Help identifying old house in 1978 TV series

Submitted by Compradore on Fri, 01/21/2011 - 04:01

I have always wondered about an old house used in a 1978 TVB series.  The 100+ episode series was called 強人 and it starred Chow Yun Fat and Paul Chu Kong as his brother.  One of my favorite actors, the legendary Shek Kin, was at his villanous best as their rich tycoon uncle. 

The theme song for the series was sung by Roman Tam.  I recall seeing a music video for the song and I think it might have been filmed on the grounds of the same house.

The house was surrounded by mature trees and it had a long driveway.  I believe it was mostly a brick exterior, but there was a decorative rock wall along the connected garage.  A long staircase went from the garage to the main entrance.

Does anyone have any idea about this property or how I should go about finding any more information about it?  I know this is a long shot at best, but I have been curious about this house for quite some time.

There are probably clips of the show and / or the theme tune on Youtube. That would let us see the house you're talking about, which would help.

Regards, David

Unfortunately, there are not.  No clips of the series intro or the music video showing the grounds of the house are on youtube.  There used to be a video of the intro, but no more.

This is basically an impossible task to find the location.  I would imagine the house was somewhere in Kowloon or the New Territories.  The series filmed a few scenes outside of Tudor Court, the former military quarters on Broadcast Drive, Kowloon.

Phil's suggestion is a good one.

Are there any fan websites (eg for TVB or Chow Yun Fat) you could write to? Seems like there's a good chance there are some experts out there on the internet that will know everything about the series / the actors.

How about writing to TVB?

Regards, David

I have tried writing to various fansites and TVB.  I got either no reply or those that responded don't have a clue where the house was.  The closest answer I got was from an old TV expert who told me she vaguely recalls the house in Giants and that she has not seen it in any other TVB series from that era. 

Hi there,

Is it the white house shown just for a second or two in the opening credits a bit after the San Francisco clips?

I managed to find the opening sequence here.

I have no idea where was it though.  The clip there was a bit shaky.  There was also a http://www.wongwanchoi.net imposed onto the clip there and yes, Mr Wong was one of the actors in the Giants.  Why don't you write to him through the feedback of his website?

Best Regards,

T

The white house shown in the opening to Giants looks a lot like 12 Repulse Bay Road.

I received a few replies to my emails about the other house in Giants.  One old TV expert vaguely recalls TVB borrowing a house from a wealthy family to film some scenes, but she will have to look further for confirmation.

From a different email, a respondent suggested that a house was owned by a famous textile family - the show was about competing textile companies - and he subconsciously wants to say the house was in Shouson Hill.

I think I remember seeing a picture of an older style house at the Shouson Hill Road East and Deep Water Bay junction (or thereabouts) that had an exterior rock wall and large garden.   Any ideas or guesses?

Anonymous, I hope you see this post.  Are you referring to the houses at the end of Sassoon Road?

The Fok family's house is Stone Manor.  I don't think this house has changed much over the years, so I am quite sure the house in Giants was not Stone Manor.

There are two old, pre-1945 houses at very end of the Road - they are Villa Ellenbud at 50-52 Sassoon Road and Point Breeze at 54 Sassoon Road.  I think the gate entrance and driveway of Villa Ellenbud has been used in other TV series.  I have only seen a picture of the servant quarters section of Villa Ellenbud (No. 50A and 52) and not the house itself (No. 50)

philk, Estrellita was shown in the opening credits of Giants.  I mentioned it earlier in the thread as 12 Repulse Bay Road.  

Unfortunately, Estrellita is not the main house in the TV series - that house was much smaller and a completely different design. 

Phil's suggestion is a good one.
Are there any fan websites (eg for TVB or Chow Yun Fat) you could write to? Seems like there's a good chance there are some experts out there on the internet that will know everything about the series / the actors.
How about writing to TVB?

Regards, David
Frank Verdin

88hk, the driveway was long by any standard.  The driveway was uphill and winding, but with no hairpin turns.

I don't think the house was in either Shouson Hill or Pokfulam because both areas would have had visible neighboring houses.  I think Sai Kung is a big possibility because of how expansive the properties were, as some lots were more than an acre.  Sai Kung was also close to the old TVB studio. 

The entire series looks to be available online through Gotv and I will have a look.  The music video of the theme song shows the property even more clearly, but I have spoken to a few Roman Tam fans that did not even know such video existed.

88hk, the place you added about 1-2 Chuk Yeung Rd is very interesting.  The shape of the house, the gardens and the view all match.  I think I saw snap of this view on the show 

Then add the fact that the then owner, James (Jimmy) Shaw, was Sir Run Run's nephew, this house is definitely a possibility.  The driveway isn't long enough and the current exterior design is also much different than 1978. 

I haven't seen The Giants in a long time and need to take a much closer look at important details, but the series was a mammoth 110-episodes. 

At this point I am willing to reconsider the driveway because I don't believe I saw a car pass the a gate in any of the episodes.  There was definitely a gate and long wooded driveway in the music video for the theme song, but I cannot be 100% sure it was filmed at the same house.

The opening sequence for the series only shows the terrace of the property.  A disabled man is pushed out to the terrace on a wheelchair.

Thanks for your help, 88hk.  However, I would be shocked if anyone can recognize that hill.

I think that terrace was elevated and not connected the actual house, though I guess it could have been a big wrap-around balcony.  If the house actually was in Sai Kung, it might still be standing.  A property of that size on the Peak, Repulse Bay and Deep Water Bay would be long gone.

Couldn't access the series online through Gotv and only the first episode is free (I think).  There are so many episodes to go through anyway. 

I think there was an episode (near the series end) that might have showed tracking shots of the house and grounds when the owners were evicted - they had lost it to their bitter business rival after falling victim to a plot hatched by the diabolical 石堅