From the great outdoors of the Gold Coast to a feast for the senses. Barbarella and Ponsak head down to QT Gold Coast, a designer hotel that is a stylish santuary for those who love to drink and dine. There is the delightful cafe FITT , the unique marketplace style dining restaurant called Bazaar and the cool Stingray Lounge.
The exterior of QT Gold Coast
There is even a cute little bike outside QT and Pornsak can’t resist posing seductively…….
Rent me !
How many baht ?
FIXX cafe at QT Gold Coast
As colourful as my shirt !
Marketplace style dining at Bazaar
The most stylish display of fruits
The beautiful interior of Bazaar
Fresh seafood
Barbarella and Ponsak love seafood
Barbarella and Ponsak feast themselves on a buffet of immense pleasure. Dutch oven stewed beef, tangy pork ribs, salads, fresh seafood. Mmm…… There is even tom yum salmon soup for Ponsak !
And for drinks and lounging, there is Stingray. Not the type served with sambal. Yes ! Pornsak and Barbarella would like to think they ‘re hip too.
Barbarella and Ponsak posing together
QT Gold Coast HotelCnr Gold Coast Highway and Staghorn AvenueSurfers ParadiseWords and pictures by Serene Choo, Channel 5
Barbarella and Pornsak head down to Warner Bros Movie World , a world of fantasy and fun with world class adventure rides and movie attractions such as the adrenalin pumping Superman Escapes, Batwing Spaceshot, the Green Lantern Coaster and Batman Adventure – The Ride 2.
Look up ! That’s Batman !
News from Gotham Gazzette
Barbarella gets all excited. She is a fan of Batman and thinks he is one hunk of an ang mo. She looks for him anxiously while Pornsak goes looking for a pole. He needs to do his traditional “Thai”exercise to get his mojo running but for the past few days, he just hasn’t had the time to do so. This lamp post at Warner Brothers Movie World should do it.
Time to Sabai Sabai !
Meanwhile, Barbarella spots a tall, dark and handsome ang mo. Yes, it’s Batman !
Batman and Barbarella Forever !
Pointy pointy ears !
Who is that Joker ? Did he escape from Arkham Asylum ?
Smile !
What’s the matter Pornsak ? Scared ?
Arkham Asylum
And now, sit tight Pornsak, it’s going to be a bumpy ride !
Good time !
Warner Bros Movie WorldPacific Highway, Oxenford QLD 4210Words and pictures by Serene Choo, Channel 5
To enjoy a hot-air balloon ride and witness the beauty of sunrise, Barbarella and Pornsak had to rise and shine before the crack of dawn. But it is an experience worth waking up for.
Best thing about it – there is no fixed destination. Just let the wind decide. Barbarella and Ponsak enjoy the gentle ride above the spectacular Gold Coast Hinterland in Queensland, Australia. After their first day of sun and surf at Surfer’s Paradise, it is time to take it slow and easy and enjoy the breathtaking scenery.
Then it ‘s time for champagne breakfast at O’Reilly’s Grand Homestead and Vineyard. A hot breakfast of sausages, bacon, eggs, organic mushrooms with a glass of sparkling wine. Wine for breakfast ? Cheers !
Cheers to us Ba-Barella !
Then, Barbarella and Ponsak head down to O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat, a true nature paradise situated in the World Heritage Lamington National Park, home to over 300 bird varieties, 500 waterfalls with 150kilometres of walking tracks. Barbarella and Ponsak take a tree top walk which gives a close-up view of the rainforest canopy and its wildlife.
Hello Everybirdy ! I am going for a tree top walk. Where’s Pornsak ?
Get me out of here !
Ponsak climbs up a pole…we mean a very tall tree that gave him a wonderful view of the forest but on the way down, he gets a little terrified. But all is forgotten and he straps on for his next adventure – the flying fox ride. Though not quite sure what it is, Pornsak gets excited about dressing up !
I look good ! Yelt !
While he look the part with all the right gear and equipment, that didn’t stop him from screaming all the way down during the flying fox and Barbarella enjoyed every moment of it…..watching him !
After some refreshments, it’s time to head back to the Gold Coast to Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, home to many Australia’s unique wildlife such as koalas and kangaroos. Do you know that a koala sleeps for up to 20 hours a day (for stretches of time throughout the day), waking up only for 4 hours for feeding.
Barbarella with a Koala
While Barbarella takes a picture with the koala, Ponsak does some formal introduction. “Hi, my name is Ponsak and I come from Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan ……………….”
The koala didn’t really care. It was time for his nap anyway. Then Pornsak gets all excited about lorikeet feeding until the birds started getting friendly, a little too friendly by peeing all over him .
These lorikeets so cute. Yelt !
My shirt all wet now. Birds not so cute.
Hot Air – Gold Coastwww.hotair.com.auO’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat Lamington National Park RoadCanungra Beaudesert QLDCurrumbin Wildlife Sanctuary28 Tomewin St Currumbin QLD Words and Pictures by Serene Choo, Channel 5
Barbarella and Pornsak set off for another adventure in the Land Down Under. It was Scoot’s inaugural direct flight to Gold Coast and the 2 friends are thrilled to be amongst the first on what Pornsak calls the ‘ello ‘eroplane.
They play games on board and even go round in their best pyjamas – Barbarella with her lingerie of pink feathers and Pornsak in his “Good Time” happy coat.
Upon touch down, all passengers are given a special Queensland, Aussie welcome and with a wonderful breeze and golden sun rays shining, Barbarella and Pornsak are looking forward to a wonderful holiday !
A warm Gold Coast welcome !
Barbarella , the beach queen is anxious to hit Surfers Paradise in her “bigini” and hopefully meet some ang mo men while Pornsak is Sabai Sabai happy just practising his surf ride on land. The waves scare him . There is no pole to hold on to and this makes him insecure.
Look ! I’m surfing !
Meanwhile, Barbarella meets some cute Life Savers at Northcliff Surf Club and they gallantly carry her on their surf board. Hail to Singapore’s president of the SPGs (Sarong Party Girls)!
Hail to the Queen of Singapore’s SPGs !
Barbarella is Hot !
That’s not all. Barbarella meets a nice Australia saxaphonist who just happened to be on the beach that day when he saw a woman waving at him while posing seductively.
Hello ang mo !
Confident and happy, Barbarella goes shopping for biginis at Cavill Avenue to add to her growing SPG collection. She knows that she is sizzling hot and Surfer’s Paradise in Gold Coast Australia is the place to flaunt it !
Hello! I’m Tan Sin Nee and I was the lucky winner of the recent The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 SMS contest on Channel 5! I was flown to Los Angeles to attend the premiere of the latest Twilight movie and I’m here to share my experience with all of you!
First of all, a very big Thank You to Shaw Organisation and Channel 5 for giving me this chance to go to Los Angeles, for this very rare and once-in-a-lifetime experience to see my favourite stars from The Twilight Saga.
In short, my experience there was very awesome! It was my first time going overseas alone to a faraway place, going to an event like this, and having such a close up experience with my favourite stars!!! It is so freaking awesome!! Although the weather there was very cold, it didn’t dampen my spirits for the event. First of all, I got to make a lot of new friends from all over the world at the event. And I even had the chance to meet one of the casts, Casey Labow (who plays Kate Denali in the ‘Breaking Dawn’ movies). I got to take pictures of her and managed to get her autograph too!
She’s an absolute beauty! And we hung around at the reception area for awhile more, and we were being ushered to the long and beautiful black carpeted area for the red carpet experience. The fans camping out there around the red carpet were crazy! But if it was me in their shoes, I would be just as crazy or even crazier as them because I absolutely love Twilight! And of course Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner! Woohoo! 😀 J
And so, we took photos with the backdrops (the movie posters) and the awesome BREAKING DAWN carpet. The awesome fans. The huge crowd of the media there. And then we were being ushered again into a VIP area of our own to join in the red carpet frenzy! We waited there for 1 hour or so before the stars started arriving and the fandom started! Screaming everywhere, boards and posters and signs full of the stars’ names were held high up in the air. It was the greatest atmosphere ever!! Definitely way more awesome than from what I imagined watching it on the net or on TV.
Then we got the “news” of the casts reaching the venue by hearing the fans outside by the road screaming every time a car pulled up and the actor or actress alighting from the car. Looking at the big screen right in front of us to know who they are (casts like Gil Birmingham, Billy Burke, Sarah Clarke, Ashley Greene, Jackson Rathbone, Peter Facinelli, Kellan Lutz (SCREAM!), Michael Welch, Justin Chon, Booboo Stewart and lots of other heartthrobs!) and listening to their interviews. (I even saw Bruno Mars walking past!) Then when the main casts finally walked to our side, our cameras went flashing away and taking pictures of them. Our books or papers went right into the front to get their signatures. But it was another hard thing to do because the press is right across from us. And the stars had to run there for their interviews and run back to us again for our pictures and autographs. But sometimes, the cast won’t be able to get back to our side because their assistants or bodyguards with them will be pulling them away to more reporters waiting down the aisle. But we were lucky that the lovable stars are really nice to come back again just purely for us after all their interviews.
And finally, the most important people of the night. Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner! The three of them arrived last and they brought the atmosphere to yet another climax. And the other fans (including us who won the contest) were so warm-hearted and enthusiastic that the camera flashing and autographs took such a long time that it delayed the premiere time for up to 1 hour! I managed to snap pictures of most of them, but the most wasted and most regretful incident is that I didn’t manage to snap any full frontal pictures of Taylor Lautner and any pictures WITH the loves. (crushes wall) But nevertheless, I still managed to get Taylor Lautner’s signature and pictures OF the casts! 😀 That’s considered a small consolation I guess. J
Then we saw the stars and the special VIP guests being ushered into the Staples Center and we followed but we went through another entrance. Got our bags checked for no recording devices and then went in to the HUGE theatre which is almost as big or even bigger than the Indoor stadium of Singapore. And the huge screen. Settled myself down and started watching the show. I was sucked into the show from first sight until the movie ended. Throughout the movie, there were cheers, applause, and “awww” sounds, and “woo yay” sounds coming from the crowd and it was so awesome. I bet the director, Stephienie Meyers and the cast who were sitting in the theatre too felt our excitement and happiness. We could feel ourselves at the wedding itself and there was a scene when Jacob cried in the show, I teared up abit too (sniff!), I think some of the other fans must have teared too. And there were shouts of “Team Edward” and “Team Jacob” sounding out through the whole hall. And cheers for Kristen Stewart too!
When the movie ended, there was a huge round of applause as if it was a live performance. My new friends whom I met there even saw Robert Pattinson’s father over at the venue and took pictures of him. The souvenirs from this trip are really very precious to me. The cups printed with the Breaking Dawn promotion picture. The magnet sets and the bookmarks. The chance to go to Los Angeles for the world premiere! It really was a once in a lifetime experience. Although the flight was really long, it was worth the while. To be able to see my Twilight loves and take photos of them and get their autographs. I still cannot get over the excitement and I really wish I will be able to win again for the part 2 premiere haha! Thank you Shaw and Channel 5 for this wonderful experience and for giving me the opportunity to share this with my fellow Twilight fans! 😀 ♥
Hi there, I’m Henry Golding and I had the pleasure of being sent by Warner Brothers and Channel 5 to be the very first to catch the premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 and meet the cast and director in London!
The cheer of the crowd could be heard across London. Trafalgar square had been home to a riotous and abnormally loyal group of fans for the past 3 days and 2 nights… the day had finally come for the cast and crew of Harry Potter – The Deathly Hallows Part2 to walk the red carpet, and not just any old red carpet. Its one of the biggest red carpets the world has ever seen and I was lucky enough to be right in the middle of it all!
As we walked in through security along the media end of the red carpet towards the grand staircase outside the National Gallery, the squashed bodies of the fans became apparent. It was an endless sea of lighting scared foreheads and Hogwarts scarfs, screaming and ponging from their (for some) 2 nights out on the streets under the wet and cold London weather.
Some of the fans I spoke to had travelled all the way from Argentina, Australia, America, Belgium, Sweden and other obscure destinations across the world where Potter mania shone brightly. It was a forced to be reckoned with, at one point whilst I was interviewing a group of girls, to my right there was a lot of commotion coming from the security and a lady in her 50’s or so. Next thing I hear is “I need to get out!! But all of you guys can go to hell if you think im giving up my space at the front as I’ve been here since Monday!!” … It was Thursday today. I was in disbelief at how much of an impact this franchise had on people. Especially it being the last ever premiere of the movie. 7 books and 8 movies all bottled into one evening, all that emotion filled to the brim about to be unleashed on the expecting young starlets.
We arrived in the square at 2pm, we were lead into the press pen and allocated our slot on the red carpet by 3-30pm, 4-30pm the shrill scream of thousands of die hard fans were heard around the world as they signaled the arrival of the first actors. It was Rupert Grint, but that’s Ron to you. It wasn’t until 6pm did the first celebrities reach us… it took them one and a half hours to walk the carpet, that’s how epic it was.
Watch the madness on the red carpet here!
Luckily we had the one on one interviews earlier on the week as it would have been disastrous if we only had the interviews from the big day as everybody was soaking in the atmosphere and meeting their fans. Which was completely understandable, it was such an amazing scene and ambience about the place. A mix of excitement and sadness and sheer disbelief.
Here’s my interview with the cast and director as we bid Harry Potter a final farewell…
I think the actor Jason Isaac (Mr Lucius Malfoy) put it the best when I asked him how he thinks the crowd feels, are they sad that its at an end? He told me “ well you have to look at it this way, its been 11 years in the making. Nearly everybody has been on this journey with us from the begginnng they’ve become apart of our lives as much as theirs. Harry potter will never be finished not in their eyes, we all carry it in our hearts.”
BlockBuster Sunday: SlumDog Millionare, This Sunday, 7.00pm on 5!
The Blockbuster Sunday, Slumdog Millionaire is finally coming to Channel 5!
Jamal Malik, a boy from the slums is just a few steps away from winning the coveted prize of 20 million Rupees (438,000 US Dollars) from the Indian game show of ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’!
The question is, how can a slumdog possibly know so much?
Well tune in to find out!
But before this movie hits the local screens, here are some interesting information about this movie and its stars!
Dev Patel (Jamal Malik) and his co-star Freida Pinto (Latika) are apparently dating. They were seen at a restaurant in Israel snuggling together!
Freida Pinto is featured in People magazine’s “Most Beautiful People List” and “List of World’s Best Dressed Women”. She was also featured in the “Top 99 Most Desirable Women” poll conducted by Askmen.com in 2010.
Freida co-starred in Woody Allen’s comedy drama film ‘You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger’ with Antonio Banderas, Josh Brolin and Anthony Hopkins
In the year 2011, she appeared in 2 significant movies. The first movie was the science fiction film, The Rise of the Planet of the Apes (the prequel to the Planet of the Apes 1968). In this movie, Freida acted opposite James Franco, playing the role of Caroline, a primatologist, who studies primates in the movie.
Her second movie was however abit different. Instead of a science fiction movie, she appeared in was the fantasy-action-drama movie, ‘Immortals’ where she portrayed the part of the oracle priestess, Phaedra.
But before you catch all her exciting movies, you have to catch the movie that made her name so well known! Our Blockbuster Sunday. Slumdog Millionaire!
Awards Galore!
This film earned a total of 118 awards and 126 nominations. The awards come from distinguished places like the Grammy’s and the Golden Globe Awards.
The film also won seven of the eleven BAFTA Awards for which it was nominated, including Best Film. All four of the GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS for which it was nominated, including Best Drama Film and five of the six CRITICS CHOICE AWARDS for which it was nominated,
They received awards like the best director award, best screenplay award, best original soundtrack award etc, Well there are just to many awards to list down.
Seriously! It’s 118 awards!!!
Don’t forget to catch this multi award winning film on your Blockbuster Sunday on the 3rd of July, Sunday at 7pm on Channel 5!
Raise your hands if you want to win a Million Dollars!
No, we’re not kidding! Sign up to be a contestant of Channel 5’s Million Dollar Money Drop and you can walk away with up to SGD $1million cash prize!
The enthusiastic crowd who turned up at our roadshow at Square 2 last Sunday are the first to hear about the identity of the host of this brand new game show. He is none other than the up-and-coming half Greek, half Chinese actor and model –George Young.
Host of Million Dollar Money Drop, George Young
George, together with our emcee Shawnrick, gave the crowd a quick heads up on how the game is played. A few lucky audience were also chosen to participate in the Game Section, walking away with a crisp $50 note and a special Channel 5 goodie bag.
So you want to be a millionaire? Here’s how the game goes:
1. A pair of contestants start off with a million in hard cash.
2. Answer 8 MCQ questions by physically putting the money on trap doors representing the options.
3. Win a million dollars if you get all the questions right!
Here’s a video of how the game is played in the U.S.
Looks easy? Have a go at the game by joining our walk-in auditions! Just show up with a partner at the MediaCorp Reception with both your entry forms completed on Sunday 19 June, from 2pm to 4pm.
Channel 5 is the official TV channel for GREEN LANTERN and I, Jade Seah, had the wonderful opportunity to be sent to LA to meet the cast of GREEN LANTERN!
I was excited to not only be one of the first to watch the show, I was also super psyched that I will be meeting Blake Lively (sorry, Reynolds)!
All Green Lantern-ready, we headed down to The Oasis, a lovely area of the hotel where the interviews were to be held.
They’d really gone all out with the decor; the area was all decked out in Green Lantern stuff. Fan boy heaven, I say!
Trying (and failing miserably) to do the Green Lantern ‘arrrrgh!’ pose. Ryan Reynolds looks all fierce and cool; I look like an auntie carrying imaginary plastic bags, very pleased that I’d just snagged a bargain at the local supermart. Ah well. We try.
Just ‘hanging out’ with ma pal, Hal Jordan, aka Green Lantern…
The whole gang!
Right. Lest you think all I did was play, enough goofing; I really did meet the man himself, Mr Ryan Reynolds!
He’s a lot taller than I expected, with a slightly kooky sense of humour. When I asked him to say “hi” to Singapore, instead of addressing the camera with a “hey there, Singapore”, or something similar, he looked me straight in the eye with an emotionless expression and simply said, in a deadpan voice, “hello, Singapore”. I really wasn’t sure how to take that!
Also, perhaps he was tired that day, or it was a case of art mirroring life (or really spot-on casting?), but almost like his character in the film, Hal Jordan, is a somewhat unwilling hero; so too Ryan Reynolds seemed a little the reluctant movie star who longed to be doing something else instead of talking about himself and the movie he made.
Also, Peter Sarsgaard, who plays an extremely convincing Hector Hammond in the show. Yes, he actually looks very normal (pretty good, actually) and when I told him this he joked that that was a perk in playing an ‘ugly’ character; that people are always pleasantly surprised at his looks – “I probably get told how handsome I am a lot more than Ryan does!”.
Very, very sadly, I didn’t manage to get a picture with Blake Lively (her manager flat-out said “NO”; boo to you) but here’s a screengrab of Blake from our interview and I can tell you that she is even more stunning in real life (and yes ladies, her hair gives new meaning to ‘crowning glory’), and very chatty and warm, to boot.
Check out what rating Ryan Reynolds gave Blake Lively for their on-screen kiss below!
And find out what goes into the making of GREEN LANTERN with Ryan Reynolds!
About GREEN LANTERN
In a universe as vast as it is mysterious, a small but powerful force has existed for centuries. Protectors of peace and justice, they are called the Green Lantern Corps. But when a new enemy called Parallax threatens to destroy the balance of power in the Universe, their fate and the fate of Earth lie in the hands of their newest recruit, the first human ever selected: Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds). A gifted and cocky test pilot, Hal have not harnessed the infinite powers of the ring before. With the encouragement his childhood sweetheart Carol Ferris (Blake Lively), if Hal can quickly master his new powers and find the courage to overcome his fears, he may prove to be not only the key to defeating Parallax and become the greatest Green Lantern of all.
The Channel 5 Blog 
