Met Billy Connolly Today

He was shopping in the High street Grantown(photo in my stuff) Pleasant patient guy, he signed autographs and bought strawberries in Marys Dairy.

Glad I was not disappointed and he was friendly.

Good ol' Bill.
A lot of folk don't like him, but i do. I read his book, after he became famous the press (Daily Record) were always following him, hiding near his hoose etc. No privacy was the main reason for moving, he said.

And there he is!

Think a lot of people dislike him cos he"s done so well,good on him,if i had his money id be living the life he does,apart from his royal family friends...and his long hair......and his ridiculous clothes....but apart from that....what have the romans ever done for us!!!!!!!

He signed inside my melodean ,next to Sharron Shannons sig and mentioned that he has met her.

Have to say don't think much of Billy these days,. he's gone off the boil. But in the old days, he was genuinely funny and subversive, have a listen to his records...

In his own words ... ' He's more to be pittied than scorned '
He isn't the first nor will he be the last 'radical' to change their tune once money & fame come their way !!

Well, Ben Elton is a real reactionary these days.

Billy has mellowed and realised that raging is not the best way to get change. An rage is a way of hurting yourself. He has been lucky to meet and marry a partner, Pamela , she is a great counsel for him and saved him from self destruction.

Not so sure about deciding raging isn't the best way to change things. I often wonder if he's given up on the idea of changing things altogether. He's now very much part of the establishment he sought to get rid of.

Establishment ??? he is a comedian and actor.

quickfind:scotaviaflyer > "Establishment ??? "

I think Ray B is trying to make the point , as did I , that having made pots of money & acquired fame he now sits very comfortably at the table of those { Royalty - Government } that he chose to deride & ridicule in his quest for said fame & wealth !! In short he has sold out as do most of those of a similar ilk !!

give the man a break - like most successful people, he used the talent he had to get out of the poo he was in. i.e. play banjp and telljokes = make more money, be more exotic and get some sex.

even Bono and Bob Geldof got into music for purely selfish purposes - only later did they set about changing the world, but the corporate whoring music world is where they will always remain.

quickfind:scotaviaflyer > "Establishment ??? he is a comedian and actor."

Well, he never used to be an actOR (as opposed to an actor). He spends his time advertising the lottery and sucking up to politicians these days. I'm not sure he really qualifies as a comedian anymore, since he is no longer funny. Hasn't been since some point in the 90s.

Whatever cause he used to have, he's turned his back on and sold out, long ago.

Totally agree with the points you make ... However Bono & Geldof used their fame & celebrity to a possible good effect ,whilst using the Governments need to cling to greater liked public figures for their own ends ! Whilst sadly Billy & a few others just enjoy the grandeur of eating at top table !!

I'm not entirely sure about Bono and Bob either - although they do more good than Billy does. They more or less hijacked the G8 protests in Edinburgh a few years ago. Both of them get record sales and advertising off the back of the publicity, and since Bob runs an events company, it's great promotion for that as well...

Just for the final record I would like to say I DO enjoy ' Big Yins' work ! I have many of his old recordings { live shows & World Tour Series } BUT a Mans principles should stay his principles & whilst he has every right to improve his personal day to day well being that doesn't have to include welcoming to his fold people & official bodies that he supposedly before wealth & fame had absolutely no time on Gods earth for !!!

Don't get me wrong, I like his stuff from the 70s and 80s, and even a few things from the 90s, but he definitely went off the boil at some point. I own several of his records, and when I say records, I mean LPs!

I have to admit i don't think he's the guy he once was..."The big yin"wae the banna feet. Good or bad however i loved him in the 70's. i have to admit He was also excellent in the plays"Just another Saturday" & "The Elephant's graveyard"

This is really unfair, you are talking about him as if he acts in an odd way regarding these strange groups , one of which is called the establishment.Which is an invention of the press and certain radical groups.
I just cannot understand why those who make a success of their chosen career get a critical response. And what is wrong with meeting interesting people when the chance comes along.I already do that.

And his new tour has sold out in a few days.

Let's all play kindly together - some folk never liked him, some always loved him and still do, some got annoyed when he got famous, others think he lost his roots, yet more congratulate him on making something of himself.

Discuss away but let's keep it away from personal attacks.

Thanks muchly.

Erm, didn't Connolly build his career on a banjo and radicalism (with a little inspiration from Matt McGinn)?

The Establishment is certainly not an invention of the press and radical groups. People send their children to certain schools to become part of it.

quickfind:scotaviaflyer > "And his new tour has sold out in a few days."

A bit like him!

quickfind:scotaviaflyer > "I just cannot understand why those who make a success of their chosen career get a critical response. And what is wrong with meeting interesting people when the chance comes along.I already do that."

Nothing wrong with meeting them. Nothing wrong with success. Plenty wrong with doing a backflip.

Ben Elton spends his time making fun of Thatcherism, Evening Standard, Royal Family etc, writes a novel about world wrecked by global warming etc etc

Ben Elton gets rich. Labour party gets elected, practices similarThatcherite policies, but Elton says nothing.

Ben goes off and splits his time between Australia and England on fuel guzzling jumbo jets. Goes round saying "God bless you ma'am!" to Queen.

Seems to me there are some parallels between these two gents.

quickfind:lionsoflisbon > "However Bono & Geldof used their fame & celebrity to a possible good effect"
I watched a programme ages ago about Bob Geldof, and the ammount of money he spent on one of his children's birthday party would feed a third world country , and that was just for the decor. So, don't tell me about Bob "Give us your f***ng money Geldof ! The man is a sham like the rest of them when they get a bit of money. The difference is, Connolly came from Partick, just minutes from where I lived. He worked in the shipbuilders just down the road. I know these type of men. Coming from poverty and taking their humour from people watching in a very tough environment. k, so his ideals have long since changed, but unlike Geldof, he doesn't lok down his nose at the "peasants." He knows where he came froma nd won't ever forget it even if now he mixes with the gentry and the toffs. I say, good on him. Who wouldn't want that lifestyle if they could have it? I don't beleive anyone who says they would never change with money. Politicians, everyone, even Tommy Sheridan, changed their ideals when they got money, still beleiving that it was ok to do so. Money changes everyone, whether they like to admit it or not. It just goes to show me that even the likes of Connolly can forget their background and make something of themselves. He is a genuinely nice person, a family man, and gets on with people from all walks of life. I am proud of Billy Connolly and I say good for him for sticking it to everyone who tries to knock him down, just because he made it. Unlike Geldof and Bono.

quickfind:lionsoflisbon > "BUT a Mans principles should stay his principles & whilst he has every right to improve his personal day to day well being that doesn't have to include welcoming to his fold people & official bodies that he supposedly before wealth & fame had absolutely no time on Gods earth for"

At the time he was making these jokes, he didn't know these people personally, but now he has obviously made friends with them and possibly realised that they may, some of them, even be nice people that he can get along with. Posh or peasant, people are just ...People. I am sure we all judge people by what we read in the press and on what we Think we know about them, but maybe when we actually get to know them we then change our minds. I'm sure everyone has made a judgement on someone or other without giving them a chance. I am not a royalty fan, but I wouldn't be rude if some of them ever thought to speak to me. I certainly wouldn't fawn over them and make them my best buddy, but I would give them their space.