Neil Humphreys – The Expatriate Who Is Not

Loh Wei Li ::1st year Bioengineering (BIE),
School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering (SCBE)

A few years ago before my National Service, while working as a sales assistant at Isetan, I chanced upon this book entitled “Notes from an even Smaller Island” that was written by someone called Neil Humphreys. At that point in time, I had absolutely no idea who this “Brit” was. I thought he was probably the typical Caucasian expatriate (also known as ‘Ang Moh’). Feeling an overwhelming sense of curiosity that was generated by the unique title of the book, I succumbed to my curiosity and decided to buy the book.

For those of us that are still not in the know, Neil Humphreys is a columnist who writes for the Today newspaper. His weekly columns are well received by many people as they generally touch on very Singaporean issues in a very light hearted manner. 10 years ago, Neil Humphreys decided to travel to Singapore. Armed only with an Arts degree from the University of Manchester, he served as a speech and drama teacher for nearly 3 years before embarking on his career in the mass media. His first book, “Notes from a even Smaller Island”, became an immediate best-seller. This book was on the Singapore best-seller list for over 3 years.

In 2003, his second book, “Scribbles from the Same Island”, a compilation of his popular humour columns in WEEKEND TODAY, was launched in Singapore and Malaysia and also became an immediate best-seller.

Some of you may wonder, why do I call him “the expatriate who is not”? Well, Neil Humphreys lives in a HDB flat, uses Singlish very well, and has lived here for the past ten years. If that still makes him the typical expatriate, I have no idea what isn’t. Like what PM Lee mentioned in his National Day Rally speech, Neil Humphreys has come to represent one of the many British Singaporeans. But of course, he prefers to call himself a “Global Citizen”. Now, aren’t we all?

In his books, he uses colloquial English. What do I mean by that?

Well, Singlish, of course! Neil Humphreys is not averse to using terms such as ‘Ang Moh’ on himself in his books, and that is perhaps one of the many reasons why he has proved to be so endearing to Singaporeans. Each chapter that you flip through as you devour his books, tells of anecdotal tales that seem to follow him wherever he goes. From the moment he landed in Singapore with his good friend that he affectionately calls “The Ang Moh Midget from Yorkshire”, Scott, he has experienced and done things most Singaporeans would never have thought could ever happen in Singapore. From mistaking a Chinese funeral as a hawker centre on his first night, to crazy taxi drivers, Neil Humphreys has seen it and done it.

His recently released third book, “Final Notes from a Great Island”, tells of his final farewell tour around Singapore before he closes another chapter of his life and leaves for the land Down Under. I’m currently halfway through this book, and one observation I have made is that Neil Humphreys has been to a lot more places in Singapore than I have ever been despite having lived in Singapore for 10 more years than him.

In his usual humorous manner, he elaborates on places like Kent Ridge, Chinese Garden, Kusu Island and many more. To be honest, I have been learning about the more intriguing histories of these places he has visited that I have never known about before. Imagine that, a Singaporean learning things about Singapore from a Brit! Besides being a humorous book, it has even proved to be educational! Either that or I’m just plain ignorant, which I profess not to be.

Why should you read his books? I believe this quote from the Singapore FHM says it all ,”A thoroughly enjoyable read on the virtues (or hazards) of living in Singapore through the eyes of a 6-foot-4-inch Briton whose style is so disarmingly honest, you will laugh at the things you once considered the bane of your existence… Decidedly Singaporean, distinctly British.” His books will definitely lift your spirits and cheer you up. But of course, you have to read his books to judge for yourself.

Finally, I have to make a confession. I am a Neil Humphreys’ fan (isn’t that obvious?). During his book signing and final public speech held at CSLT1, School of Communication and Information (SCI) in NTU recently (which was fantastic), I morphed into a kiasu. Like a schoolboy screaming for his idol, this kiasu Singaporean here clamored for the Ang Moh’s signature on his books… And got it! With a wave, I bid this author/journalist/editor/ang moh a fond farewell and wish him all the best in whatever he does in Australia. I will miss this funnyman that Singapore has come to love so much.

Welcome to NTU ~ Freshmen Orientation 2006

Neil Humphreys at NTU

NTU Library together with School of Communication and Information and Marshall Cavendish jointly organized Neil’s Tour of Singapore…in 60 minutes, on 29th August 2006.

More than 200 people from SCI, Engineering, Science, Business and Humanities and Social Sciences turned up to catch Neil Humphreys talk.

Andrew Duffy from Division of Journalism and Publishing introduced Neil Humphrey who shared some of the highlights of his 10-year stay in Singapore.

After the talk, he spent the next hour signing his books for his fans and posing for pictures. He also accepted a radio interview by some students from the Electronic and Broadcast Media division.

Neil may have relocated, but he continues with his columns in Weekend Today.
Read TODAY newspapers online at : www.todayonline.com

Interns from Philippines and Thailand

from left: Sonia & Sarapee

In the month of October, NTU library hosted 2 interns:

1. Ms Sonia David from Ateneo De Manila University, Professional Schools Library, Phillippines
2. Sarapee Srisuk, Head of Reference and Information Services Section, Kasetsart University Library, Thailand

Professional Visitors to the NTU Library

NTU Library hosted several librarians around the Asian region. There were visits by:

May
Ms Diep Kim Chi (Director); Ms Huynh Thi Trang (Vice Director), Cantho University Central Library, Vietnam

Assoc Prof Indahsah Hj Sidek, Puan Fadliah Darini, Cik Azhani As’ad and Puan Immazura Othman, Universiti Teknologi MARA

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July

7-member delegation led by Mr Wu Yin, Curator Secretary, Teda Library (Tianjin, China)Ms Liaozhu : Librarian, Jia Ying University

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August
Mrs.Mantana Charoenpaed, Mrs. Napapas Sudparn, Ms. Anchalee Tumthong and Ms. Doungporn Phonmark, Central Library, Srinakharinwirot University, ThailandIan Smith, Senior Librarian, La Trobe University Library AustraliaHeather Mansell, Manager, Innovative Projects, State Library of NSW, Australia

6 member delegation led by Ruzita Ramly, Manager,Tan Sri Dr. Abdullah Sanusi Digital Library

33 member delegation from Kasetsart University, Thailand

If you like to visit the NTU Library, please send an email to : librarypromotion@ntu.edu.sg