Billy Connolly

I passed him and his daughters a few years ago in the Grassmarket during the Edinburgh Festival.

"Funny" films rarely make me laugh, ie I realise TV/film jokes are funny but I seldom laugh at them, I just stare and think that's funny. Comedians the same. What I'm saying is not some kind of elitism or something, I just mean I don't laugh at er.....art easily. I'd rather sit around talking to a few friends or whatever, obviously. I can't stop laughing at my own jokes then.

He's done a few "Tonight Show" (US) appearances, but I've rarely seen him in anything else, here. On my last trip to England 2 years ago, I noticed that he seemed to constantly be on.

***Ex Jane, being Scottish, proved to be a huge fan and said that loving Billy Connolly was something that was just, well, very Scottish.***

Is it? Must disagree with her then, Ned. It may be that the Scots have embraced Billy's comedy more fully, since he's in their homes. But, I consider his wit to be accessible to most people. It would be great if he was on American TV more often, but I wonder if he can be bothered, anymore?

never been a fan, but saw him in 'just another saturday' (1975) last night, and he was pretty good in that. not seen him in a straight role before

Search his LP's from the mid 70's,

Seconded. We listened to the compilation album The Pick of Billy Connolly in our house until we could just about recite every bit of it. It's wonderful, especially for slightly older kids, because it's RUDE, but not too rude.

Also search an Audience with Billy Connolly recorded 85, truly hilarious, weird and wired.

This is also true.

according to my wife who saw him in '98, he's still the dogs bollocks.

I would disagree with this. I saw him around the same time and thought that his "I can talk about anything at all and it will be funny" idea of a comedy show was just not working out. He genuinely seemed to have little material that was usable. I was highly disappointed in him, because the tickets were really expensive, I remember.

Also search out his performance in the Debt Collector where he plays a Jimmy Boyle type renaissance hard man, one of the underrated performance (and films) of recent Brit cinema.

True too.

boring

have you seen Just Another Saturday (or for that matter, Just A Boy's Game)?

perhaps i should start a pete mcdougall thread

boring

Me or Billy Connolly?

not you : D

haven't seen those films Filey Camp. seen bits of him acting and don't think he's bad at all in the right roles but do think he isn't an interesting personality or a naturally funny man like a lot of people seem to think or just accept. when you see him and he says something there is an initial feeling of "yeah he's saying that in a wee bit of a funny voice" but then he just says unfunny things in the same wee bit of a funny voice that grows less and less a wee bit funny. lots of these people become caricatures of an idea of themselves as they get older but his persona was kind of a caricature to begin w/ so it's just really boring

he was only in one of the two i mentioned. he wasnt in the first one that much, just a cameo role

what do you think of frankie miller?

and even then i guess he's playing that kind of jovial, unfazed by the troubles kind of guy, but he does rein it in a fair bit

ive never actually seen him in anything else except adverts

Always liked Billy Connolly. I do understand why us scots prefer his 70s stuff because he does go on about a lot of about scottish life that we obviously understand, but it's nonsense to say he got too big for his boots and wasnt funny anymore, of course he had to move on. He's still funny to me.

re: frankie miller: haha yeah I don't really like v many scottish people