Andrea Fonseka

Filipino-Malaysian model and beauty pageant

Paul Dewar

(m. 2010)

Parent(s)Josephine Lena Wong
Datuk Dr. G.C.A Fonseka

Andrea Fonseka (born 29 August 1984) is a Malaysian actress, TV host, model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe Malaysia 2004.^[1] As an actress, she is currently working predominantly in Malaysia and Singapore.

Personal life

Andrea Fonseka was born in Penang, Malaysia, on 29 August 1984. She is of mixed ethnic heritage. Her father is of Sinhalese (Sri Lankan), Portuguese, Spanish, and Filipino descent, while her mother is of Chinese descent.^[2] She is the youngest of four daughters and currently lives and works between Singapore, Malaysia and Australia. She studied at SMK(P) Taman Petaling (Taman Petaling Girls' National Secondary School) in Petaling Jaya during her secondary school years. She also holds a Bachelor of Laws from the National University of Singapore.

Fonseka married an Australian lawyer Paul Dewar on 31 July 2010, in Kuala Lumpur.

Career

Fonseka first came to the public's attention when she hosted the first season of Xfresh.tv, a teen program produced by Malaysia's Astro TVIQ.

In 2004, Andrea followed her mother's footsteps^[3] and won the Miss Malaysia Universe title.^[2] She subsequently represented Malaysia in Miss Universe 2004, in Ecuador.^[4] After the pageant, Andrea relocated to Singapore to study Law at the National University of Singapore. She graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from NUS in 2008. Shortly after moving to Singapore, Andrea became an ambassador for Marie France Bodyline and appeared on numerous magazine covers, including FHM Singapore.

This exposure led her to becoming a host on ESPN's Score Today and then suitcase girl number 10 in Deal or No Deal on Mediacorp Channel 5. Following the success of Deal or No Deal, Channel 5 invited Andrea to co-host the live TV singing contest Live The Dream with Utt and Michelle Chia.^[5]

Andrea subsequently moved into acting, starring in small parts in Maggi & Me and Parental Guidance, and then landing major roles in Housemates, the channel 5 drama En Bloc and the feature film Carrotcake Conversations.

Andrea was voted the world's sexiest woman in FHM Singapore's 100 Sexiest Women in the World for 2007. She won No.1 ranking for the second time in 2008, making her the first repeat winner for FHM's Top 100 Sexiest.

2009–present

Andrea was inducted into the Miss Malaysia Universe Hall of Fame in 2009,^[6] recognizing her success and contribution in the regional entertainment industry. In 2010, Fonseka became the Face of the Malaysia International Fashion Week, and fronting the Fashion-TV program.

Fonseka was the National Director for Miss Universe Malaysia from 2010 until 2013.^[7]

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2004	Xfresh.tv	Host
2004	Miss Universe 2004	Contestant	Pageant
2006	A Light Affair	Contestant
	Female Magazine 50 Most Gorgeous 2006	Contestant	Pageant
	Housemates	Andrea	Music videos
	Parental Guidance	SIA attendant
2007	ESPN Score Today	Presenter
	Deal or No Deal	Suitcase 10	Game show
	Live The Dream	Host	Live TV singing contest
2008	Maggi & Me	Sherry	TV comedy
	En Bloc	Cindy Lim	TV drama
	The Carrotcake Conversations	Ruth
	Don't Forget the Lyrics	Herself	Game show
2011	BeautyCamp	Host, judge, executive producer	The search for Miss Universe Malaysia 2012
2012	The Apartment Style Edition	Guest judge	Episode 205, season 1
2014	Asia's Next Top Model (Season 2)	Herself, guest judge	Episode 8

Notes

^ HENG, NATALIE. "Like mother, like daughter". The Star. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
^ ^a ^b Former Miss Malaysia shares KL's best-kept shopping secret, Felix Cheong, Asiaone, 18 October 2008.
^ Beauty queen follows in mother's footsteps, New Straits Times, 16 April 2004.
^ "Ecuador picked to host 2004 Miss Universe pageant". Reuters News. 19 August 2003.
^ Bio of Live The Dream host Andrea Fonseka, retrieved February 2009.
^ About MUMO Archived 7 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 7 April 2011.
^ Andrea Fonseka, National Director Archived 17 February 2011 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 7 April 2011.