Watch the CGM Spring Festival Gala with us. It’s that special annual evening show that captures millions of viewers on the night of the Chinese New Year. Loved by many, hated by some, it always generates social media buzz. We’ll bring you the ins & outs of the 2026 Gala and its social media frenzy, with updates before, during, and after the show.

It is time again for the China Media Group Spring Festival gala – better known as the ‘Chunwan’ (春晚) – one of China’s most significant televised cultural events of the year, organized and produced by the state-run CCTV since 1983 and broadcast across dozens of channels, watched by millions.

What can we expect a typical Chunwan to look like? The programme usually runs for about four hours, from 20:00 China Standard Time to a little past midnight, and features around 30 acts: acrobatics, singing, dance, comic sketches (xiaopin 小品), crosstalk (xiangsheng 相声), magic, Peking Opera, public service segments, and tributes to national heroes. This year, however, some things will be different — more on that soon.

Liveblogging the show has become something of a personal tradition. You can explore more of my Gala coverage on the website here, spanning the past ten years, during which I liveblogged eight editions.

Tonight, I’m watching the Gala together with Miranda Barnes and Ruixin Zhang, so follow along in the liveblog below. Keep the page open and you should hear a ping when new updates arrive.

Update: This liveblog is now closed. You can still read all updates below, sorted from oldest to newest.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 19:06

About an hour to go — about the final version of the program

As we’re waiting for the event to kick off, a little bit about the show’s background. Because it’s not just the Gala night itself that has become a tradition, both online and offline, but also the discussions and buzz surrounding it.

As every year, the final version of the programme is only released quite last-minute, even though the full show — behind the scenes — has already gone through multiple rehearsals and generated plenty of anticipation.

There is likely some risk calculation behind this, as things can still change at the last minute. But the element of surprise in the final performance lineup also adds to the excitement and helps boost viewership, with discussions over who will perform what continuing well into the evening as the show begins.

The full program is typically distributed by China Media Group (CMG) as an extremely long, scrollable image designed for phone viewing, which also makes it a bit harder to copy and paste (though easier in the AI era).

By the way, CMG, the main organizer of the Gala, is an umbrella media powerhouse that includes the national television broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV), the national radio network China National Radio (CNR), and international broadcaster China Radio International (CRI).

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 19:35

What can we expect to stand out at this 2026 CMG Gala?

Half an hour to go. There are a few things that already stand out about this year’s Gala — the 44th edition — even before it has begun. Three short observations:

1– Especially AI & Tech-focused

The Gala has traditionally been a blend of culture, commerce, and politics, with Party-state ideology woven into popular entertainment, from aesthetics to messaging, including through skits. Over the past decade, the Gala has increasingly focused on showcasing China’s technological power. I often think back to that iconic 2016 performance featuring 540 dancing robots, which helped set the stage for the Gala as an annual showcase of robotics and other state-backed media technology.

This year, with China’s AI stronger than ever and ByteDance’s Seedance 2.0 among the major talking points, we will likely see technology everywhere. There will be AI-generated imagery responding to stage elements in real time, hyper-realistic digital humans, and more.

Robots are also still very present. The Gala reportedly features its largest robot lineup to date, including dancing humanoid robots from Unitree Robotics (宇树科技) and other companies. Some martial arts segments are also expected to feature robot participation.

2– Foreign-focused

Following the Year of the Snake (2025) — when China became “cool” (see my piece on Becoming Chinese) — this soft-power effect is being fully embraced by Chinese state media. The Gala is now promoted internationally, including on YouTube, with messaging such as: “This is where it gets cool, this is where the future meets timeless Eastern aesthetics. This is where we feel warmth, where everyone belongs. When the CMG Spring Festival Gala begins, you are coming home.”

This outward-facing promotion also aligns with the Spring Festival being added to UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list in late 2024. Beijing is increasingly positioning the event as a global celebration rather than only a national one.

The participation of Lionel Richie is particularly noteworthy. Together with John Legend, Jackie Chan, and others, he will perform in what is expected to be the most international segment of the night, highlighting China’s global cultural appeal. The performance will be staged from Yiwu, China’s wholesale capital, which produces an estimated 60–80% of the world’s Christmas decorations, among many other goods.

Other international performers appearing tonight include John Legend, Hélène Rollès, Westlife, the Hungarian National Folk Ensemble, Spanish dancer Jesús Carmona, and Austrian acrobatic troupe Jonglissimo.

3 – Taiwan

Lastly, Taiwan-related performances will inevitably carry political significance, especially given current cross-strait tensions. There is a strong sense of cultural nostalgia in the programme, emphasizing connection and shared heritage. For example, in the song “Treasure Island Love Song” (宝岛恋歌), with “Treasure Island” being an affectionate term for Taiwan may become the clearest expression of this theme. Will let you know when it comes up!

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 20:02

Instant Magic

Ok, we’re kicking off with instant magic. That’s the name of this opening song in English, but its Chinese name is 马上有奇迹, which means “there will immediately be a miracle”, but since “immediately” also means “on horseback” there’s a double meaning (“On the horse, there are miracles.”) There are a lot of word jokes this Year of the Horse, and they’re all meant to be both funny and lucky at the same time.

A little more context for tonight’s show: it is clearly horse-themed as we welcome the Year of the Horse, and carries the title “Galloping Steeds, Unstoppable Momentum” (骐骥驰骋 势不可挡). The title itself feels meaningful. In previous years, themes were often more closely tied to tradition, family, fulfilling dreams, and cherishing reunion, while the emphasis on speed this year seems to signal China’s rapid rise and growing global influence — at least, that’s how I read the idea of “unstoppable momentum.”

The show is directed by Yu Lei (于蕾), who has long been associated with the Gala and is now directing it for a fourth consecutive year, that’s a first in the Gala’s 44-year history.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 20:08

Different venues

We’re now seeing a showcase of all the different venues participating tonight. The main show is broadcast from Beijing, but there are always multiple venues outside of Beijing. This year:

• Harbin (ice-themed stage)
• Yiwu (Global Digital Trade Center, international performers)
• Hefei
• Yibin (“First City on the Yangtze” skyline)

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 20:10

Start of Spring

We’re watching the “Start of Spring”: the gala’s first major song-and-dance stage, featuring an all-female ensemble with AR technology enhancing the theme of the start of the Chinese New Year.

The performers come from mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, combining some more famous older faces with newer mainland performers.

A little note: this Gala is broadcast on all kinds of channels and platforms, including on BiliBili – which is where the youth is. The Gala has lost a lot of younger viewers, so this is one way to try and reach the audiences who are less used to watching traditional tv. This will be the second year Bilibili and the Chunwan are cooperating for the live broadcast, also allowing for “bullet comments” that appear in the screen.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 20:18

Grandma’s Favorite

This is the first comedy sketch of the night, featuring Cai Ming (蔡明), the beloved 64-year-old comedy veteran.

This sketch is much-awaited! Not only because of Cai Ming herself, but also because of the theme. In 1996, the famous actress also did a sketch featuring a robot (机器人趣话)- or actually, it was she herself who played a robot wife.

Now, after 30 years, she again returned, and this time not just meeting robots in the new AI era, there is also another robot version of herself.

The robots are by the Beijing-based humanoid robotics startup Songyan Power (松延动力/Noetix Robotics), and in this sketch, they are portrayed as taking care of the elderly – washing her clothes and doing other chores, while also keeping her company – because her own grandchild won’t visit her.

The sketch is a comedy one, obviously, but (as every year), there are always young people on social media who struggle to find it particularly funny.

Regardless, the sketch touches upon some important social issues in a rapidly aging China, perhaps seeing a future where more elderly will use tech and AI.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 20:29

武BOT — Martial Arts Robots

Quite amazing, this performance featuring robots by the Hangzhou-based humanoid robotics company Unitree Technology (宇树科技) doing actual martial arts together with students from the Henan Tagou Martial Arts School.

Turning this into a robot vs human battle, it’s really quite Bruce Lee goes 2026, and an excellent showcase for Unitree Tech and China’s AI robot development at large.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 20:34

Made in China

Made in China, created in China – a song is about futuristic made-in-China inventions that are now in people’s daily lives.

The English name of this song is “Smart Creation of the Future” (智造未来), featuring many popular male singers: Jordan Chan/Chen Xiaochun (陈小春), Jerry Yan/Yan Chengxu (言承旭), Luo Jiahao (罗嘉豪), Jackson Yee/Yi Yangqianxi (易烊千玺), performing together wih Magic Atom (魔法原子, another Chinese robotics company. (One of the four companies, if I’m correct, that is participating in this year’s Gala).

---

🕒 Feb 16, 20:38

Celebrating the Flower Goddess

Lovely segment featuring many special technologies and showing that Chinese traditional culture and modern technologies can blend together. This is in line with show elements that we’ve seen over the past few years, especially in the Gala’s directed by Yu Lei.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 20:44

Dazzle and Move

This segment, featuring Aaron Kwok/Guo Fucheng (郭富城, born 1965) and Wang Yibo (王一博, born 1997), has been among some of the songs that have been highly anticipated online, mostly due to the millions of fans these super popular singers/popstars have among both older and younger audiences.

Wang Yibo’s outfit (a Saiid Kobeisy 2026 spring/summer couture feather-embroidered jacket) leaked hours before broadcast and immediately went viral. Netizens are framing it as a “passing of the torch” moment between two generations of Chinese stage performers.

---

🕒 Feb 16, 20:49

Once a viral word hits the Gala, it’s officially “washed”

The gala always features internet hit words and slang that people have forgotten about throughout the year. But because they use the slang awkwardly, according to many young viewers, it gives off the impression of a traditional show trying too hard to fit into to online life.

One meme posted shows the ““The Life Cycle of an Internet Meme/Slang””: a new meme appears, it’s fresh and funny, then it suddenly goes viral, and then when your co-workers and parents start using it, it’s basically dead.

However, when it then finally appears in the Gala, it’s officially over, and the meme is “washed.”

Some netizens are counting the number of “slang words” used by the Gala that can now (tongue-in-cheek) be removed from the popular online lexicon.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 20:55

Whose Dish?

We’ve arrived at the stand-up segment, which is interesting — traditionally, xiangsheng (相声) acts on the Gala tend to come from the north, while these two performers have a strong southern (Hunan) accent.

The Gala’s comedy shows have long been criticized for being too northern China–centric, with many viewers in the south, especially in Cantonese-speaking regions, feeling less connected to them. This shift may reflect an effort to strike a better balance between northern and southern comedy traditions.

By the way, the performers are Xu Haolun (徐浩伦) and Tan Xiangwen (谭湘文).

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 21:18

Sorry for some tech problems > Back now

Back online! Had some tech problems, so missed the last performance, but we’re back. Watching “Lucky Steed” (吉量), featuring singer Zhou Shen (周深). The kids come from Guizhou, doing a fashion show featuring their local traditional costumes.

They’re part of the ‘Village T-stage’ (村T) of Southeast Guizhou, which is a grassroots fashion troupe. You could spot traditional attire of the Miao, Dong, Buyi, Sui, and Yao peoples. The Gala has always placed a heavy focus on ethnic and regional representation (emphasizing national unity and ethnic solidarity), and there will be more songs later on showing this.

What did we miss?

1. There was one segment shown from Yibin (宜宾) one of the four venues besides Beijing for the 2026 Gala, chosen to showcase Sichuan’s cultural identity. Here, you could also spot Li Ziqi, the influencer who had great success in popularizing Chinese traditional culture abroad.
2. The other spectacular dance afterward featured the Xinjiang Arts Theater Song and Dance Troupe, transporting viewers onto the ancient Silk Road through Dunhuang-inspired visual design. More about that later.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 21:28

“You’ll Like This for Sure”

After a song about the “Autumn Harvest” (来晒秋) featuring the massively popular Phoenix Legend pop duo together with the Ningxia Zhongning County Farmer Choir, we’re now arriving at the “comedy short drama.”

This is called “You’ll like this for sure” (喜剧短剧).

Interestingly, you see that the Spring Gala is choosing to cast faces from different talent pools, and many more are coming from China’s short drama industry. This is a gradual shift, where the directors are really aiming at younger audiences, mixing the older faces with young talent.

This whole sketch is about the addictive attraction of algorithm-driven content feeds on Chinese platforms like Douyin or Kuaishou. And although a lot of it is meant to be funny, there’s always a more serious undertone. In this case, reflecting on a generation of netizens who can’t even have dinner without watching short videos. This sketch seems to be quite well-received.

---

🕒 Feb 16, 21:32

Human Resonance — Li Jian

This song was released a few days before the Gala.

This song also marks Li Jian’s first return to Chunwan for the first time in 13 years, something many fans seemed happy about.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 21:40

The Yiwu Stage

The Yiwu stage – pay attention! This segment fetures Lionel Richie next to Jackie Chan, which is a very deliberate meeting of the stars, a meeting of East-West kind of narrative.

Why Yiwu? Yiwu is practically a factory of the world, and aso called China’s most cosmopolitan small city, since it’s a place where people from all over the world come together – you can hear Arabic, Spanish, and Uyghur on the same street.

Well here’s Lionel! Singing “We are the World” with Jackie Chan. I somehow envisioned him to be THERE in Yiwu, but it’s a studio recording and does not appear to be live, which, I’ll admit is a bit of a disappointment.

---

🕒 Feb 16, 21:46

Galloping Sea-Bay Horse

This is a song by Wurina and Aruna together with grassland performance group Wulanmuqi.

Here we see the beautiful AI-generated horses in the background, which I had been reading about before the Gala.

Apparently, the horses sometimes galloped too quickly or too slowly, so it was a challenge to integrate the AI visuals with what was happening on stage.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 22:03

Too much tech?

After a VERY high-energy song about “Fortune at your fingertips” (手到福来), featuring Hong Kong film legend Tony Leung Ka-fai (梁家辉) and mainland actress Liu Tao (刘涛), we’ve arrived at the next comedy sketch.

Meanwhile, online, there are people complaining about the lack of funny jokes in the show (it’s a complaint every year) and the abundance of robots. Some even suggest that many of the songs sound like they were written by AI.

Noteworthy is not just how much AI & robots appear in this show, but the sponsors of the Gala are also overwhelmingly from the tech environment. Out of nine announced sponsors, only two were traditional liquor brands.

The companies behind the robots reportedly invested around 100 million yuan (14 million usd) to get their robots on stage. This is the first time we’re not just seeing dancing robots, they’re also in the martial arts sketches, and even in the comedy skits. For many, it’s just too much. Another problem: they lack comical skills.

Another unexpected effect of this robotization of the Gala is that while many viewers are usually watching to see if any of the singers or actors make mistakes, they’re now waiting for a robot to do something wrong.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 22:14

Tears for Mum

The “jellyfish dance” with the beautiful colors is called “Joyful Rain” (喜雨) featuring lead dancer Meng Qingyang (孟庆旸) together with the Zhejiang Conservatory of Music – these are the kinds of dances Miranda and I always love the most,

The song with the tearful audiences is called “Mom Has a Cinema” (妈妈有座电), and was made with guidance of the famous Zhang Yimou.The singer was Deng Chao (邓超), and I’m not sure if the lady on stage was their actual mother. Correction: it’s the actress Chi Peng (迟蓬).

The song showed the milestones of a child’s growth and the unbreakable connection between mother and child.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 22:22

Faye Wong and Taiwan Nostalgia

Here we have arrived at Faye Wong’s performance, which was one of the songs that people looked forward to the most, mainly just because she is such a beloved singer. It’s titled “The Moment We Experienced Together” (你我经历的一刻)

Before Faye Wong: the song “Treasure Island Love Song”, the song invoking the most Taiwan Nostalgia of the night, although there was less political visual messaging than I expected.

This performance also included the Taipei-born Ouyang Nana, alongside a stacked cast of Taiwan-born artists.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 22:31

Meanwhile on Douyin & Bilibili

The platform Bilibili just posted about the most frequently sent bullet comment (danmu) during their Spring Festival Gala livestream. It is not “great”, “wonderful”, or “spectacular,” but: “Ah?” / “Huh?” The peak moment was apparently during one of the sketches, leaving viewers a bit confused rather than humored, apparently.

Also, meanwhile, some netizens are noting that Douyin users are complaining that criticising the Gala is apparently not allowed on the platform. On On Weibo, criticism of the Gala seems to have already been restricted for several years.

This censorship and control of the narrative surrounding the Gala makes it extra noteworthy that Bilbili has opened up its on-screen commenting for the Gala – although it does take some time for the comments to show up on screen (they are filtered, as well).

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 22:50

From Harbin to “Let Me Be Young Again”

Harbin is one of the sub-venues this year, and in its Gala segment, the city was portrayed as a cold place with an unexpectedly warm heart. It has become very popular in recent years during the Spring Festival travel season for its snow attractions and famously friendly locals. (Unfortunately, it’s also been quite literally warm — just this weekend, an 18-meter-high snowman had to be demolished after temperatures rose above 0°C, creating the risk that the entire sculpture might collapse.)

The mother-and-child duet featured a song from the 2024 feminist film Her Story (好东西), which is noteworthy. The film faced considerable backlash from some men online, and the actors were subjected to waves of slander. Its inclusion in the Gala feels meaningful.

“Let Me Be Young Again” (许我再少年), performed by Wei Chen (魏晨) and Liu Yuning (刘宇宁), is a Gala-commissioned original song, meaning it was written specifically for the 2026 Spring Festival Gala and kept fully unreleased before the broadcast. Its placement is deliberate. Appearing in the later segment of the program, close to 11 PM, the song is an hour before midnight in the “emo-core” of the Gala, a moment typically reserved for more reflective and sentimental songs.

Following this song is the Gala’s annual xiqu (戏曲, traditional Chinese opera) showcase segment. According to reports released before the show, the segment brings together excerpts from multiple major regional opera forms, specifically Jingju/Beijing opera (京剧), Pingju (评剧), Yueju/Shaoxing opera (越剧), Yueju/Cantonese opera (粤剧), and Yuju/Henan opera (豫剧), fused into 1 single creative medley.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 22:54

We just noticed..

Those who have followed the Gala for many years may recall that performers from Taiwan, Macau, or Hong Kong were typically always introduced with on-screen credits noting where they were from. It is unclear whether this is the first year that practice has been dropped, but it appears to have changed and they no longer do that. The shift may reflect a subtle move in emphasis from highlighting “two systems” toward a stronger focus on the idea of “one China.”

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 23:03

A little joke when watching the magic segment. This post said, “When you show your tongue piercing to your relatives.”

Another general sentiment was also that the magic tricks were more funny that the skits, which were meant to be comical.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 23:11

The night is suddenly going so fast! We’ve seen a so-called “micro-musical”, titled “Every Ray of Light” (每道光), which is meant as a tribute to all the workers. That’s why you saw delivery guys, factory workers – many of them actually also really doing these jobs and thus mixing the celebrities with the real-life workers.

The song afterwards (小家年年) mixed some elements of singing art from Suzhou with pop song format.

The short movie or “micro movie” was introduced a few years back as a recurring part of the Gala. This one, titled “My Most Unforgettable Tonight”, features China’s most famous comic duo Shen Teng (沈腾) and Ma Li (马丽). In the “behind-the-scenes” movie, they’re joined by robots from Galaxy Universal, one of the four major companies sponsoring the Gala this year.

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 23:17

How serious is criticizing the Gala, really?

Since we’re seeing quite a lot of people criticizing the Gala, often in soft ways, it raises the question of how restricted criticism really is. As is often the case with China’s online dynamics, it’s not entirely black and white. Still, posting a strongly critical video on Douyin does not seem very feasible this year. Even a video by well-known Chinese comedy star Papi Jiang, posted before the Gala, was taken down. In a humorous tone, she had made some predictions about how the Gala might feel less creative or a bit cringe this year. Apparently, that was a step too far. (Link to video: https://youtu.be/zF9R5ry-gVY?si=ub7UFKA4ax21eRUV)

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 23:26

Poking fun at lazy local authorities

The sketch “Here Again” (又来了) is described as rather “brave” by some viewers. It pokes at local authorities doing fake “field visits” yet not solving any substantial issues for the people.

This strikes a chord with people who can recognize this as a real issue of different departments trying to avoid their own responsibilities, and trying to leave it to others. Some viewers appreciate a sketch like this pointing at real frustrations in society.

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 23:34

Hefei is in the spotlight

This is the first time for Hefei to be featured as a sub-venue during the Chunwan. As for every city featured in the mega show, it’s an important moment for city marketing.

The venue featured is Luogang Park (骆岗公园), a repurposed former airport transformed into what is described as the world’s largest urban park.

Hefei, capital of Anhui, has a booming drone industry, which is also why you see so many drones in this segment.

At the same time, Anhui is one of China’s most invisible provinces online. Many people don’t know that the University of Science and Technology of China is in Hefei; they all think it’s in Beijing. So a bit more publicity for Hefei definitely can’t hurt.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 23:38

“Bottom of the Dream” (梦底)

We just saw “Bottom of the Dream” (梦底), featuring singer Hai Lai Amu (海来阿木) in his third consecutive Spring Festival Gala appearance. As a result, some commenters joked that he was “treating the Gala like his regular workplace” (把春晚当工位了).

Some people are joking about the dancer in the performance, because she seemed to overshadow the singer.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 23:48

Stamping the Rhythm

We just saw an unlikely combination of performers, which is pretty cool: the Minzu University of China together with the Hungarian National Folk Ensemble and the Jesús Carmona Spanish Dance Company,

Then it’s time for a more childlike and playful song: “Happy Little Horse” (快乐小马).

The next performance is titled “Painting the New Spring” (绘新春) and it’s quite spectacular, featured performers from Austria together with the Henan Provincial Acrobatic Troupe.



---

🕒 Updated: Feb 16, 23:56

The only military song of the night

Every Gala usually features one military song (军歌). This is “My Post, My Watch” (战位有我在), the only PLA-dedicated song at the Gala this year. The performers are from the PLA Cultural Arts Center, which was established in April 2018 through the merger of the former August First Film Studio, the PLA Song and Dance Troupe, Drama Troupe, Opera Troupe, and Military Band under the Central Military Commission Political Work Department.

This segment appears to mostly emphasize duty, vigilance, and each soldier’s personal commitment to their post, highlighting different roles across the military.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 17, 0:00

Positive energy

So far, ethnic minorities, farmers, and traditional opera have all been featured as unmissable elements of every Gala night. The song “Searching for Dreams Across Mountains and Seas” (山海寻梦), is described by Chinese media as a tribute to all Chinese people who strive, persevere, and dedicate themselves welcoming a new spring where “hearts find joy and careers find success” (心有所悦、业有所成).

A classic Gala genre of inspirational zhengnengliang (“positive energy”) songs that usually appear just before the finale, which is where we are now!

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 17, 0:02

It’s midnight! Happy Year of the Horse!

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 17, 0:13

It’s not over yet

As it’s past midnight, we’ve reached the final stretch of the show, though there’s still a bit to go.

After a cheerful song about visiting family (“A Guide to Visiting Relatives,” 串门指南), we now see the beautiful performance “Riding the Wind” (驭风歌) featuring Jason Zhang.

Meanwhile, online criticism of this year’s Gala also seems to be growing. Is it really this year’s show, or is this simply the usual annual debate? Perhaps it’s both, as a common saying goes: “There’s never a worst, only worse than last year,” (中央春晚，没有最烂，只有更烂.) Much of the criticism right now is directed at the heavy use of robots. Among the different sub-venues, Yiwu is also drawing critique for highlighting the city’s commercial/capitalist side while choosing the song “We Are the World” which is meant to emphasize collective goodwill and charity and is one of the most famous charity songs ever made.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 17, 0:18

Guaranteed Satisfaction

This is the final comedy sketch of the night, titled “Guaranteed Satisfaction” (包你满意). (There used to be many more of these, but with greater focus on song, dance, and tech, there is now less room for sketches, which are also often less popular among younger viewers.)

You might notice a format called “three-and-a-half sentences” (三句半), which sometimes appears in sketch comedy and crosstalk (including in the opening lines here). The first three lines are rhythmic or rhymed, while the fourth is only half a sentence — usually a short, punchy, rhyming tag. This is one of the most common opening formats in language-based performances on the Gala, a style that traces its origins to Beijing.

This particular sketch is described as a grassroots comedy centered on everyday consumer disputes, featuring Sha Yi, one of China’s veteran comic actors.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 17, 0:22

The most meme-worthy moment of the night

It seems the Gala moment many people are joking about most is the Cai Ming sketch, in which she plays a little grandma employing robots in her home for all kinds of tasks. Funnily enough, many netizens, tired of being asked when they will finally settle down, have found an unlikely hero in Cai Ming, sharing:

“My parents: If you don’t have children in the future, who will take care of you when you’re old?”

“Me:”

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 17, 0:40

Brother Legend

Unlike Lionel, John Legend is present at the Gala itself. In Chinese, he is called 传奇哥: “Brother Legend.” This “Love Medley” also features Hélène Rollès (France) and Westlife (Ireland).

Westlife the band is still very popular in China. In 2024 they even allowed a Chinese AI platform to use their voices for singing.

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 17, 0:43

“Chasing Shadows” (追影)

Still want to briefly return to the act we saw before the street dance number “Sounds of Spring” (新春之声), which is “Chasing Shadows” (追影).

A truly beautiful piece, led by dancer Zhang Han (张翰) from Hubei. Zhang is best known for his role as the male lead Xi Meng in the dance-drama “Only This Green” (只此青绿), inspired by the Song dynasty painting A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains (千里江山图). The production was adapted into a film in 2024 starring Zhang.

The 2022 Gala actually also included a dance that was inspired by the painting which was stunning.

The other song that followed, Gongxi Facai (恭喜发财), can be seen as the Chinese New Year version of “All I Want for Christmas Is You”: every New Year season, it’s the song you hear everywhere, from the streets to the supermarkets, and it has become a meme in much the same way.

Meanwhile, there have also been some online comparisons between the robot shows in 2025 versus 2026, showing just how fast development is going. At this speed, wonder what the Gala will look like in 2027 and beyond!

---

🕒 Updated: Feb 17, 0:45

A different “Unforgettable Tonight”

Legendary singer Li Guyi (李谷一), who first performed “Unforgettable Tonight” (难忘今宵) in 1984 as the Gala’s signature closing song, has confirmed she will miss the show again due to health issues, marking her fourth consecutive absence since 2023.

Instead, we are seeing a different kind of “Unforgettable Tonight” (难忘今宵). The Gala appears to be shaping a new closing tradition without Li Guyi, this time featuring children and performers with disabilities, incorporating sign language and creating a more inclusive, human ending to an otherwise highly “robotic” show.

Performers include the Beijing Philharmonic Choir (北京爱乐合唱团), the Galaxy Youth TV Art Troupe (银河少年电视艺术团), and the China Disabled People’s Performing Art Troupe (中国残疾人艺术团).

Thank you for reading along, and I wish you a very happy and healthy Year of the Horse!

If you appreciate what we do and would like to receive the next newsletter on the latest Spring Festival trends, please don’t forget to subscribe. Signing off now, and thanks to Miranda and Ruixin for staying glued to the screen with me tonight. Until next time!

In early February, as China settled into the quiet anticipation of the Chinese New Year, one of the country’s leading investigative journalists, Han Futao (韩福涛), dropped a bombshell report that sent shockwaves of anger across the country.

Han Futao is known for breaking massive scandals. In 2024, he exposed how tank trucks that delivered chemical products also transported cooking oil, without being cleaned. That food safety scandal sparked waves of outrage and prompted a high-level official investigation, leading to criminal charges for those involved.

In his latest explosive report, published by Beijing News (新京报), Han has turned his lens to malpractice in China’s hospital sector. His investigation led him to Xiangyang, in Hubei province, a city with more than twenty psychiatric hospitals, cropping up on every corner “like beef noodle shops” over recent years.

 

Recruiting Patients

 

Han found that multiple private psychiatric hospitals lure people in under the guise of free care, promising treatment for little or no cost, along with medication and daily expenses. Some even dispatched staff to rural villages to recruit “patients.”

Troubled by the unusual marketing procedures of these psychiatric hospitals, Han went undercover at several facilities as a caregiver, and sometimes posing as a patient’s family member, only to expose a disturbing reality.

Except for a handful of genuine patients, these hospitals were filled with healthy people who actually received no treatment. Many were elderly citizens swayed by the promise of “free care,” checking in with the hope of finding a free retirement home.

When Han, posing as a patient’s family member, spoke to a hospital manager at Xiangyang Yangyiguang Psychiatric Hospital (襄阳阳一光精神病医院), the director enthusiastically pitched their “free hospitalization” by saying medical fees were completely waived and promising the potential patient a great stay: “Lots of patients stay here for years and don’t even go home for Chinese New Year!”

Meanwhile, the hospitals’ own staff, including caregivers, nurses, and security guards, were also officially registered as patients, complete with admission and hospitalization procedures.

The motive was simple: insurance fraud (骗保 piànbǎo). In China, even after state medical insurance covers part of psychiatric care costs, patients are typically still responsible for a co-pay. These hospitals, both in Xiangyang and in the city of Yichang, exploited the financial vulnerability of those unwilling or unable to pay, using the lure of free accommodation to attract the misinformed. Once admitted, the hospitals used their identities to fabricate medical records and bill the state for non-existent treatments.

According to internal billing records, medication accounted for only a small fraction of patients’ costs. The bulk of the charges came from psychotherapy and behavioral correction therapy, which often leave little material trace and, in these cases, were never actually provided. Many of these hospitals even lacked basic medical equipment and qualified personnel.

Staff were essentially manufacturing invoices, generating around 4,000 yuan (US$580) in fraudulent charges per patient each month, with most funds diverted from the National Healthcare Security Administration (NHSA).

With each patient yielding thousands of yuan, profitability became a numbers game: the more bodies in beds, the higher the revenue. This perverse incentive gave rise to a specialized workforce of marketers who recruited ordinary people from rural areas, developing sales pitches and establishing referral-based kickback chains, offering bonuses of 400 ($58) to 1,000 yuan ($145) for every new “patient” successfully brought in.

To stay under the radar, hospitals periodically discharged patients on paper to avoid scrutiny from insurance auditors, only to readmit them immediately, or never actually let them leave at all. One story involved a patient who was discharged seven times, each time being readmitted on the same day he was “discharged.”

Day after day, the national medical insurance fund, built on the collective contributions and trust of the entire population, was drained through these calculated deceptions.

 

From Patients to Prisoners

 

Han uncovered more. Even more harrowing than the scale of the medical insurance fraud was the condition of those trapped inside. To maximize profit margins, these hospitals slashed costs to the bone. Living conditions were terrible: wards overcrowded, beds crammed side-by-side, and daily activities and food substandard at best.

The hospitals treated their patients more like profit-generating assets than human beings. Patients were subjected to a strict regime: they were forced to follow rigid schedules, restricted to designated zones, and faced physical violence if they did not comply.

During Han’s undercover research, he witnessed the horrific sight of patients being tied to a bed for not following orders, with some patients allegedly being restrained for up to three days and three nights.

Some patients, despite technically being the ones receiving care, were forced to perform manual labor for the staff. They scrubbed pots, cleaned wards, mopped latrines, and moved supplies. Others even had to take on nursing tasks for fellow patients, such as feeding, bathing, and changing clothes, all in exchange for a few cents to buy a cigarette. Their personal freedom and quality of life were virtually non-existent.

Escape was also difficult. The hospitals had no intention of releasing their cash cows. Rarely was a patient discharged on the scheduled date. To ensure long-term residency, many hospitals confiscated patients’ phones and cut off contact with their families.

Some individuals spent nearly ten years in these prison-like conditions; some even died there. Meanwhile, those truly suffering from mental illness received no real treatment, often seeing their condition worsen or developing deep-seated trauma toward psychiatric care.

 

Fragile Public Trust in Welfare-Related Institutions

 

In China, there is a common belief that if you spot one cockroach in the room, there are already a hundred more hiding. As the story has gone viral over the past two weeks, netizens pointed out that Xiangyang and Yichang were likely not the only cities using such predatory tactics to cannibalize the national treasury. Han’s investigation struck a deeper nerve, and public anxiety over the security of social insurance once again bubbled to the surface.

China’s national health insurance is a cornerstone of the broader social insurance system and a vital part of life for nearly every citizen. It is generally divided into two categories: Employee Medical Insurance and Resident Medical Insurance. Employers are legally, at least in theory, required to contribute to the employee scheme, typically 6% to 9% of a worker’s salary. Non-employees, such as farmers, students, and freelancers, usually pay for Resident Insurance out of pocket, currently costing around 400 yuan ($58) annually. Under the employee scheme, inpatient reimbursement rates are roughly 80% to 85%; after approximately 25 years of contributions, members enjoy lifelong coverage without further payments. The Resident Insurance, however, offers significantly lower protection.

This system was designed as a fundamental safety net to alleviate the fear of falling into poverty due to illness or being left destitute in old age. For young Chinese job seekers, whether a company pays into social security used to be a non-negotiable criterion. However, as scandals shaking the foundation of this system have become more frequent, the mindset of the youth is shifting: Is it even worth paying into anymore?

Recent years have seen a steady stream of corruption scandals involving the embezzlement of social security funds.

Despite the authorities’ firm stance and high-profile punishments, 2025 was still marked by reports of officials — including the insurance bureau’s finance head — misappropriating funds to play the stock market. A June 2025 report even alleged that 40.6 billion yuan (US$5.8 billion) in national pension funds had been misappropriated or embezzled by local governments.

In one surreal case from Shanxi, a CDC employee’s records were doctored 14 times to create an absurd history of “starting work at age 1 and retiring at 22,” allowing them to pocket 690,000 yuan ($100,000) in pension while still drawing a salary at a new job.

These stories exposing large-scale abuse of the medical insurance system, combined with the extension of the minimum contribution period for retirement from 15 to 20 years amid a slowing job market and a gradually rising retirement age, are leading netizens to question the necessity of paying into the system. This is reflected in comments such as:

-“First it was 20 years, then 25, then 30. They move the goalposts whenever they want, but the benefits never improve.”
-“I won’t buy anything beyond the bare minimum resident insurance; who knows if there will even be a payout in the future?”
-“With a deficit this large, whether we’ll ever see that money is a huge question mark.”
-“I’m not even sure I’ll live to see 65 anyway.”

 

Echoes of the Cuckoo’s Nest

 

In response to Han’s latest exposure, local authorities immediately launched investigations, and state-run media outlets issued sharp criticism. By now, fourteen hospital executives have been criminally detained on suspicion of fraud.

Although the official report, published on the night of February 13, acknowledged that there was widespread medical fraud, with patients remaining hospitalized after recovery or empty beds being registered without any patients there, it said no evidence was found that people without mental disorders were admitted, which was one major finding of Han’s undercover operation.

This led to new questions, because how could fraud, abuse, fake discharges, and official corruption be acknowledged while denying the central allegation: that healthy people were being locked up? And how could people prove they were not mentally ill, while being a patient inside a psychiatric hospital?

Political & social commentator Hu Xijin (胡锡进) wrote on Weibo that, while he applauded Han and his team for exposing the mismanagement at psychiatric hospitals in Hubei, he also saw the report’s conclusions about the patients as a reminder that journalists should exercise caution when making accusations. Some sarcastic commenters suggested that perhaps Han had not sacrificed enough and should have admitted himself as a patient instead.

And so, in a way, the debate has now slowly also shifted – from the initial shock over Han’s report, to the anger and distrust surrounding state institutions and social security abuse, to the role of investigative journalism in China today. “He’s a hero,” some commenters said about Han.

In the end, the entire story is so absurd that some commentators have drawn parallels to One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (飞越疯人院), where Randle P. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) fakes insanity to serve his sentence in a mental hospital instead of a prison work farm, only to find out that the endless chain of control and abuse at the psych ward is much more brutal than a prison cell.

The question inescapably becomes who the sane ones actually are.

Meanwhile, the scandal shows that public anxiety about the future and distrust of state institutions tend to rise quickly and deepen slowly with each new controversy. As trust in the national welfare system appears fragile, one sentiment persists: that there is far more to uncover, and that there are far too few Han Futaos to do it.

By Ruixin Zhang

 

With additional reporting by Manya Koetse

Spotted a mistake or want to add something? Please let us know in comments below or email us. First-time commenters, please be patient – we will have to manually approve your comment before it appears.

©2026 Eye on Digital China/Powered by Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.