Leanne Li Yanan (; born 25 November 1984) is a Chinese-born

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

and television host. She was the 2005 Miss Chinese International Pageant winner hailing from

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

Early life

Leanne's family originates from

Shanghai, China Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

who later emigrated when she was a child. The eldest of two girls, she was a second year

fine arts In European academic traditions, fine art (or, fine arts) is made primarily for aesthetics or creativity, creative expression, distinguishing it from popular art, decorative art or applied art, which also either serve some practical function ...

student at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

before participating in the pageants.

Pageant career

At the age of 20, Leanne competed as contestant #10 in

Miss Chinese Vancouver Miss Chinese Vancouver Pageant (Chinese: 溫哥華華裔小姐競選), also known as MCV and formerly branded as Miss Chinese (Vancouver) Pageant, is an annual beauty pageant organized by Fairchild TV that selects Vancouver's representative for ...

2004 pageant, taking the crown. She also took the titles of Miss Photogenic and Best Posture. As the winner of this pageant, she represented the city of Vancouver at

Miss Chinese International Miss Chinese International Pageant ( zh, 國際中華小姐競選, formerly 國際華裔小姐競選), or MCI ( zh, 華姐) for short, is an annual international beauty pageant, organized and broadcast by TVB, a network television station in Hong ...

in the following year. In January, she arrived in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

to compete for the Miss Chinese International 2005 crown, and won. Being considered just a favorite, she beat out bigger favorite,

Fala Chen Fala Chen (; born 24 February 1982) is a Chinese nationality law, Chinese and Americans, American actress. After winning the Miss Chinese International Pageant 2005, Chen made her debut as an actress in the Hong Kong cinema. She rose to prominen ...

of New York for the title. Her performance received positive reviews, especially during the final interview portion.

Personal life

Leanne is a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

. During the 48th TVB anniversary celebration,

Wong Cho-lam Wong Cho-lam (born Wong Ho-yin; 9 January 1980) is a Hong Kong entertainer currently working as the Chief Creative Officer of TVB. He works as a stage actor, stage director, television actor, voice actor, DJ, television host, lyricist, scriptwrit ...

proposed to her. Li and Wong married on Valentine's Day in 2015. Leanne and her husband

are both devoted

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

who have both publicly declared sexual abstinence before marriage. She gave birth to her daughter Gabrielle Wong on 17 December 2018. In Dec 2020, Leanne welcomed the birth of her second daughter Hayley. TodayOnLine.com. 2020-12-25

TV dramas

La Femme Desperado ''La Femme Desperado'' (Traditional Chinese: 女人唔易做) is a TVB modern drama series broadcast in April 2006. The series contains many realistic elements relating to the life of a woman in today's modern society, particularly in Hong Kong. ...

(2006) - Guest Appearance * Love Guaranteed (2006) * Dicey Business (2006) * Drive of Life (2007) * The Building Blocks of Life (2007) * War of In-Laws II (2008) - Guest Appearance * Forensic Heroes 2 (2008) * The Money-Maker Recipe (2008) *

Burning Flame III ''Burning Flame III'' (Chinese Traditional: :zh:烈火雄心3, 烈火雄心3) is a Television Broadcasts Limited, TVB production. It is an independent installment to List of TVB series (1998), 1998's ''Burning Flame'' and List of TVB series (2002 ...

(2009) *'' The Stew of Life'' (2009) *'' Suspects in Love'' (2010) - Guest Appearance *'' The Mysteries of Love'' (2010) - Guest Appearance *'' Only You'' (2011) *''

The Other Truth ''The Other Truth'' is a 2011 Hong Kong television legal drama serial produced by Amy Wong and TVB. The drama centers on a group of young barristers and solicitors working in Clayton Hau Chamber and Wallace Cheuk & Co. Solicitors, two fictional ...

'' (2011) - Guest Appearance *'' Men with No Shadows'' (2011) - Guest Appearance *'' No Good Either Way'' (2012) *''

A Great Way to Care II ''A Great Way To Care'' is a Hong Kong medical crime drama television series produced by Marco Law and TVB Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB; zh, t=電視廣播有限公司) is a television broadcasting company based in Hong Kong. The ...

'' (2013) *'' Brother's Keeper'' (2013) *'' Ruse of Engagement'' (2014) *'' Black Heart White Soul'' (2014) *'' Shades of Life'' (2014) *'' Come On, Cousin'' (2014) *''

With or Without You "With or Without You" is a song by Irish rock music, rock band U2. It is the third track on their fifth studio album, ''The Joshua Tree'' (1987), and was released as the album's lead single on 16 March 1987. The song was the group's most succes ...

'' (2015) *'' Fashion War'' (2016)

Film

*'' Blackhat'' (2015) as Emergency Worker

References

External links

Official Blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Leanne 1984 births Living people Actresses from Shanghai Actresses from Vancouver Chinese emigrants to Canada Canadian Christians Canadian expatriates in Hong Kong Canadian film actresses Canadian television actresses Canadian television hosts Miss Chinese International winners Naturalized citizens of Canada TVB actors University of British Columbia alumni Chinese Christians Chinese women television presenters Canadian women television hosts Hong Kong Christians Hong Kong Protestants