Nine of Billy Connolly's funniest moments
The news broke today that comic Billy Connolly has undergone surgery for prostate cancer and is being treated for the “initial symptoms” of Parkinson’s Disease.
We wish the Big Yin all the best, and take the opportunity to look back at some of his funniest moments.
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Brought up on the mean streets of Glasgow, Billy left school aged 15 with two engineering qualifications, one collected 'by mistake'.
He was never really one for the book-smarts, as the following clip shows.
"I must have been absent the day we did the B times table."
Billy's known for his rapport with Gay Byrne on the Late Late Show, but this is from the US version of the (almost) same name - 'The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder' in 1998.
The Queen Mother punchline...
Billy recalls life in a tenement block. It had its advantages, as he recounts.
We love the description of earnest documentary TV as "The world according to people with glasses who know better than you".
Billy discusses his peculiar party trick, which apparently involves putting his willy on a paper plate.
Dustin Hoffman looks... bemused.
Again, Billy's distrust of the intelligentsia shines through.
Connolly could never be accused of being politically correct.
We apologise in advance…
As mentioned, Billy had a long and fruitful relationship with Gay Byrne during the latter's 'Late Late Show' stewardship.
Here he is paying a lovely tribute to friend Christy Moore.
And finally….
The Big Yin at his best. It's a slow burner, but it's worth it.
Take eight minutes out of your day and enjoy.
