PUBLISHED ONOctober 05, 2026 7:54 AMBYYeo Shu HuiMark Lee recently spoke about his gambling addiction from around two decades ago and the person who made him decide to quit.
The 57-year-old local actor was a guest on the latest episode of Jeanette Aw's talk show JA Unscripted released on Sunday (Oct 4).
Sharing the challenges he faced throughout his life which helped him in portraying characters on screen, he spoke about the time when he was addicted to football betting and buying 4D lottery.
"I could spend more than $4,000 a month on 4D lottery tickets," Mark recounted.
He shared that he owned businesses at the time and was making money from it.
Mark added: "Gambling is a strange thing — it always lets you win at first, then eventually, it gives you a black eye.
"But once you have a black eye, you desperately look for medicine to put on it. But it won't heal. I kept looking for money [then] and before long, I was in debt."
People around him had also encouraged him to stop gambling with some even scolding him, but he paid no heed.
He added it took him about a year from the time he got into debt until he quit gambling.
In 2019, Mark revealed his gambling addiction in a video by the National Council on Problem Gambling.
He also told Shin Min Daily News then that it happened when he was filming the 1996 local variety show Comedy Nite, and his co-star, local director Jack Neo, had tried different approaches to dissuade him from gambling without success.
He had spent up to $5,000 a month on 4D and about $300 to $500 per month on football matches. Mark had also won more than $100,000 at the lottery before.
In the talk show, Mark told Jeanette throughout his ordeal, the only person who didn't say anything was his mum, and it was also because of her that he decided to quit.
He recounted: "That day, I was sitting in the living room and I noticed she was also sitting there without saying a word.
"I think she knew [I was troubled], because my face and my body were oily but I didn't even feel like taking a shower. She was reading the newspaper and she didn't flip the pages at all. I didn't know what expression she had behind it.
"I thought to myself then, 'No, this can't go on.' That was when I realised the woman sitting across from me, my mum, she hadn't said a word to me. I found it very strange... Because I had an elder brother who died young, when I was 15. When I looked at my mum (then), I thought I shouldn't continue like this because the rest of her life would really depend on me taking care of her."
He told Shin Min Daily News in 2019 his mum had once told him plainly that because he was stlll young, he had to take care of himself in the future.
Mark told Jeanette he decided to quit gambling from that day onwards, but the process was very tough as he had to stop himself from checking the lottery and football results.
"Even when I saw those aunties who sold newspapers by the roadside, I wouldn't dare to look at the lottery results published in the papers," he shared, adding it took him about six months to kick the habit completely.
He also negotiated with his debtors to pay off his debts consistently in small amounts over time.
Mark recounted: "Everything had colour again when I finally paid off the debts. It's very strange. When I was in debt and didn't dare to go home because I was afraid they would come looking for me, it was as if a layer of fog was in front of me although everything I saw was in colour. It was hard to see things clearly.
"Once I paid everything off, I suddenly realised the colours became so much brighter. I also felt more motivated and energetic."
It was one of his toughest times in life as he had to accept whatever jobs were offered to him.
Reflecting on his experience, Mark thought it was probably a test that the heavens had set for him.
"I had it too easy, I made a lot of money and then I started gambling. [They might have thought] it was time to give me some training. It was my experiences that shaped so much of who I am. I've learned to take things easier," he said.
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