Former child star Fung Bo-bo planned to retire, but her fans changed her mind

For a supposedly retired actress - she hasn't appeared in a film since Ann Hui On-wah's All About Love in 2010 - 60-year-old Petrina Fung Bo-bo seems to have a very hectic schedule.

During a recent visit to Hong Kong, the Malaysia-based Fung managed to squeeze in a number of engagements in town and on the mainland, some public talks, and an appearance at the Heritage Museum, where her long-time friend, fashion designer Eddie Lau Pui-kai, is having a retrospective exhibition.

Fung was also here to attend the opening ceremony of Merry-Go-Movies Star Kids, an exhibition on former child stars currently on show at the Hong Kong Film Archive. Running until November 3, the show features detailed texts, photos, video interviews, and footage of 12 popular child actors and actresses of the 1950s and '60s, including Michael Lai Siu-tin, Shek Sau and Tsui Siu-ming.

Fung is the ultimate prodigy, according to the exhibition. "By far the most well-known and prolific child actor in the history of Hong Kong cinema, the iconic figure had her first screen appearance at the young age of two and a half years old, and then formally took up a role at [age] five. By [the time she was] 14 years old, she had already participated in more than 120 titles," say the exhibition notes.

Eight of Fung's early films have been selected for Merry Go Movies Star Kids including Love vs Love (aka Little Sweetheart), a 1956 comedy directed by her father, actor-director Fung Fung. It was her first feature. Understandably, memories of her big screen debut are hazy: "I was only an extra sitting down to eat my cake, or whatever," she says with a laugh, eyes twinkling.

Referred to as the Shirley Temple of the East by the local media, and dubbed The Queen by her peers in her heyday, Fung went on to become a popular - and versatile - young actress, as shown in Little Twin Actresses, a 1962 film in which she played six different roles.