TalkingCock.com is a Singaporean satirical and humour website. The website features various articles and jokes spoofing Singapore current affairs, which occasionally pokes fun of world happenings. "Talking cock", which describes the act of engaging in idle banter or perhaps more literally "talking nonsense", is a common phrase in Singlish.
Started in August 2000 by Colin Goh, a film director, cartoonist and former lawyer, the website provides commentary and pokes fun at local news and issues, in particular political, with much of its content written by anonymous contributors. [1] It has established notability over the years, with mention given by the Singapore parliament, the foreign media, [2] and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in his 2006 National Day Rally speech. [3] In a country of 4.4 million people (as of 2006), the popular website receives 4 million hits per month. [4]
It is also home of the Coxford Singlish Dictionary, which is the de facto Singlish dictionary frequently quoted off by the local press. It has led a campaign against the government's attempts of discouraging the use of Singlish. Its comic, Alien Talent, is published on tabloid The New Paper daily.
The website inspired a movie, Talking Cock the Movie , also directed by Goh.
TalkingCock.com is currently on an indefinite hiatus, since January 2010. [5]
Singapore English is the set of varieties of the English language native to Singapore. In Singapore, English is spoken in two main forms: Singaporean Standard English, which is indistinguishable grammatically from British English, and Singaporean Colloquial English, which is better known as Singlish.
Goh Chok Tong is a Singaporean former politician who served as the second prime minister of Singapore from 1990 to 2004 and as a senior minister of Singapore from 2004 to 2011. He served as the secretary-general of the People's Action Party (PAP) from 1992 to 2004 and was the member of Parliament (MP) for Marine Parade SMC from 1976 to 1988, and Marine Parade GRC from 1988 to 2020.
The Speak Good English Movement (SGEM) is a Singapore Government campaign to "encourage Singaporeans to speak grammatically correct English that is universally understood". It was launched by then-Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong on 29 April 2000. The purpose was to ensure that Singaporeans recognise the importance of speaking Standard English and to encourage its usage. It is seen as a measure to counter the usage of Singapore Colloquial English, known as Singlish.
The National Solidarity Party is an opposition political party in Singapore.
Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd was a Singaporean sitcom. The sitcom centres on an eccentric general contractor with his trademark yellow boots, curly afro hair and large facial mole. While it carries the traditions of a sitcom, many unusual elements were used such as flashbacks, quick gags and celebrity cameo appearances. It is also the second locally produced English sitcom after Under One Roof. It paved the way for the third and final future Singaporean local sitcom named Police & Thief. It was also one of the most popular locally produced television series in Singapore alongside Under One Roof and Growing Up.
I Not Stupid is a 2002 Singaporean comedy film about the lives, struggles and adventures of three Primary 6 pupils who are placed in the academically inferior EM3 stream. Written and directed by Jack Neo, and produced by Mediacorp Raintree Pictures, the film stars Huang Po Ju, Shawn Lee, Joshua Ang, Cheryl Desiree Chan, Xiang Yun, Jack Neo, Richard Low and Selena Tan.
Chee Soon Juan is a Singaporean politician, activist, and former lecturer who has been appointed as Secretary-General of the Singapore Democratic Party since 1993.
Talking Cock the Movie is a Singapore film released in May 2002. It is the brainchild of Colin Goh, founder of Singaporean website, TalkingCock.com, which satirises local current affairs and politics, highlighting the importance of supporting free speech in Singapore.
The National Kidney Foundation Singapore scandal, also known as the NKF saga, NKF scandal, or NKF controversy, was a July 2005 scandal involving National Kidney Foundation Singapore (NKF) following the collapse of a defamation trial which it brought against Susan Long and Singapore Press Holdings (SPH). This sparked significant controversy, causing a massive backlash and fallout of donors to the charity; it then subsequently resulted in the resignation of chief executive officer T.T Durai and its board of directors.
The languages of Singapore are English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil, with the lingua franca between Singaporeans being English, the de facto main language. Singaporeans often speak Singlish among themselves, an English creole arising from centuries of contact between Singapore's internationalised society and its legacy of being a British colony. Linguists formally define it as Singapore Colloquial English. A multitude of other languages are also used in Singapore. They consist of several varieties of languages under the families of the Austronesian, Dravidian, Indo-European and Sino-Tibetan languages. The Constitution of Singapore states that the national language of Singapore is Malay. This plays a symbolic role, as Malays are constitutionally recognised as the indigenous peoples of Singapore, and it is the government's duty to protect their language and heritage.
General elections were held in Singapore on 6 May 2006. President S.R. Nathan dissolved parliament on 20 April 2006 on the advice of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong three weeks before the election. The People's Action Party (PAP) won 66.6% of the overall votes and gained 82 out of 84 seats. The PAP held the office of Prime Minister for a twelfth consecutive term. The general election was held under the first-past-the-post system. On Nomination Day, the PAP gained 37 seats in divisions which were uncontested by other parties. The main election issues included employment, cost of living, housing, transport, education, the need for an effective opposition voice in parliament, and the quality of the candidates.
Colin Goh is a Singaporean film maker, satirist and cartoonist. He was a former practicing attorney who has turned to full-time writing and illustration.
Singlish is the English-based creole or patois spoken colloquially in Singapore. English is one of Singapore's official languages, along with Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil. Although English is the lexifier language, Singlish has its unique slang and syntax, which are more pronounced in informal speech. It is usually a mixture of English, Hokkien, Cantonese, Malay, and Tamil, and sometimes other Chinese languages like Teochew, Hainanese, Hakka, Hockchew, and Mandarin. For example, pek chek means to be annoyed or frustrated, and originates from Singaporean Hokkien 迫促. It is used in casual contexts between Singaporeans, but is avoided in formal events when certain Singlish phrases may be considered unedifying. Singapore English can be broken into two subcategories: Standard Singapore English (SSE) and Colloquial Singapore English (CSE) or Singlish as many locals call it. The relationship between SSE and Singlish is viewed as a diglossia, in which SSE is restricted to be used in situations of formality where Singlish/CSE is used in most other circumstances.
Singapore Dreaming is a 2006 Singaporean drama film. It follows the Loh family, a typical Singaporean working-class family, through their aspirations and dreams for a better and affluent life and the reality that would make it difficult for them to fulfill these aspirations.
Money No Enough is a 1998 Singaporean comedy film written by Jack Neo, directed by Tay Teck Lock, and produced by JSP films. The movie stars Neo, Mark Lee and Henry Thia as three close and best friends who start a car polishing business together to resolve their financial problems. Released in cinemas on 7 May 1998, the film received mixed reviews from critics but earned over S$5.8 million and was the all-time highest-grossing Singaporean film until 2012. Its success helped revive the Singaporean film industry and pave the way for the emergence of other Singaporean cultural phenomena.
"Little red dot", also known as "The Red Dot", is a nickname often used in the media and in casual conversation to refer to Singapore. It refers to how the nation is depicted on many maps of Asia and the world as a red dot. The sovereign country and city-state, comprising the main island and all its islets, has a total land area of approximately 750 square kilometres and is much smaller than its Southeast Asian neighbours.
The National Day Rally is an annual message delivered by the Prime Minister of Singapore to the entire nation, on the first or second Sunday after National Day on 9 August. Started in 1966, the national day rally is Singapore's equivalent of the President of the United States’ State of the Union address. The prime minister uses the rally to review the country’s status, its key challenges, as well as to set the country's direction, major policy changes, the economy, future plans and achievements. Currently, the prime minister does the rally speech in all of its official languages, English, Mandarin and Malay, except for Tamil, where only dubbing is available from its English broadcast.
Singlish, formally known as Colloquial Singaporean English, is an English-based creole language originating in Singapore. Singlish arose out of a situation of prolonged language contact between speakers of many different Asian languages in Singapore, such as Malay, Cantonese, Hokkien, Mandarin, Teochew, and Tamil. The term Singlish was first recorded in the early 1970s.
Eng Wah Global, formerly Eng Wah Organisation and Eng Wah Theatres Organisation, is a Singaporean company spans entertainment, properties, hospitality, and lifestyle in Singapore and Malaysia.
In Singapore, language planning is associated with government planning. In this top-down approach, the government influences the acquisition of languages and their respective functions within the speech community through the education system. Language planning aims to facilitate effective communication within the speech community, which can result in a language shift or language assimilation. The goals of language planning are very much dependent on the political and social forces present in Singapore during two distinct periods: Colonisation by the British and the Post-Independence period after 1965.
