Under One Roof (Singapore TV series)

Last updated
Under One Roof
Under One Roof Singapore.jpg
Singapore's Funniest Family
Created byAndrea Teo
Wee Thye Seah
Simmon Tan
Seah Chang Un
Angelena Loh
Written byHEAD: Seah Chang Un
Simmon Tan
Angelena Loh
Esan Sivalingam
Tan Wei Lyn
Joanne Teo
Lynette Chiu
Lilian Wang
Directed byAndrea Teo
Wee Thye Seah
Colin Caines
Gim Hwee Chong
Khairul Anwar
Jennifer Tan
Starring Moses Lim
Koh Chieng Mun
Vernetta Lopez
Nicholas Lee
Andrew Lim
Norleena Salim
Zaibo
Daisy Irani
Rajiv Dhawn
Country of origin Singapore
No. of episodes137, including the episodes aired during Channel 5's 40th anniversary in 2003
Production
Executive producersAndrea Teo
Wee Thye Seah
Running time30 minutes (including commercials)
Original release
Network MediaCorp Channel 5
Release21 February 1995 (1995-02-21) 
15 July 2003 (2003-07-15)

Under One Roof was an English-language sitcom in Singapore. First aired in 1995, it was the first locally produced sitcom in Singapore. A critical and popular success, the show won the Best Comedy Programme or Series Award at the Asian Television Awards in both 1996 and 1997, a Best comedy actor award (Moses Lim in 1996), three best comedy actress awards (Koh Chieng Mun in 1996, Norleena Salim in 1997, and Vernetta Lopez in 1999) and was a finalist in the "Best Sitcom" category at the International Emmy Awards as well as the New York Festivals Awards. It paved the way for future Singaporean local sitcoms such as Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd and Police & Thief . It was also one of the most popular sitcoms in Singapore just like the other 2 popular Singaporean local sitcom and drama Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd and Growing Up respectively.

Contents

It starred a multicultural cast reflecting the ethnic makeup of Singapore: Moses Lim (Tan Ah Teck), Koh Chieng Mun (Dolly), Vernetta Lopez (Denise), Nicholas Lee (Ronnie), Andrew Lim (Paul), Norleena Salim (Rosnah), Zaibo (Yusof), Daisy Irani (Daisy), and Rajiv Dhawn (Michael).


Series overview

The series revolves a multiracial cast of characters. The plot tells the story of a Chinese family living in Bishan North, Singapore, headed by Tan Ah Teck―the owner of a mini-mart and his family: homemaker Dolly Tan and children Denise, Ronnie and Paul Tan ― along with their neighbours, namely married Malay couple Rosnah and Yusof Hassan, and Daisy, a lady of Indian descent, and her younger brother Michael, all living together in an apartment building. [1]

Cast

Release

Under One Roof has been exported to Australia, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, France, and Canada. It was the first Singaporean series to be aired in Canada, and Australia on SBS.

Under One Roof was brought back shortly during Channel 5's 40th anniversary in 2003 for its 7th season, only to run for a short period. The sitcom then rebroadcast in May 2011 and aired on weekdays around 12pm before being dubbed into French.

In September 2011, 30 episodes season 1 was dubbed into French and aired in other countries worldwide. It became Singapore's first-ever English sitcom to be dubbed into a foreign language. Some episodes of Seasons 1 and 2 have been dubbed into French and aired in some other countries in 2011, becoming Singapore's first ever English-language sitcom to be dubbed into a foreign language. Season 3 was then dubbed into French in early 2012.

Singlish

Due to its use of Singlish, a pidgin English spoken in Singapore, the show came under pressure by the Singaporean government to use only "proper" English. This was mainly because of the worry that the younger school going viewers would start speaking Singlish more and bring down the standard of spoken English in Singapore. Another popular show that also received similar pressure was Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd where lead character Phua Chu Kang was criticised for speaking Singlish.

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References

  1. "The Growing Up Cast Reveals A Family Secret In Another Reunion Show You Should Check Out". 8 Days. Retrieved 2022-01-20.