Nigel Ng

Nigel Ng(/ʌŋ/UNG; born 15 March 1991)is a Malaysian comedian andYouTuber. He is best known for co-creating (alongsideEvelyn Mok) and portrayingUncle Roger, a character representing a middle-aged Asian uncle with an exaggeratedCantoneseaccent who is often seen critiquing people's attempts in cooking Asian food.
Nigel Ng was born inKuala Lumpuron 15 March 1991, the son ofChinese-Malaysianparents who also haveHokkienancestry.His mother is a homemaker, while his father is a car salesman.Ng, his sister and his brothergrew up inCherasdistrict with their parents.After graduating fromChong Hwa Independent High Schoolin 2009, he moved to the U.S. to study atNorthwestern University. He majored in engineering and minored in philosophy, graduating in 2014.
Ng previously worked as a data scientist atMonzoand maintained aGitHubaccount.Inspired to pursue a comedy career in part by the work of Hong Kong comedy actorStephen Chow,he made his TV debut in 2018 onComedy Central'sStand Up Central.He hosted the comedy podcastsRice to Meet Youwith UK-based Swedish comedianEvelyn Mok.andHAIYAA with Nigel Ngwith his producer Matt.On 2 January 2021, he uploaded his first video on the Chinese video sharing websiteBilibili.In 2021, he appeared on the first episode of the 19th series of British comedy showMock the Week.
Ng is best known for his comedicalter egoUncle Roger, representing a middle-aged Asian uncle who speaks with a pronounced and exaggeratedCantoneseaccent and prides himself on various East and Southeast Asian stereotypes.His podcast partnerEvelyn Mokcame up with the middle-aged Asian uncle character for a sitcom with Ng in mind, and Ng further developed the character onTikTokandInstagramsketches before moving the character ontoYouTube.
In July 2020, Ng attracted attention for an Uncle Roger video critiquing Hersha Patel'sBBC Foodvideo on cookingegg-fried rice.After the video went viral, Ng and Patel appeared on BBC Food togetherand collaborated on a YouTube video.In August, he spent a day working inElizabeth Haigh's restaurant, Mei Mei. The following month, he posted a critique video with regards toGordon Ramsay's fried rice and praised Ramsay for having the correct technique.He has released numerous videos critiquingJamie Oliver's versions of popular Asian dishes such asegg fried rice,Thaigreen curry,andramen.
Ng was a special guest onsecond seasonofMasterChef Singaporein 2021,and a guest judge on the third season ofJunior MasterChef Indonesiain 2022.That same year, he was a guest diner on the21st seasonofHell's Kitchen.He has also collaborated with numerous entertainers and food personalities includingEsther Choi,Joshua Weissman,Chef Rush,Andy Hearnden,Nick DiGiovanni,Steven He,Simu Liu,Jimmy O. Yang,Benny Blanco,Martin Yan,andGordon Ramsay.
On 22 May 2023, it was reported that Ng's Chinese social media accounts (BilibiliandWeibo)had been closed down in response to perceived criticism of China's government in his stand-up comedy special for the phrase "this Nephew usingHuaweiphone, they all listening",implying that theChinese governmenteavesdrops on civilian phone calls.
On 11 September 2024, Ng launched his first restaurant “Fuiyoh! It’s Uncle Roger” atPavilion Kuala Lumpur.On 14 September 2024, as a promotion event for his new restaurant, Ng convened his followers to dress as Uncle Roger outside there. This event broke theGuinness World Recordfor "Largest gathering of people dressed as Uncle Roger" with 388 participants. On the same day, he broke another Guinness World Record for "Most fried rice tossed and caught with a ladle in 30 seconds".The second restaurant, located inIPC Shopping Centre, will be opened to public in November 2024.He mentioned that he had plans to expand in Asia and then further into Western countries such as Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Ng won the Amused Moose Laugh-Off 2016 and was runner-up in theLaughing Horse New Act of the Year2015. He was also a finalist in theLeicester MercuryComedian of the Year(2016) and Leicester Square New Comedian of the Year (2015).He was nominated for the "Best Newcomer Award" for his stand-up comedy show at theEdinburgh Fringe Festivalin 2019.
The accent Ng uses for the Uncle Roger character has received criticism for perpetuating negative stereotypes about Asians.ChefJ. Kenji López-Alt(who is of Japanese descent) said, "I don't like that [Ng's]schtickseems to give a free pass to people to imitate stereotypical Asian speech patterns and pronunciation, especially as it's almost always non-Asians doing the imitating. It's ugly, it'syellowface, it's not funny, and it promotes anti-Asian racism at a time when Asians are already being heavily discriminated against."In response, Ng has said that it highlights the difference in the perception ofAsian stereotypesbetween Asians living in Asia andAsian-Americans.His critique video of Patel's egg-fried rice has been described as making the viewers "fall for every cultural 'trap' his character sets", overlooking the differences of rice cooking methods inIndian cuisine, and turning East and Southeast Asians into "rice-cooking supremacists" with his "faux encouragement".
On 12 January 2021, Ng apologized on the Chinese social media platformWeiboand deleted a video featuring fellow YouTuberMike Chen,who had been critical of theChinese Communist Partyand had also been associated with theultra-conservativemovementFalun Gong.He stated, "This video has made a bad social impact... I wasn't aware of his political thoughts and his past incorrect remarks about China. I hope you can give Uncle Roger, who has just entered China, a chance to improve!"His response attracted criticism onTwitter.In his first subsequent video as Uncle Roger, he said he would "keep making funny videos [...] no politics, no drama".
On 30 July 2023, Ng stated in an Uncle Roger video, "Not all Southeast Asia has good food. You don't want food fromLaosandCambodia." He also jokingly calledLaotian foodan inferior version ofThai food, causing criticism and backlash from both Laotian and Cambodian communities. In a response video to Laotian chef Ae Southammavong challenging him to try Laotian food she had cooked, Ng accepted the challenge and explained his comments by saying, "All the Laos food I had so far... not my favourite. Asian people criticizing other Asian people is just a way of life."Cambodia's Ministry of Tourismissued a statement condemning Ng's remarks as damaging to the image ofits cuisineand demanding an apology.The Embassy of Malaysia inPhnom Penhdistanced Malaysia from Ng's remarks, saying that "[t]hey do not in any way reflect our view".
Ng has stated that he does not want any of his viewers to spread hate towards anyone.
Ng lived in theHammersmithdistrict of London.In 2020, he discussed being the victim of ananti-Asianassault while living there.
Ng is divorced. The identity of his ex-wife is not publicly confirmed, though he remarked in his podcast that he was married to a white woman.
In 2023 he moved to Los Angeles, California.At the end of 2024 announced he was engaged to Sabrina and proposed to her in Japan during the sakura festival, restating he was living in Los Angeles.