Chronicles of Old Singapore

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Sukhdev Singh Gill remembers becoming interested in politics at a young age. He threw his hat in the ring in the 2015 elections, contesting Jurong GRC as a Singaporeans First candidate. The team lost but kept its deposit. As a ex-police officer, he believes former civil servants have a role to play in Singapore's political life.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/yrwMp7NRj0Y

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/Vowo8sDLBmk

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/p-uLp9hkWBg

Part 4 | https://youtu.be/QOjXxK6UxtI

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Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. The British military bases were vital for Singapore’s economy and defence. When they closed down in the late 1960s, the withdrawal became a catalyst for Singapore’s development. But for many in the former bases – residents, communities, villages, bars, and music bands – it was the end of an era. Families were dispersed to different parts of the world. Britain would no longer be No. 1 and the old jobs were gone, replaced by new regimes of labour discipline and productivity.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/1gowQfMb44E

Part 2...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Founded in 1916, Chop Wah On is a manufacturer of the Shake Hand brand of medicated oil and balm. Tong Kok Wing, who runs the shop with his siblings, traces his roots in Chinatown. He tells how his father once kept a mini-zoo at the back of their original shophouse at Pagoda Street and the origins of their crocodile and herbal oils. Today, Chop Wah On is a certified heritage business.

00:00 Introduction

00:14 Our Books

03:52 30 Years in Chinatown

07:00 My Father from Special Branch

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. My new book, co-authored with Stephen Dobbs, recounts the little-known history of shopkeepers. As a varied group of small capitalists, they made Old Chinatown such a fabulously memorable place. Over the last 60 years, they struggled to cope as Chinatown was drastically redeveloped. I discuss two businesses that are trying to survive today – the effigy carver Say Tian Hng and small Chinese bookstores.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/1gowQfMb44E

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/zjajjG3agts

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/8OAnQpxBmCc

00:00 In...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. I learned a lot from speaking to Yeo Hock Yew about little-known parts of our history. He grew up in a kampong house in Kampong Bahru near Singapore General Hospital (See Pai Poh) before moving into an SIT flat at Strathmore Avenue, Queenstown.

Hock Yew loved art as a kid and studied at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, where he was taught by the Nanyang artist Lim Yew Kuan. This merged with his other interests – football and reading – and led him to the exciting, forgotten world of foot...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Gary Koh recounts both the golden and dimmer years of women’s football in Singapore from the ‘80s but offers some hope – there has been a resurgence in recent years. The semangat (spirit) that drove the earlier Lionesses could be an inspiration for the current generation. Gary and I discuss the strengths of the women’s game (compared to the men, less playacting) and how it can continue to grow in Singapore.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/ilmPmbx61yQ

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/LhAarwfOO64

00...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Retired policeman Sukhdev Singh Gill recounts the threat posed by secret societies in the past and how they were brought to heel by the Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act 1955. He also reflects on issues faced by security guards today, mostly seniors and unemployed young people, as well as problems of molestation, voyeurism and mobility devices.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/yrwMp7NRj0Y

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/Vowo8sDLBmk

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/p-uLp9hkWBg

Part 4 | https://youtu.be/QOjXxK6UxtI

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Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Uncle Ringo, the man behind the famous travelling carnivals, recounts growing up in the bustling, rowdy and expletive-filled Sembawang Strip. This was a street of bars and restaurants serving sailors from the Naval Base but also filled with the music of the ‘60s. Here, Uncle Ringo learned the guitar and played Beatles covers in bands like many of his Sembawang friends.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/PDV7_d_WXzA

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/BAzGYSyei7Y

00:00 Introduction

01:50 Sembawang Strip

05:14 Th...

The British military withdrawal in the late 1960s caused much anxiety for Singapore’s leaders. But they had an ace in the pack – the bountiful real estate and facilities the British were leaving behind. Instead of a crisis, the pullout played out as a new buzz – a catalyst for Singapore’s growth into an industrial powerhouse in the ‘70s.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/sdnXHH92Ueo

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/xAE-EsRyHco

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/y15UOOJd5I4

00:00 Triple Whammy

03:50 All Out By 1971

07:50 Th...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Jeffrey Eng talks to me about the old Teochew areas in Chinatown and River Valley, the Ellenborough Market fire of 1968 during the Chinese New Year and the Teochew names of streets. We also reflect on the Speak Mandarin Campaign debate arising from the film Dear You, and how the campaign has prevented younger Teochews from knowing the language.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/WdXYrCIj3UI

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/H95nfHI9yrM

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/89Vj7nBG3s4

00:00 Teochews...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Thiyaga Raju is a historian of Singapore football and author of ROAR: Football Legends of Singapore. He recalls the match in 1974 that kindled his love for the sport. He talks about Singapore’s legendary players and coaches: Uncle Choo Seng Quee, Brian Richmond, T. Pathmanathan (Captain Marvel), and Fandi Ahmad, among others.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/DHm8s_g2Mkc

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/C06EThnSdQc

00:00 Introduction

06:33 Queenstown FC

11:29 Brian Richmond

13:43 ‘70s Football

21:48 Uncl...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. In 1983, Matthew Lui was a PSA office pilot in the cable car towers. On 29 June, upon finishing his watch, a series of unexpected events unfolded to cause one of the worst accidents in Singapore’s history – the cable car crash and the deaths of seven people. Matthew draws from the commission of inquiry’s report to recount the accident and the rescue operation.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/10ykZ-kUKME

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/tm7BLGRysIE

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/cmg1KDdGzic

00:0...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Sukhdev Singh Gill spent 32 years in the Singapore Police Force. He offers his honest views on questions arising from the evolution of the force – why were neighbourhood police posts so important (and do we really need police complexes), why do people call the police on all kinds of matters, and is the police force facing a manpower shortage today?

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/yrwMp7NRj0Y

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/Vowo8sDLBmk

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/p-uLp9hkWBg

Part 4 | https://youtu.be/QO...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Gary Koh, a historian of Singapore football, talks about the origins of the women’s game from the 1960s to the early 1980s. Our pioneer Lionesses were drawn from all walks of life – the university, public service and MNCs. Despite the lack of funding and support, they became a dominant force in the Puan Sharifah Rodziah Cup, the women’s version of the Malaysia Cup.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/ilmPmbx61yQ

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/LhAarwfOO64

00:00 Introduction

03:28 Researching Women’s Footba...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. The 56 British military bases in 1960s Singapore were Little Britains – miniature townships filled with non-military facilities for the British servicemen and their families. They were also Hidden Asias, for it was the Asians who made the bases functional – from clerks and policemen to the amah and shopkeepers. The British bases were vital to Singapore’s defence and economy. Together, they were a huge piece of real estate, comprising more than a tenth of the island’s land area and a fifth of its GNP.

00:00 The ‘Asian’ Bases

01:50 Wash...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Jeffrey Eng remembers his family’s business at 15 Merchant Road in the heart of Teochew Chinatown, Eng Tiang Huat (named after his grandfather, the founder). This was a shop dealing in ‘Chinese cultural goods’, from traditional musical instruments to embroidery and martial weapons. Jeffrey took over the business after National Service instead of starting his own career. He soon developed a love for the trade as well as the cultural goods. He talks about his elders’ advice: never take bank loans to expand the business, but invest in the family.

Par...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Conservationist Tony O’Dempsey aka Uncle Tony talks about the history of the conservation movement in Singapore and how the Nature Society of Singapore adopted a moderate science-based approach – ‘wisdom and pleasant speech’ – to engage the government. Today, as new housing projects target our diminishing forests at the Gillman Barracks, Maju and Sunset Way, this dialogue will be more relevant than ever.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/_vjE_suS99E

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/klLBlvczE3M

00:00 Beginning of Conservation

04:26 Nature Society of...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Winston Wong talks about the Gillman Barracks not as a standalone British base, but as part of the massive Pasir Panjang-Ayer Rajah Military Complex. It was a transit camp for the School of Combat Engineers, which moved out in a few years. As we discuss the likely environmental and historical impact of the HDB’s plan to redevelop Gillman around nature, Winston is concerned that it would be difficult to strike a balance between heritage, nature and development.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/41X1lZL5CBM

Part 2 | ht...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Sukhdev Singh Gill joined the Singapore Police Force in 1969. He remembers his father, who was a jaga (watchman) for various employers, and the formidable Sikh jagas in the old days. He talks about key Sikh temples in Singapore and how important they were for the Sikh groups.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/yrwMp7NRj0Y

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/Vowo8sDLBmk

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/p-uLp9hkWBg

Part 4 | https://youtu.be/QOjXxK6UxtI

00:00 Introduction

00:58 Joining the...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Upon graduating from SJI in 1964, Matthew Lui joined the newly formed Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) as a harbour pilot. Close to the dawn of Singapore’s independence, he was among a pioneer group of local pilots being trained to take over from the departing British pilots. As a young cadet and later as a certified pilot, he sailed on Dutch and other ships to ports around the world.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/10ykZ-kUKME

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/tm7BLGRysIE

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/cm...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. The qiaopi (remittance letters) came to light in the Teochew hit film Dear You. Local Teochew Jeffrey Eng shows us his large collection, except these were in finger-sized envelopes. Jeff talks about the messages and remittances that linked three generations of the Engs with their home village in Chaozhou. The letters capture major changes in the histories of Singapore and China from the 1930s to the 2000s.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/WdXYrCIj3UI

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/H95nfHI9yrM

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/89...

欢迎来到旧新加坡记事录。德信药行于2025年获认定为传统的旧行业。周启仕医师回顾了新加坡中医与食疗的历史及发展历程，并探讨了在中医如何配合健康SG（Healthier SG）政策，助力民众养生保健及疾病预防。

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Teck Soon Medical Hall was recognised as a heritage business in 2025. Physician Chow Khai Shui traces the history and development of TCM and food therapy in Singapore. He talks about how Chinese medicine can contribute to wellness and prevention of illness under the Healthier SG policy.

第一集 Part 1 | https://youtu.be/-nwkrk8MB2U

第二集 Part 2 | https://youtu.be/syQpSdWZbpE

00:00 西药 Western Medicine

07:14 持续教育 Professional Development

10:48 中医名家 Famous TCM Masters

15:53 药用动物 Medicinal Animals

19:16 健康SG Healthier SG

23:27 传统的旧行业Heritage Business

Teck Soon Medical Hall: https://tecksoonsg.com/

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. I am Dr Loh Kah Seng, the people’s historian...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Conservationist Tony O’Dempsey aka Uncle Tony talks about the history of forests in Singapore through the 19th and 20th centuries. Through a number of self-made maps, he shows how they fared against successive plantation crops like gambier, tapioca and rubber and the impetus for creating forest reserves. In the mid-20th century, another wave of change and destruction began as the Garden City took shape.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/_vjE_suS99E

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/klLBlvczE3M

00:00 Introduction

...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Older Singaporeans are generally keen to share their nostalgia for the past, but less so on controversial topics. This was what I found when I started researching the great fire at Bukit Ho Swee. The memory of public housing there will always been tied hand in glove with the widespread rumours of arson. In this podcast, I talk about what the rumours say about Singaporeans' relationship with their pasts. I also discuss how community groups and researchers can use oral history to document the shared memories of our heritage.

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Winston Wong remembers Gillman Barracks in the early 1970s. Trained in bomb disposal, he moved with the School of Combat Engineers from Blakang Mati (which was becoming Sentosa) to the former British camp. Near the camp was the village of Heap Guan San, whose residents had worked as gardeners and cooks for the British forces. There was also the Bourne School where the forces' children had studied.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/41X1lZL5CBM

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/RtRWXt9orDY

00:00 Introduction<...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Frederick Puah, owner of British Hainan Restaurant at Kallang Way, talks about his Hainanese roots. His father was a cook for a British family and later a sailor, while his mother was a strong woman who ran the household while he was away.

Full episodes:

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/RFOhmO4ZTQ8

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/V-qqatZ9eoI

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/UVFN7CEuDik

00:00 Introduction

02:48 Father was a Cook

05:32 Oxtail Stew

07:53 Sailing<...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. In Part 2 of the walkthrough, ChanPeew Wan takes us through the famous H.M. Terror and Beaulieu House, as well as the Asian School (which became Naval Base School) and the shops before Sembawang Gate. He remembers the drunken British servicemen falling into drains but also the massive change to the Asian community when they were relocated from the base to the JTC flats at 14 Mile, Sembawang.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/RY4-YQ-sUfk

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/MQ22A-iCHW0

00:00 Terror Barracks...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Former naval architect Lee Kok Leong talks about his love for the twakows of his childhood along the Singapore River. These wooden boats, called lighters in English, were vital to Singapore’s trade, carrying cargo over the last mile of water. Kok Leong remembers the masters who built these remarkable boats, the tough men who worked on them, and how the industry folded when loose cargo was replaced by the standardised box called the container in the '70s.

https://youtu.be/R9tUS3PP5FU

In Part 2, Reynold Godwin Pereira recounts one of the most iconic moments in Uncle Choo’s coaching career – winning the Malaysia Cup in 1977. We reflect on how Singapore could build upon Uncle Choo's larger-than-life legacy by giving local coaches more opportunities and support to develop football from the grassroots, as Belgium did with its Golden Generation in the 2000s.

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. I am Dr Loh Kah Seng, the people’s historian, and I document people’s memories of Singapore before it became a global city.

Do like the video an...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Mathew Lui takes us back to post-war Chinatown: his father ran a silk business in South Bridge Road and his family lived upstairs above the shop. He attended a number of Catholic schools, including the historic St. Joseph’s Institution at Bras Basah Road in the early 1960s. He had an unforgettable time and his 1964 cohort organised a homecoming in 2012.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/10ykZ-kUKME

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/tm7BLGRysIE

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/cmg1KDdGzic

00:00 Introduction

01:52 In a Nu...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. We continue to celebrate John’s 80th birthday by tracing his family history. He married a Punjabi woman called Vanessa and moved into one of the new JTC flats in Sembawang when the Naval Base closed down. Their son Crispian grew up amidst the football in the area, playing in a team called the ‘No Future Club’. That is far removed from the name today, as John has joined Crispian in Texas, a world away from the old Naval Base and 1960s Singapore.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/uxu6AG0Euj...

欢迎来到旧新加坡记事录。周启仕是一位注册中医师，也是创办于1963年的德信药行的经营者。他讲述了新加坡中医的发展历程，并介绍了各种药材汤品与茶饮—这些有助于人们强身健体、预防疾病的食疗方式。

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Chow Khai Shui is a registered TCM physician and owner of Teck Soon Medical Hall established in 1963. He talks about the history of TCM in Singapore and different types of herbal soups and teas – food therapies that help people maintain wellness and prevent illness.

第一集 Part 1 | https://youtu.be/-nwkrk8MB2U

第二集 Part 2 | https://youtu.be/syQpSdWZbpE

00:00 介绍 Introduction

00:34 德信药行的历史 Teck Soon’s History

06:36 中药的发展 Growth of TCM

12:49 食疗 Food Therapy

23:09 养肝排毒汤 Liver Nourishing Soup

26:02 参芪麦冬山楂茶 Shenqi Hawthorn Tea

29:03 无花果美颜汤 Snow Fungus and Figs Soup

32:00 补血养肝茶 Blood Nourishing Liver Tea

33:20 灵芝 Ganoderma

35:15 虎乳菌 Tiger Milk Mushroom

Teck Soon Medical Hall: https://tecksoonsg.com/

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Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. John Ng turns 80 today. He was a policeman in the Naval Base and then in Sembawang Shipyard after the British left; his mother was also a searcher in the Naval Base. He tells me stories of the old Medical quarters where he lived, the creative ways he and his friends learned to make money as kids, the endemic gambling inside the base, and the secret garden behind his house.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/uxu6AG0EujE

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/73HH1hl3-70

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Might be better to view the video version here:

https://youtu.be/RY4-YQ-sUfk

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. So much of the historic Singapore Naval Base has been lost so former Navalite Wan Chan Peew takes us on a walkthrough to document its old places and activities. We started with the gates, then the roads where Asians like him lived, and the docks and other places of work inside the naval dockyard.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/RY4-YQ-sUfk

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/MQ22...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Woon Yew Thong remembers old Jurong Road before it was urbanised and leaving the Jurong Crescent Road quarters in 1974. He left behind his Reader’s Digest collection and a warm community of neighbours and friends. In recent years, he found many of them on social media while documenting memories of the Jurong Radio Transmitting Station on his website.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/GVbfvy0vxR0

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/orYO2hFbtX0

00:00 Neighbours & Community

03:49 Leaving Jurong

06:54 Stories of Nantah

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Rey Pereira talks football history from his book, Uncle Choo: Singapore's Greatest Football Coach. He traces the remarkable career of Uncle Choo Seng Quee as player and coach of Singapore and Malaya. We cover the popularity of football from the British colonial days through the Japanese Occupation to the pitches of Farrer Park after the war.

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/VzRBQns4gFg

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/WnaSCJIN1E4

00:00 Introduction

01:21 My Book on Uncle Choo

06:25 Tracing Football History<...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Self-taught guitarist Ronnie Choo and his musically-talented friends made some money playing in rock 'n' roll bands inside the Naval Base in Sembawang.

Full episodes:

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/-maCgkgStUI

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/_Aq1rTEwBCA

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. I am Dr Loh Kah Seng, the people’s historian, and I document people’s memories of Singapore before it became a global city.

Do like the video and subscribe for future episodes. This will help...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. In the final part of our podcast, LTC (Retd) Mejar Singh Gill gives his thoughts on several questions: how have SAF and SAFTI evolved over the years, is Singapore prepared for war, is the soldier still important in the high-tech 21st century, should women serve, how has the SAF served as a global peacekeeper, and how have regulars contributed to Singapore?

Part 1 | https://youtu.be/XcXl6KVlekc

Part 2 | https://youtu.be/gW4QIH0UU6I

Part 3 | https://youtu.be/oapXReFCjfA

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. Selamat Kadari recalls the elders of Kampong Amber, its religious buildings and an interesting connection with PM Lawrence Wong (listen to find out!). He talks about the name ‘Amber’, what happened during the 1964 race riots and the old Katong where the kampong was located. Finally, we reflect on the reunions Selamat organised as chairman of the group, Our Kampong Amber, and how we may further document its history and memory.

00:00 The Story Behind My Name

04:13 The Kampong Elders

08:08 Old Katong

12:39 The Lawrence Wong...

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. In Part 2, Pamela Sandanasamy recalls her subsequent trips to the village of Anaikkadu in India, bringing her daughters along. She found the St. Francis Xavier’s High School which her grandfather had built for the village. But most of all, she wanted to find out about her grandfather’s parents. When she finally located their graves, she understood why he had been reluctant to talk about his past. Pamela talks about her future plans to travel to India and write a book about searching for her roots.

Part 1 | http...