Big Banana Feet
 Jul 17th, 2002
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  helencbradshaw
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I have liked Billy Connolly’s stand up shows for years, and I particularly enjoyed the slant he took with the “World tour of Scotland” and World Tour Of Australia” series, where hobbies and local history and culture were interspersed with clips from the shows he did, visiting smaller towns instead of the big cities in the UK, as his previous tours had been. I have never managed to see Billy live though, although it has not been for the lack of trying. The first time, the CEO of the company I worked for in Australia had arranged for tickets at the Sydney Opera House, however another senior manager didn’t think the American half of our board would have appreciated his humour and language, and we took them to see a play instead.
Last year, I saw a UK tour advertised in the Sunday papers, although he was not coming to Scotland. I called and booked tickets for the Manchester show and was looking forward to it for months, but unfortunately it coincided with a good friend of mine who was having a leaving party as she was moving to Southampton. So a Mancunian friend of mine inherited my tickets that time too! Does anyone know when his next tour is? Anyway, it was no surprise then, that given my appreciation of Billy’s humour, I would eventually buy a copy of this book.
I held off for a while when the hardback came out, although it has been on offer on Amazon and in the shops. I finally purchased a soft copy about a week ago, from Amazon, for a little over £3 – the RRP is £6.99. The book is written by Connolly’s second and current wife Pamela Stephenson, who has been on the scene since the early 80’s when Billy first appeared on Not the Nine O Clock News, a show which featured Stephenson in the cast. Stephenson has since qualified as a Doctor and practices psychology
in Los Angeles and this has given her some insight into Billy’s feelings and insecurities about himself, following his abusive childhood.
Stephenson has a tendency to write fairly objectively about Billy’s life and this is entwined with more recent times, linking current shows and successes with long ago memories. Billy’s began life in Glasgow and lived in the city centre at 65 Dover Street in Anderston, an area which was full of rotting slums which have now been pulled down. He was born in November 1942, and will therefore be 60 years old this year. He spent the first eight months of his life sleeping in a wooden drawer. Stephenson states that Billy has not got used to living in expansive spaces even today, and would call home sighing that he had been upgraded to the “Bloody Presidential Suite” this time.
His father was conscripted into the Royal Air Force and was absent for the early years. Billy’s grandfather was Irish and escaped to Scotland during the potato famine, hence the strong links with that country and Catholicism. His father was the victim of discrimination when it was common to exclude Irish from applying for jobs, and the strong division between Catholic and Protestant was much stronger than it is today (although there is still a certain degree of tension between these two groups in Glasgow even today). Billy’s grandfather worked in the shipyards as a plater’s helper, and his father worked for Barr and Stroud’s. He met Mamie McLean, billy’s mother in 1940 and was soon smitten. Mamie’s father was protestant whereas her mother was catholic.
Billy had a sister who was a little older than him, and both kids were being neglected by their mother, who often left a three year old Florence looking after little Billy. She eventually left them and they were cared for by nuns until it was arranged for their Aunties to look after them. Eventually their father came back, and moved back in with them, and Sundays consisted of a trip to the Glasgow Barrowland Market, or the Barras. School life was tough, a threatening environment and non compliance to the rules and regulations meant that boys were punished with the Tawse, or leather strap. Billy was not particularly academic and was a bit of a dreamer. Beatings were frequent. He struggled with basic tasks such as telling the time, and doing up shoe laces, even at twelve years old.
He was ten years old when his father began sexually abusing him, and this was difficult as they had to share a room, due to overcrowding in his aunt’s home. This abuse continued for four or five years. This remained a secret until the early eighties when his father died and he told Stephenson of this abuse. It was ironic that his father constantly chastised Billy for his sinfulness and not adhering to their faith, while this abuse was going on. Billy left school at fifteen with an attendance certificate and a couple of qualifications. He spent the last year of school helping out on a milk round and he then took an apprenticeship as a welder in the clyde shipyards, although he had aspired to join the Merchant navy so he could travel to far flung places. His raw humour can be traced back to this times when banter between workers was racist and sexist and about survival. He frequently entertained others at lunch times.
Drink, dance halls and women soon entered into Billy’s life, courtesy of the Locarno Dance Hall in Glasgow. Billy bought his first Italian suit on credit. He dated a few girls, and got involved with motorbikes too. He still desired to travel and decided to join the TA, where he did a parachute course. His career in show business started in the early 1960’s when Billy decided to get a banjo and bought one from the Barras for a couple of pounds. He found a class on Saturday mornings and was playing extremely well within a few weeks. He got a break in 1965, however he forgot the words to the song, and simply recalled the tale to the audience instead, starting his storytelling act as it soon became.
It was the year 1965 when Billy met his first wife, Iris, when of course he was not famous at all. However his career began to take off, and Billy eventually left the shipyard. His lifestyle changed in that he was frequently meeting more and more famous people and spending time away from home. He depended heavily on alcohol and was almost in a permanent stupor. Iris had two children with Billy but they spent more and more time apart, and eventually separated in the early 1980’s around the time he first met Stephenson. He got a further big break when he appeared on the Parkinson show, and Billy and Parky became good friends, a friendship which has stood the test of time, and alcoholism. Since those humble beginnings, Billy has become famous in not just the UK, but also the American and Australian markets too. He has certainly achieved his dream of travelling the world. He was recently awarded a Doctorate by a Glasgow University.
His wife Pamela has managed to create a fantastic readable biography of Billy, spanning almost sixty years. It was a great read and difficult to put down. Billy certainly should be an inspiration to any of us with humble beginnings that you can achieve fame and fortune if that is what your personal goals are. Stephenson’s love for Billy is apparent right the way through the book, and they have three daughters together now, with a home in LA and one in Scotland.
The only annoying bit about this book was that at times I felt that Billy may inadvertently be another case study for Pamela in her psychology work, particularly reading about his early years when she describes him as someone who would have Attention Deficiency Disorder and Learning disabilities. I watched the Parkinson show where Pamela and Billy both appeared and I felt he was slightly uncomfortable as being portrayed as this person who had a much harder upbringing than most (because lets face it, his upbringing would have been common to many children at the time). I feel that this book also may be a little uncomfortable and portrays Billy a little vulnerable at times. Nonetheless a great read, and for a few pounds a great buy.
Now, where is his next show! Helen Bradshaw
July 2002
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09.07.2004 02:29
Really enjoyed reading this book! Passed it on to my mum as she grew up in a similar area of Glasgow a few years later. Funny and moving, Pamela Stephenson's writing is excellent.
04.10.2002 18:28
I've always liked Billy Connolly, he seems genuinely amazed at the world, and I love that quality in people. I didn't realise that his wife had written this book but I think I'll get it soon, thanks!
19.08.2002 21:45
I'm just getting into the book at the minute and am generally enjoying it. Like you, I tend to think that Billy's wife Stephenson can be a little too analytical about her husband's mental/social conditions (illnesses?) but then I guess she is just too used to playing 'doctor'. I admire her for writing this book on such a strong (and sometimes complex) subject though! - J