiwanese and Hong Kong films.

## Biography

Lin was born in Chiayi, Taiwan to 'waishengren' parents from eastern Shandong who moved to Taiwan in the KMT exodus in 1949. She was scouted in 1972 on the streets of Taipei by a film producer after she finished women's high school and was preparing for university. Lin debuted in the film adaptation of Chiung Yao's Outside the Window (1973), which propelled her into stardom. Lin, along with Joan Lin, Charlie Chin and Chin Han, thus became known as the "Two Chins, Two Lins" (二秦二林) for their extensive roles in romantic movies of the 1970s based on Chiung's novels that dominated the Taiwanese box office. She subsequently joined Chiung Yao's company in 1976 and, by 1982, had played the lead in 12 of her films.
Lin won the Best Actress award at the Asia-Pacific Film Festival for her role as a girl scout in Eight Hundred Heroes (1976).
She appeared in 55 films in the period between 1972 and 1979, and all her roles were romantic heroines in love stories. She then left for the U.S. in 1979 for a year and a half, to study and relax.
Known for being a "screen goddess" by Chinese film lovers, Lin's early collaborations with Hong Kong New Wave directors Ringo Lam, Tsui Hark and Jackie Chan in Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain (1983), The Other Side of Gentleman (1984), Police Story (1985) and Peking Opera Blues (1986) brought her success. In 1990, she won the Best Actress trophy at the 27th Golden Horse Awards for her depiction of a Chinese female writer who fell in love with a Japanese collaborator in Red Dust (1990).
It was common for women to cross dress as male characters in Chinese movies and operas. Lin is particularly well known for her androgynous roles, her earliest being Jia Baoyu, the male protagonist of the 1977 film adaptation of Dream of the Red Chamber. In Peking Opera Blues (1986), she was a guerrilla revolutionary and in Royal Tramp II (1992), she was the leader of the Heavenly Dragon Sect, both of whom were women characters dressed as men. And in Ashes of Time (1994), she played twin brother/sister duo Yin and Yang. However, she is perhaps most well known for her role as Dongfang Bubai in Swordsman II (1992). Swordsman II marked the peak of her career in terms of box office earnings for which she was listed among the 10 greatest performances in cinema of all time, by Time magazine.
Subsequently, she starred in many other notable martial epics including New Dragon Gate Inn (1992) and The Bride with White Hair (1993).
At the height of her popularity, Lin was one of the most sought-after actresses in the Chinese film industry. She starred in more than 100 movies. Lin was credited for boosting Taiwan's film production in the 1970s before earning even greater popularity in Hong Kong in the 1990s, becoming a trans-island legend of her time.
She retired from acting in 1994. Her last acting role was in Ashes of Time (1994).

## Personal life

Lin traces her family roots to Shandong, China.
It's been reported that Lin has dated both Chin Han and Charlie Chin of "Two Chins, Two Lins" back in the 1970s, even sustaining a proposal from the latter before eventually cancelling it.
Lin married Hong Kong businessman Michael Ying in 1994. She is the mother of Eileen Ying Oi Lum (born 1996) and Melani Ying Yin-oi (born 2001) and stepmother to Claudine Ying.
She made her first public appearance since her marriage at the screening of Ashes of Time Redux during the 2008 New York Film Festival.
In 2015, Lin made an appearance as a regular cast member in Up Idol, a 12 episode Chinese reality show on Hunan Television.

## Filmography

| Year | English Title | Chinese title | Role | Notes |
| 1973 | Outside the Window | 窗外 | Jiang Yanrong | |
| 1974 | Gone with the Cloud | 雲飄飄 | Li Zhongjiang | |
| 1974 | Ghost of the Mirror | 古鏡幽魂 | Susu | |
| 1974 | Love, Love, Love | 純純的愛 | Lin Chunchun | |
| 1974 | The River of Cloudy | 雲河 | Liang Xinlan | |
| 1974 | Female Reporter | 女記者 | Shen Fuhui | |
| 1974 | Girlfriend | 女朋友 | Xia Xiaochan | |
| 1974 | The House of Love | 愛的小屋 | Xiao Yu | |
| 1974 | Green Green Meadow | 青青草原上 | Fang Menglan | |
| 1974 | Long Way from Home | 長情萬縷 | Lin Shanshan | |
| 1975 | Misty Drizzle | 煙雨 | Ji Chunxia | |
| 1975 | The Life God | 雲深不知處 | White-clothed girl | |
| 1975 | Xiao Yi Huai Chun | 小姨怀春 | Wan Qing | |
| 1975 | Run Lover Run | 愛情長跑 | Shui Liping | |
| 1975 | Hot Wave | 熱浪 | Xia Xiaoyu | |
| 1975 | The Unforgettable Character | 在水一方 | Tu Hsiao-shuang | |
| 1975 | He Loved Once Too Many | 水雲 | Shui Jiao | |
| 1975 | Love Story of Pian Pian | 翩翩情 | Pian Pian | |
| 1975 | The Forest of Forever | 長青樹 | Luo Yanan | |
| 1976 | Eight Hundred Heroes | 八百壯士 | Yang Huimin | |
| 1976 | Autumn Song | 秋歌 | Dong Zhiyun | |
| 1976 | The Chasing Game | 追球追求 | Fang Meihan | |
| 1976 | Tomorrow I'm 20 | 明天二十歲 | | |
| 1976 | Love Kungfu | 戀愛功夫 | Xia Xiaoyun | |
| 1976 | The Beauty with Two Faces | 海天一色 | | |
| 1976 | Love Forever | 海誓山盟 | Yi Lian | |
| 1976 | Today and Tomorrow | 昨夜，今夜，明夜 | | |
| 1976 | Forever My Love | 楓葉情 | Li Jinwen | |
| 1976 | Different Love | 不一樣的愛 | Song Xiaoyu | |
| 1976 | My Funny Intern | 鬼馬俏醫生 | Fang Jie | |
| 1977 | Come Fly With Me | 我是一沙鷗 | Liu Yanmei | |
| 1977 | The Cloud of Romance | 我是一片雲 | Tuan Wanlu | |
| 1977 | The Dream of the Red Chamber | 金玉良緣紅樓夢 | Jia Baoyu | |
| 1977 | There's No Place Like Home | 異鄉夢 | Ye Hualing | |
| 1977 | The Love Affair of Rainbow | 奔向彩虹 | Xiao Hong | |
| 1977 | My Sweet Love | 溫馨在我心 | Li Huifang | |
| 1977 | Orchid in the Rain | 幽蘭在雨中 | Qiu Meng | |
| 1978 | The Misty Moon | 月朦朧鳥朦朧 | Liu Lingshan | |
| 1978 | Love of the White Snake | 真白蛇傳 | Madam White Snake | |
| 1978 | Morning Fog | 晨雾 | Du Xiaowu | |
| 1978 | Moon on the Beach | 沙灘上的月亮 | Luo Xiaolu | |
| 1978 | A Journey of Love | 無情荒地有情天 | Yin Meizhen | |
| 1978 | Birds Are Singing Everywhere | 處處聞啼鳥 | Shen Yalun | |
| 1978 | The Story of Green House | 綠色山莊 | Fang Yizhu | |
| 1979 | The Wild Goose on the Wing | 雁兒在林梢 | Tao Lifan | |
| 1979 | Love Under a Rosy Sky | 彩霞满天 | Yin Tsai-Chin | |
| 1979 | A Love Seed | 一顆紅豆 | Xia Chulei | |
| 1979 | Cheng Gong Ling Shang | 成功嶺上 | | |
| 1979 | The Choice of Love | 一片深情 | Wen Jiayi | |
| 1979 | By Love Obsessed | 情奔 | Ruo Ping | |
| 1979 | An Unforgettable Day | 難忘的一天 | Tian Yuqiu | |
| 1980 | Magnificent 72 | 碧血黃花 | | |
| 1980 | Marigold | 金盞花 | Han Peiyin | |
| 1980 | Poor Chasers | 戀愛反斗星 | Shen Rong | |
| 1981 | Love Massacre | 愛殺 | Ivy | |
| 1981 | The Women Soldiers | 中國女兵 | Wen Jingyi | |
| 1982 | Golden Queen's Commando | 紅粉兵團 | Fang Huijun | |
| 1982 | Burn Phoenix Burn | 燃燒吧！火鳥 | Wei Yanran | |
| 1982 | Pink Force Commando | 紅粉遊俠 | Hu Fangling | |
| 1982 | Lily Under the Muzzle | 槍口下的小百合 | Xiao Han | |
| 1982 | The Deadly Angels | 脂粉奇兵 | | |
| 1982 | Hero vs Hero | 慧眼識英雄 | Shen Liangbai | |
| 1983 | Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain | 新蜀山劍俠傳 | Ice Queen | |
| 1983 | Fantasy Mission Force | 迷你特攻隊 | Lei Li | |
| 1983 | All the Wrong Spies | 我愛夜來香 | Ying Hong | |
| 1983 | Demon Fighter | 午夜蘭花 | Susu | |
| 1983 | Four Shy Guy | 四傻害羞 | Mo Hailun | |
| 1983 | Black and White Pearl | 黑白珠 | Guan Xuezhu | |
| 1983 | 1983 Da Jing Qi | 1938大驚奇 | | |
| 1984 | The Other Side of Gentleman | 君子好逑 | Jojo | |
| 1984 | Victims of the Assassin | 情人看刀 | Ling'er | |
| 1984 | Seven Foxes | 七隻狐貍 | Miss Lin | |
| 1985 | Police Story | 警察故事 | Selina Fong | |
| 1986 | Peking Opera Blues | 刀馬旦 | Tsao Wan | |
| 1986 | Dream Lovers | 夢中人 | Cheng Yuet-heung | |
| 1986 | True Colours | 英雄正傳 | May | |
| 1987 | Lady in Black | 奪命佳人 | Chan Mei-fung | |
| 1987 | The Thirty Million Dollar Rush | 橫財三千萬 | Sister Maria | |
| 1987 | Flag of Honor | 旗正飄飄 | Qin Feng | |
| 1988 | Starry is the Night | 今夜星光燦爛 | To Cai-mei | |
| 1989 | Web of Deception | 驚魂記 | Jane Lin | |
| 1990 | Red Dust | 滾滾紅塵 | Shen Shaohua | |
| 1992 | Swordsman II | 笑傲江湖之東方不敗 | Dongfang Bubai | |
| 1992 | Handsome Siblings | 絕代雙驕 | Hua Wuque | |
| 1992 | New Dragon Gate Inn | 新龍門客棧 | Yau Mo-yan | |
| 1992 | Royal Tramp | 鹿鼎記 | So Chuen | Cameo |
| 1992 | Royal Tramp II | 鹿鼎記II神龍教 | Long'er | |
| 1992 | Secret Love for the Peach Blossom Spring | 暗戀桃花源 | Yun Zhifan | |
| 1993 | Swordsman III | 東方不敗之風雲再起 | Dongfang Bubai | |
| 1993 | Boys Are Easy | 追男仔 | Ching Siu-tung | |
| 1993 | The Bride with White Hair | 白髮魔女傳 | Lian Nishang | |
| 1993 | The Bride with White Hair 2 | 白髮魔女傳2 | Lian Nishang | |
| 1993 | The Black Panther Warriors | 黑豹天下 | Ching-ching | |
| 1993 | The Eagle Shooting Heroes | 射鵰英雄傳之東成西就 | Third Princess | |
| 1994 | Ashes of Time | 東邪西毒 | Murong Yang / Murong Yin / Dugu Qiubai | |
| 1994 | Chungking Express | 重慶森林 | Woman in blonde wig | |
| 1994 | Fire Dragon | 火雲傳奇 | Fire Dragon / Ying Ha | |
| 1994 | Semi-Gods and Semi-Devils | 新天龍八部之天山童姥 | Lei Chau-shui / Lei Chong-hoi | |
| 1994 | The Three Swordsmen | 刀劍笑 | Ming-kim | |
| 1994 | Deadful Melody | 六指琴魔 | Huang Xuemei | |
| 1998 | Bishonen | 美少年之戀 | Narrator | |
| 2001 | Peony Pavilion | 遊園驚夢 | Narrator | |
| 2015 | Up Idol | 偶像来了 | Herself | Reality show |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 1975 | Asia-Pacific Film Festival | Best Actress | Eight Hundred Heroes | Won |
| 1980 | Golden Horse Awards | Best Actress | Magnificent 72 | Nominated |
| 1982 | Golden Horse Awards | Best Actress | Hero vs Hero | Nominated |
| 1984 | Hong Kong Film Award | Best Actress | Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain | Nominated |
| 1986 | Hong Kong Film Award | Best Actress | Police Story | Nominated |
| 1990 | Golden Horse Awards | Best Actress | Red Dust | Won |
| 1993 | Hong Kong Film Award | Best Actress | Swordsman II | Nominated |
| 1993 | Hong Kong Film Award | Best Actress | Handsome Siblings | Nominated |
| 1993 | Golden Phoenix Awards | Outstanding Achievement Award | | Won |
| 2010 | Iron Elephant Film Award | Best Supporting Actress | Ashes of Time | Nominated |
| 2018 | Far East Film Festival | Golden Mulberry Lifetime Achievement Award | — | Won |
| 2023 | Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards | Golden Horse Lifetime Achievement Award | — | Won |

## Related publications

* The Last Star of the East: Brigitte Lin Ching Hsia and Her Films (2005)
* 窗裏窗外 Inside and Outside the Window (2011)
* 雲去雲來 Cloud Goes, Cloud Comes (2014)