Culture & Lifestyle

Penang-born actress popular for her role in 'Mind Your Language' dies

She had gained international recognition and became a familiar face on British and Malaysian television for her role in the British sitcom.

Updated 11 months ago · Published on 13 Jun 2025 5:44PM

Penang-born actress popular for her role in 'Mind Your Language' dies
Lim, 80, moved to the UK when she was 16 where she studied at the London School of Dramatic Arts. - June 13, 2025

by Ian McIntyre

PENANG-born British actress Pik-Sen Lim - popular for her role in the British sitcom 'Mind Your Language' died on Monday.

Born Lim Phaik-Seng, she  played the role of Chung Su-Lee in the sitcom which was popular in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Lim, 80, moved to the UK when she was 16 where she studied at the London School of Dramatic Arts.

She had gained international recognition and became a familiar face on British and Malaysian television for her role in the British sitcom.

The script revolved around a group of foreign students trying to learn English at a school in London.

Lim’s birth name was reportedly romanised as Lim Phaik-Seng, but she later changed her given name to Pik-Sen after noticing that her British friends frequently mispronounced “Phaik” as “fake.”

Besides comedy, Lim also had roles in the scientific drama Doctor Who, playing Chin Lee in The Mind of Evil (1971), and appeared in British series such as military drama Spearhead, Coronation Street, Casualty, Holby City and The Bill.

Her recent film credits include Johnny English Reborn (2011), in which she played the Killer Cleaner against Rowan Atkinson's character.

Atkinson is also a famous comedian in his own right, having portrayed "Mr Bean" in the television series, which was followed by two movies.

Lim was the granddaughter of an oil palm estate millionaire Lim Cheng Teik.

The British Film Institute described Lim as "the most recognisable Chinese actress on British television throughout the 1970s and 80s. - June 13, 2025.

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