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Matthew Cheng

Condolences have flooded social media in response to the death of Hong Kong’s Peter Lai Bei-dak, with long-time collaborator and entertainer Sam Hui Koon-kit paying tribute to the legendary lyricist with a handwritten letter.
Comments flooded social media as people expressed gratitude for Lai’s contributions, calling him a “grandmaster” and a “legendary genius”.
Veteran musician and actor Hui shared the note on social media on Thursday to express his sorrow.
“Thank you for creating countless outstanding works for the Hong Kong music industry. Your lyrics were popular without being vulgar,” he wrote. “I am grateful to have had you on my musical journey.”
Sports commentator Eric Chung Chi-kwong, a close friend of Lai, announced his death at the age of 76 on Wednesday.
He told the media that Lai had moved into a nursing home earlier this year after suffering a stroke and collapsing at home. He remained bedridden until his death.
Fans took to social media in droves to express their gratitude for Lai’s contributions, calling him a “grandmaster” and a “legendary genius”.
“Thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks, Peter Lai, who can replace your place?” one user wrote, paying tribute to an iconic line written by Lai in the classic song “Monica” by the late singer Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing.


“Thank you for the outstanding performances and works you have brought us over so many years,” another commented. “Your talent was exceptional and deeply touched our hearts. You will always be remembered, and we are grateful to have had you.”
“His lyrics made the songs of Sam Hui and Leslie Cheung well-known to everyone and deeply embedded [them] in people’s hearts,” a fan wrote.
Lai was best known for crafting the lyrics for timeless tracks, including Cheung’s “Monica”, Sam Hui’s “Drifter’s Song”, and Anita Mui Yim-fong’s “Break the Iceberg”.
With a distinctive style and more than 200 works to his name, Lai came to be known as “The Lyrical Maverick”.
Born in Hong Kong in 1950, Lai lost his father at the age of nine. Poverty forced him to drop out of school soon afterwards, and he began working as a newspaper boy to support himself at 12.
His love of literature and wordplay was shaped by Cantonese opera and wuxia fiction. Opera scripts written by masters such as Tong Tik-sang and Ng Yat-siu gave him an early understanding of literary artistry, while the vivid language of martial arts novels expanded his vocabulary and modes of expression.

After music producer and singer Sam Hui came across columns Lai had written for Hong Kong Teen Weekly, he was impressed by Lai’s writing talent. The pair went on to collaborate on 12 songs for the comedy film The Private Eyes and worked together for seven years.
Lai later described Hui as both a friend and a teacher, referring to their relationship as that of a “beggar and a prince”.
In the 1980s, Lai began writing lyrics for superstars including Anita Mui and Leslie Cheung. He also became familiar to mainland audiences through his role as a comedic private tutor in Stephen Chow Sing-chi’s 1993 movie Flirting Scholar.
He also appeared in minor roles in situation comedies for broadcaster TVB.

In his later years, Lai struggled with various health issues. In 2022, he underwent a percutaneous coronary intervention to open blocked arteries. He was hospitalised again last year for lung problems caused by influenza.
Facing financial pressure from helping his son repay debts and paying his own medical bills, he relied on his friends and Hong Kong billionaire Joseph Lau Luen-hung.
Lai’s passing follows a string of recent celebrity deaths in Hong Kong. Film star Patrick Tse Yin, dubbed “Brother Four”, died at 89 after a brief illness in July, while film producer Shi Nan-sun died at 75 from multiple organ failure earlier the same month.


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Friends and fans pay tribute to late ‘Lyrical Maverick’ Peter Lai

Peter Lai, legendary Hong Kong lyricist, who wrote songs Sam Hui, Anita Mui, Leslie Cheung and other Cantopop stars of the 1980s and 90s. Photo: Instagram

Peter Lai hosts a YouTube talk show organised by entertainment company WSM Entertainment. Photo: Handout

Peter Lai was admitted to hospital for flu-related lung problems in 2025. Photo: Handout

Peter Lai, who wrote a series of hits for Cantopop stars in the 1980s and 90s, has died of illness. Photo: WSM Music HK

Peter Lai (left), playing the role of Uncle Bao, a member of a hip hop group, in the long-running TVB sitcom, Come Home Love: Lo and Behold. Photo: Handout

‘Unmistakable spirit’: veteran Hong Kong actor Patrick Tse dies at 89

Veteran actor Patrick Tse’s career spanned seven decades. Photo: Weibo

Patrick Tse wins the best actor prize for his role in Time at the Hong Kong Film Awards in 2022. Photo: AP

Patrick Tse and co-star Petrina Fung Bo-bo in a still from Time. Photo: Sun Entertainment Culture Limited

Tse on the set of TV series Central Affairs 2. Photo: SCMP

Patrick Tse with his wife Deborah Lee back in the 1980s. Photo: SCMP

Patrick Tse (right), with son Nicholas Tse, daughter Jennifer Tse and Deborah Lee in an undated family photo. Photo: Handout

Patrick Tse with Patsy Kar Ling in the 1961 film How to Get a Wife. Photo: Courtesy of LCSD

Movie stars, minister pay tribute to ‘legendary’ Hong Kong producer Shi Nan-sun

Shi Nan-sun with her award for best independent producer at the 67th Locarno International Film Festival in 2014. Photo: EPA

Movie star Jackie Chan (front left) and Nansun Shi (front right) visit lawmakers as part of a group of film industry representatives. Photo: SCMP

Actress Brigitte Lin (left) presents a lifetime achievement award to her best friend of many years, Shi, and the film producer’s former husband, Tsui Hark, at the 43rd Hong Kong Film Awards Ceremony. Photo: Eugene Lee

Her honours include being made an officer of France’s Ordre des Arts et des Lettres and receiving the best independent producer award at the Locarno International Film Festival. Photo: SCMP

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Long-time collaborator and entertainer Sam Hui expresses sorrow over Lai’s death in handwritten letter posted to social media


Long-time collaborator and entertainer Sam Hui expresses sorrow over Lai’s death in handwritten letter posted to social media.


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Hong Kong's music scene

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Friends and fans pay tribute to late ‘Lyrical Maverick’ Peter Lai

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Long-time collaborator and entertainer Sam Hui expresses sorrow over Lai’s death in handwritten letter posted to social media

Long-time collaborator and entertainer Sam Hui expresses sorrow over Lai’s death in handwritten letter posted to social media