Esplanade chimes in after S'pore woman calls it 'durian' building in viral London street interview
Ivan Lim
TNP
Oct 1, 2025
Netizens are raving about a Singapore woman interviewed on social media channel Surgen TV, whom they say represented the country well.
In the one-minute video filmed in a question-and-answer format along London's Carnaby Street, the woman - whose name is not revealed - gives the interviewer snippets about Singapore.
She mentions the country's four official languages - English, Malay, Tamil and Mandarin - the world's tallest indoor waterfall at Jewel Changi Airport, that most Singaporeans live in HDB flats and the Esplanade, which she describes as resembling a delicacy that everyone loves, the durian.
The woman speaks in a well-modulated voice with little trace of an accent, and her pan-Asian appearance suggests she is Eurasian.
Posted on Sept 28, the video had received 460,000 views, 27,100 reactions and 503 comments as of press time. It has been shared 1,648 times.
The video was also shared on Reddit where it had received 228 upvotes and 50 comments.
'Majulah Singapura'
Netizens praised the woman for the positive representation of Singapore, as well as her beauty.
"I am proud of her... Majulah Singapura," said a TikTok user.
"I'm so proud of this video ! A proper interview with true knowledge about our country! Well done babe. Thank you," said another.
"I love how she is representing Singapore really WELL. She is really pretty too," said yet another netizen on TikTok.
Some commented that her polished accent might make people expect all Singaporeans to speak like her.
"Who is she? she is great.. but now imagine people visiting Singapore and expecting us to talk like her… btw good ambassador!!" said one TikTok user.
"About to say her English is so polished. For most of us we do speak this way to foreigners but to locals, ok lah hoseh boh? Our Singlish all come out," another commented.
Several commented on the absence of Singlish. "Where the leh, lah, lor, ma and can?" said one TikTokker.
Some commented in jest that she got it wrong when she said National Day unites Singaporeans. "What unites Singapore isn't national day. It's complaining," said a Redditor.
"So true. Also kaya toast!" said another. "Queueing," yet another Redditor said.
There was even acknowledgment from an official source. "Hi it's us the durian building," Esplanade Singapore's TikTok account commented.
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