TikTok star Uncle Roger's social media accounts in China have been suspended following a crackdown by authorities on public figures poking fun at the authoritarian government. British-Malaysian comic, Nigel Ng - who goes by his stage name Uncle Roger - told fans over the weekend that his accounts on Bilibili and Weibo had been suspended for a "violation of relevant laws and regulations".
He suggested it was due to a clip he had posted on his Twitter days earlier. The video, which was a promotion for an upcoming live show, sees Uncle Roger ask where an audience member comes from.
The man replies: "Guangzhou, China", to which the comic responds "Good country! Good country! We have to say that now, correct? All the phones listening… this nephew got Huawei phone, they all listening."
The comedian then taps his phone and says "long live President Xi, long live President Xi... phew." While looking for audience members from Taiwan, he goes on to add: "Not a real country. I hope one day you re-join the motherland."
The influencer's TikTok account, Mrnigelng, has more 10million followers and rose to fame after videos of him critiquing Western cooks making Chinese dishes went viral. His ban comes just days after he appeared on Gordon Ramsay's Future Food Stars as a guest judge.
In response to having his accounts suspended, he funnyman posted a reply as his alter-ego, Uncle Roger. He told viewers: "Haiyaa, the day finally arrived. Uncle Roger talk too much s*** and now all my Chinese social media SUSPENDED.
"Uncle Roger always talked s*** about everybody. It doesn't matter if you BBC, CCP (Chinese Communist Party), Jamie Oliver - nobody safe."
Previous controversy
Ng's first brush with Chinese censorship came in 2021, when he collaborated with Mike Chen, a known critic of Beijing. The collaboration saw the two produce a video where they critiqued a dumpling recipe.
Ng went on to delete the video and issue an apology on Weibo, saying he "wasn't aware of his [Chen's] political thoughts and his past incorrect remarks about China". This left fans confused and angered many who accused Ng of backing down to Chinese threats, pandering to the people he rails against.
