Windswept & Interesting: My Autobiography

Windswept & Interesting: My Autobiography

by Billy Connolly
Windswept & Interesting: My Autobiography

Windswept & Interesting: My Autobiography

by Billy Connolly

Paperback

$17.99 
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Overview

In his first full-length autobiography, comedy legend and national treasure Billy Connolly reveals the truth behind his windswept and interesting life.

Born in a tenement flat in Glasgow in 1942, orphaned by the age of 4, and a survivor of appalling abuse at the hands of his own family, Billy's life is a remarkable story of success against all the odds.

Billy found his escape first as an apprentice welder in the shipyards of the River Clyde. Later he became a folk musician - a 'rambling man' - with a genuine talent for playing the banjo. But it was his ability to spin stories, tell jokes and hold an audience in the palm of his hand that truly set him apart.

As a young comedian Billy broke all the rules. He was fearless and outspoken - willing to call out hypocrisy wherever he saw it. But his stand-up was full of warmth, humility and silliness too. His startling, hairy 'glam-rock' stage appearance - wearing leotards, scissor suits and banana boots - only added to his appeal.

It was an appearance on Michael Parkinson's chat show in 1975 - and one outrageous story in particular - that catapulted Billy from cult hero to national star. TV shows, documentaries, international fame and award-winning Hollywood movies followed. Billy's pitch-perfect stand-up comedy kept coming too - for over 50 years, in fact - until a double diagnosis of cancer and Parkinson's Disease brought his remarkable  live performances to an end. Since then he has continued making TV shows, creating extraordinary drawings... and writing.

Windswept and Interesting is Billy's story in his own words. It is joyfully funny - stuffed full of hard-earned wisdom as well as countless digressions on fishing, farting and the joys of dancing naked. It is an unforgettable, life-affirming story of a true comedy legend.

I didn't know I was Windswept and Interesting until somebody told me. It was a friend who was startlingly exotic himself. He just come back from Kashmir and was all billowy shirt and Indian beads. I had long hair and a beard and was swishing around in electric blue flairs.
He said: Look at you - all windswept and interesting!"
I just said: Exactly!"
After that, I simply had to maintain my reputation...'

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781529318272
Publisher: John Murray Press
Publication date: 11/22/2022
Pages: 400
Sales rank: 1,053,210
Product dimensions: 5.10(w) x 7.70(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Sir William Connolly, CBE is a much-loved Scottish comedian, musician, presenter and actor. He is the recipient of a BAFTA Lifetime Achievement Award and is regularly voted the nation's favourite stand-up comedian. His previous two books, Tall Tales & Wee Stories and Windswept & Interesting were both No.1 bestsellers. Billy was born and raised in Glasgow and now lives in America.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

1 Do What Makes You Happy 5

2 If No One Gives You a Medal, Design Your Own 17

3 Avoid People Who Say They Know the Answer 29

4 Never Run in Loose Underwear 43

5 Interfere with Yourself on a Regular Basis 57

6 Plot Your Escape 67

7 Never Change Planes to Wash Your Socks 85

8 Seek Wisdom at the Font of Snapple 97

9 Consider Yourself Lucky 111

10 Take Your Knickers Down and Dance 125

11 Learn to Do the Moonie 143

12 If you arrive on a Motorcycle, You'll have a Better Day 157

13 Grow Your Hair 167

14 Stay Clear of Musicals 183

15 Aim Higher than 'Stupid but Saveable' 195

16 Get Yourself a Fire-Breathing Hootchy-Cootchy Dancer 209

17 Fuck Political Correctness 223

18 Learn to Speak Baby 237

19 If You Can Lie on the Floor 251

20 Embrace the Non Sequitur 265

21 If Your Heart Stops, Apply Vinegar 277

22 Misbehave in Public 297

23 Beware the Indomitable Jobbie 309

24 Swear like a Glaswegian 321

25 Strip as Many Willows as You Can 337

26 Don't Eat Anything that Comes in a Bucket 347

27 Save the Baby Crimples 369

Acknowledgments 391

Picture Acknowledgments 392

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