Birth and early yearsConnolly was born at 65 Dover Street ("on the linoleum, three floors up") in Anderston, Glasgow, the son of Mary Connolly Adams (née McLean), a hospital cafeteria worker, and William Connolly, Sr., an instrument technician who was the son of an Irish immigrant. In 1946, with their son barely four years old, Connolly's mother abandoned him and his sister while his father was away for the war. He and his sister, Florence ("Flo"), were then looked after by two aunts, Margaret and Mona, his father's sisters. In her biography of him, Connolly's wife, Pamela Stephenson, documented Billy's years of sexual abuse by his father which began when he was ten and lasted until he was fifteen or sixteen.
"Twice in my life, two birds have flown in and made a huge difference," explained Connolly in 1996. When he was seven years old, the Connolly family went to Rothesay on holiday. He was sent out to get some milk and bread rolls. On his way back, with his hands full, a bird landed on his head. Being a city boy, Connolly immediately thought God had summoned him and, as a result, "nearly had a coronary". "It was a jackdaw, and I didn't know you could teach jackdaws to speak. But I was walking along, and this thing landed on my head and said hello. I nearly passed away. I learned subsequently that it was a tame bird, and we became friends and I got used to the idea: the bird would land on me and I was quite happy. My life had changed forever." Connolly went on state that the second "bird" was Brett Whiteley, the Australian artist, who he met through Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits in the 1980s.
Connolly was brought up in the Anderston and, later, Partick districts of Glasgow. He attended St. Peter's Primary School in Glasgow and St. Gerard's Secondary School in Govan. At the age of 12, he decided he wanted to become a comedian but felt he didn't fit the mould; he felt he needed to become more "windswept and interesting". Instead, at the age of 15, he left school and became a welder (a boilermaker, to be precise) at Stephens Shipyard. Around the same time he joined the Territorial Army Reserve 15th (Scottish) Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (15 PARA), which became part of the 4th Battalion, The Parachute Regiment (he later commemorated his TA experiences in his song, "Weekend Soldier").
Origin of The Big Yin
Connolly's The Big Yin nickname was first used during his adolescent years to differentiate between himself and his father. "My father was a very strong man. Broad and strong. He had an 18½-inch neck collar. Huge, like a bull. He was "Big Billy" and I was "Wee Billy". And then I got bigger than him, and the whole thing got out of control. And then I became The Big Yin in Scotland. So, we'd go into the pub and someone would say, 'Billy Connolly was in.' 'Oh, Big Billy or Wee Billy?' 'The Big Yin.' 'Oh, Wee Billy?' If you were a stranger, you'd think, 'What are these people talking about?'
Quick Fact
Born 24 November 1942, Anderston, Glasgow, Scotland
Nationality Scottish
Years active 1960s–present
Genres Comedy, Drama, Folk
Influences Chic Murray
Spouse Iris Pressagh (1969–1985), Pamela Stephenson (1989–present)
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