Model, actress Jang yoon-joo moves to UK with family
Model and actress Jang Yoon-joo / Captured from YouTube
Model and actress Jang Yoon-joo has moved to the United Kingdom with her family after her husband decided to pursue graduate studies there. After years of deliberation, Jang decided to accompany him, saying she hopes to find something she can devote herself to in her new surroundings.
A video titled “Jang Yoon-joo’s Family Comes to the U.K. After Three Years of Deliberation. Please Take Good Care of Us” was posted on Jang’s YouTube channel, Yoonjure Jang Yoon-joo, on Saturday.
The family’s move to the U.K. began about three years ago, when Jang’s husband, Jung Seung-min, expressed a desire to return to school. Jung, who wanted to study design more seriously, spent the past year preparing to study abroad by taking online classes after work and studying for an English proficiency test on his own. He was eventually accepted to the school he most wanted to attend.
Jang proudly told their daughter, Lisa, about her father’s acceptance, saying, “That’s amazing. You’re so capable.” As they prepared to leave Korea, Jang told her husband, “Honey, congratulations,” before breaking down in tears. Jung also hugged his wife and cried with her as they shared their emotions ahead of their new beginning.
Despite wanting to support her husband, it took Jang time to decide whether to uproot her own life. “For the past two or three years, I kept saying, ‘I’m not going. You go by yourself,’” she said, revealing that she had spent a long time weighing the decision to accompany him.
In the end, it was the prospect of a new experience that changed her mind. Jang said she decided to go because she thought, “If I don’t do it now, I may never get to have an experience like this.” She added that she was not leaving Korea permanently and planned to travel back and forth whenever she had work commitments.
As their departure approached, however, her excitement was accompanied by growing anxiety. When Jang asked Jung, “Aren’t you nervous?” he replied, “Of course I am. But I’m also looking forward to it.” For Jung, who will pursue a master’s degree in English, the move also represents a departure from his familiar routine.
Jung reassured his wife, saying, “Once we get there, I’m sure we’ll adjust quickly.” Jang laughed and acknowledged that “language is also a major barrier,” while admitting that she felt strange now that they were actually leaving.
The move has also given Jang an opportunity to reflect on her own future. She said that when she meets friends, she often hears them say, “I have no energy” or “There’s nothing I want to do,” adding, “I think I’ve reached that age too.” She also opened up about her complicated feelings about taking a break, saying, “I wondered, ‘Why can’t I rest? What am I so anxious about?’”
When encouraged to take on another challenge as a model, Jang admitted, “Honestly, I’m not confident.” Rather than immediately setting a new goal, she said she wants to learn English in the U.K. and experience what it is like to actually live there, rather than simply staying as a traveler.
“Maybe as I live there, something inside me will start stirring again and I’ll feel like I want to take on a challenge,” Jang said. “When that happens, I want to give it a try.”
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.