Billy [Hardcover]

Pamela Stephenson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 11, 2002

Now a favorite of American audiences, Billy Connolly is the outrageous comedian whose unsurpassed comedy genius has won him countless fans. Billy, the revelatory, poignant, and wildly entertaining biography is written by the woman who knows him best-his wife. Billy is one of the biggest sellers of all time in British publishing-number one on UK bestseller lists and, so far, selling over 800,000(!) copies. Connolly is a one-of-a-kind legend: his effortlessly wicked whimsy has entranced and enthralled audiences around the world, and his manic humor needs no introduction. But who is the real Billy Connolly? Where did he come from and where does he get his material? What is it like to live with him?

With insight and objectivity, Pamela Stephenson, a psychologist and Billy's wife of ten years, takes us through the heartbreaking and hilarious life of a comic genius and what made him the man he is. The descriptions of Scottish life evoke the poignancy of the Ireland in Angela's Ashes as she tells of the troubled and desperately poor child in the docklands of Glasgow who became an accomplished banjo player and whose jokes soon took over his musical act. Billy Connolly became a household name. From live performances to appearances on television and in the movies, Billy has captivated audiences around the world with his notoriously bawdy humor and the remarkable range of performance that has made him not only a brilliant comic but a dramatic actor who played across from Dame Judi Dench in Mrs. Brown.

Filled with riotous anecdotes from Billy's shows and tales from his unhappy childhood, this is, undeniably, the real Billy Connolly: the Billy Connolly that an enormous and fanatic public is waiting for-and a moving, redemptive biography.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Billy Connolly is loud, hilarious and contradictory. His biography, written by his wife, former comedian and practising psychotherapist Pamela Stephenson, is pretty much the same. Over the years Connolly has grown from Glasgow shipyard welder to folk-singing beardy hard man (yes there is such a thing) to darling of the good and great (or at least famous) around the world. That he is so many things to so many people while in no way compromising his core self can only be good. It would be no mean feat for Stephenson, then, to pen a history to that would satisfy Connolly audiences of fans and contemporaries from all periods of his life's journey. In most places, but in truth, not all, the author manages to do this well.

The first half of the biography is somewhat anthropological in tone. Not surprisingly, a post-war Glasgow upbringing is somewhat alien to the antipodean author and Stephenson errs towards Angela's Ashes intonation as she describes her husband's tenement childhood (Scots readers may also find her regular translation of seemingly self-explanatory Scots phrases--which Connolly would use--obtuse). In contrast her examination of her experience of living with the comedian and his life from that point on is much better. Anecdotes which Connolly uses in his live shows pepper the text and laughs are raised as he tells of the time he was mistaken as a drug dealer on Speyside, of his cheeky friendships with cinema's elite and even through the more difficult times; the difficulty of balancing an almost manic humour with a troubled life. Pages turn quickly as we grow to understand more of what makes the man tick.

Certainly fans of Billy Connolly will enjoy this book. It is not perfect but it is certainly entertaining and should fill a gap in the market until Billy--with his half-remembered stories and off-centre view of the world--decides to let us into his head as well as his history. There's surely one ideal way to do this and that's by writing his story himself. --Helen Lamont

From Publishers Weekly

American audiences only know Billy Connolly-if they know him at all-from his HBO comedy specials, or from his role opposite Judi Dench in Mrs. Brown. But Connolly is one of England's most popular and infamous comedians. This biography, written by his wife, explains why. Connolly broke into show biz in the late 1960s with a banjo-comedy routine that he performed in Glasgow pubs. By the end of the '70s, Connolly was booking sold-out shows all around England and appearing frequently on TV and film. His antics were notorious: he looked like a hippie, swore like a sailor (he used "the 'f' word in every single sentence and double on Sundays") and drank incredible amounts of liquor (he named his comedy tours after his drink du jour: the gin tour, the brandy tour, etc.). He was also prone to singing songs like "What Does a Scotsman Wear Under His Kilt" to the tune of "Blowin' in the Wind." But, Stephenson argues, there was considerable pain behind Connolly's headline-grabbing behavior. As a child, he was abandoned by his mother and raised in a slum, subject to physical and sexual abuse from relatives. It's Connolly's past, and his strength in overcoming it, that rescues this book. What could have been a humdrum biography turns into a triumph of the will, an Angela's Ashes with punch lines. Apart from an annoying tendency to name-drop American celebrities who just adore Billy, Stephenson admirably describes a man who manages to be very funny despite very unfunny beginnings. Photos.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Overlook Hardcover; 1 edition (September 11, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585673080
• ISBN-13: 978-1585673087
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #327,245 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Great subject, lousy execution, January 26, 2004

By 

Floyd McDaniel II (Mie-ken Japan, originally from Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Billy (Hardcover)

I am an American with only a little exposure to Billy Connolly (from his sitcom and HBO appearances), but what I saw some years ago was funny. I borrowed this book hoping to learn a little more about him. Unfortunately, I came to the conclusion that Ms. Stephenson (brilliant though she may be) can't write.

As a few other reviewers noted, this book seems to be an endless series of name-dropping and/or testimonials about "how funny Billy is" (the word "roaring" as a synonym for "laughing hard" was so overused that I almost cringed upon each further reading). Anecdotes begin each chapter, often with little relevance to the chapter contents or the prior chapter's anecdote. Often they go nowhere at all - other than the ubiquitous "(insert famous person's name) told me he couldn't talk because he was laughing so hard at Billy!"

Actually, that is symptomatic of the book. Interesting facets of Mr. Connolly's life appear, only to spark our interest and then give us nothing more. An example: Billy was (sexually?) abused by his father, but we don't learn exactly what was going on. The only clue seems to be that it wasn't particularly violent. Just enough to pique interest, then it is dropped. If it is that difficult to detail, don't write about it at all!

Another: Billy may/may not have abused (physically/mentally?) his wive(s). Ms. Stephenson seems to spend a few sentences saying how "when Billy was drinking he was hell to be with" (or words to that effect), and then immediately apologizes for it with something along the lines of "it was understandable given everything he had been through". Yet later, she suddenly drops in a time she almost walked out on him for his drinking (and abuse?). This, after plenty more anectodotes (of which almost none are funny) but no real descriptions of what Connolly was doing wrong.

Finally, and easily the most grevious oversight, is a total lack of his ACT. We know he played the banjo, and sang some humorous songs in a Folk style. We also get one or two song snippets, but the humor completely fails to translate to the page. Furthermore, we get NO idea of what makes his stand-up show so mesmerizing. Oh, we get a lot of him pacing and worrying before a performance (with Ms. Stephenson the doting wife cheering him on), and then EVERY TIME "But once he was on stage, everything was OK and the audience roared for 2 hours!" What she discusses, if it were the sum total of his act, couldn't have supported a career for 20 minutes.

From what I read, there is a FANTASTIC story in Mr. Connolly's life. And I'd really like to read it. Unfortunately, I haven't. I would warn people to stay far away from this book.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Could be an inspirational story, March 13, 2003

By 

JasonChrisJones (Atlanta, GA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Billy (Hardcover)

I think that the story of someone who was a shipyard apprentice in Glasgow, Scotland at the age of 16 who rose to be a successful stand up comic and actor, with little or no training could be seen as an inspirational story.
The book is written by his wife, Pamela Stephenson, who is a trained psychologist. I found her writing style to be a little dull and I got tired of the endless name dropping as she and Billy went to various functions.
Overall Billy's life story deserves to be read and he should be admired for his achievement.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good Subject, Lousy Book, June 29, 2004

By 

C. G. Nugent (London) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Billy (Hardcover)

The problem is that the author is the subject's wife. It really ought to be titled, "My husband is wonderful and we have lots of very famous friends". The book has neither the insight or observation of a third party biography nor the intimacy of an autobiography. Recounting things that her husband has told her just makes the reader want to push the author out of the way and let Billy tell the story himself. The great shame is that Billy is undoubtedly a fascinating subject and has a great story to tell. Unfortunately, this isn't it. A opportunity squandered.