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Odd but still loving couple
She's gregarious and He's Zen-like

By Wendy Teo

GEORGE Lam and Sally Yeh are in their seventh year of marriage.

But far from showing signs of the seven-year itch, this celeb couple appear to be as loving as ever.

The handsome pair - Sally radiant at 41 and George looking fitter than before - were openly affectionate, with Sally reaching out for George's hand the moment he joined her on the sofa at their suite in Sheraton Towers.

The couple were here to promote their upcoming Sally Yeh and George Lam World Tour concert here in late April.

Sally, obviously the gregarious one, answered most of the questions during the interview, while the mild-mannered George listened, and spoke only when prompted by his wife.

It's precisely their different temperaments which keep their marriage strong.

George's secret to maintaining peace, you see, is to keep quiet whenever Sally loses her temper, which is quite frequent, by her own admission.

Sally revealed: 'I can't really say what it is that I get angry about. When I feel angry, I'll just get angry.'

Not that it ruffles George's trademark moustache.

In his usual Zen-like manner, George added: 'And when she gets angry, I'll just dote on her more, until her anger passes.'

To which Sally quipped: 'There's no use in him getting angry anyway. I'll get angrier if he does that, and everything will just blow up!'

And after all these years together, the couple have found ways to accommodate and compromise on their separate interests.

For instance, they have learnt not to play golf together, and also to sleep in separate rooms when George has an early game.

Sally said: 'He's much better than me in golf, so he wouldn't want to play with me. Anyway, he has his many (male) friends, and many female friends (shoots a look at her husband) to play with him.'

And no, it's not a good idea for George to play teacher to Sally.

Her eyes blazing, Sally scoffed: 'If he tries to teach me, we'll be arguing and will most definitely be heading for a divorce!'

George's early-bird habits also mean that Sally has to contend with sleeping with the family dogs, literally.

She said: 'He's an early riser, I'm not. So when he has to get up early to play golf, we will sleep in separate bedrooms. And I will have my dogs for company instead.'

Both Sally and George have passed the planning-for-kid stage - 'George has two grown-up ones (from his previous marriage), we don't need anymore', said Sally, who has taken on the task of disciplining the teenagers, one 18 and the other 17.

Said Sally: 'They lead a different lifestyle with their mother, and when they come to our house, they have to do things differently.'

STICKLER FOR RULES

She frowns on their dining manners when they reach out for first dips at a dish ('The elders should go first!'), and disallows them to call her by name ('What do you mean Sally? It's Auntie Sally!).

So strict, you think, whereupon George speaks up on his own initiative to defend her: 'She's not fierce in the sense of the word. She's just a stickler for rules and propriety.'

And he added that his son and daughter have accepted Sally over the years, and have a good relationship with her.

Looking slightly awkward for the first time in the interview, Sally said: 'I remember once, before George and I were together, I was guest-starring at his concert. And his son Alex - he was very young then - suddenly came up to me and asked if he could sit on my lap.

'I was shocked, but I said okay. Years later, when we got married, I asked Alex if he still remembered sitting on my lap, but he simply hid behind the curtains and said no.'

But Sally knew Alex had been won over by her one day, when he asked if he could help her slot photos into the photo album.

Sally said with a smile: 'Then he asked me, 'Are we a family now? And I said, 'Of course'!'

Eventually, she became so close to her two stepchildren she had trouble weaning them off their habit of sitting on her lap.

Chuckling, she said: 'They kept asking if they could sit on my lap even though they were 13, 14! My lap has been flattened by them!'

Sars, war? Our show will go on

DESPITE the Sars scare, Sally and George do not intend to cancel their concert here.

Sally said: 'If the people here want to cancel, we will. If not, we will carry on. After all, our fans have bought their tickets already.

'Even if only 10 people turn up for the concert, we'll still perform. And we'll be grateful for them for being so loyal and brave in turning up.'

The couple, who are based in the US, appear unfazed by the epidemic.

On the topic of donning masks, Sally said: 'Everyone else is wearing them, so I don't have to! And anyway, I might die sooner from suffocation, than from the virus itself.'

And as they shuttle between Hong Kong and the US frequently, the couple are now sandwiched between the Sars scare and the Iraqi war.

Sounding exasperated, Sally said: 'When we were in Hong Kong, people said, 'Why are you here? There's an epidemic!'

'And when we go back to the US, our friends there ask, 'Why are you back? Don't you know there's a war going on?' So where are we supposed to go?'

SHOW INFO
WHAT: Sally Yeh and George Lam World Tour 2003

WHERE: Suntec Convention Hall 601-603

WHEN: Apr 26, 8pm

TICKETS: $68, $98, $128, and $148 (excluding the $1 Sistic charge) are available at all Sistic outlets. Call 6348-5555 or visit websites www.sistic.com.sg or www.unusual.com.sg