Born in Glasgow in 1942, Billy Connolly originally worked as a welder in the shipyards of his home city but in the late 1960s gave up his trade for a career as a folk singer.
He sang alongside Gerry Rafferty and Tam Harvey in The Humblebums before going solo in the 1970s and ultimately switching to comedy.
His first theatrical performance was in 1972 at the Cottage Theatre in Cumbernauld, with a revue called Connolly's Glasgow Flourish that also played at that year’s Edinburgh Fringe.
A solo album, featuring a mix of comedy songs and routines followed and within three years he was topping the UK singles chart with ‘D.I.V.O.R.C.E.’
Since then he has become one the UK’s most loved and critically-acclaimed comedians, actors, artists and television presenters – regularly topping lists of the greatest-ever standups.
He retired from live comedy in 2018 following a diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease but continues to work as an artist and lives in Florida with wife Pamela Stevenson, where he recently appeared at the Key West Film Festival to accept a lifetime achievement award from Hollywood stars Steve Buscemi and Aidan Quinn.
Today (Monday, November 24) is the Scottish legend’s 83rd birthday so we thought it was the perfect excuse to look back at a few of his best lines.
Here are 51 Billy Connolly classics.
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1. Billy Connolly on...Glasgow
“The great thing about Glasgow is that if there’s a nuclear attack it’ll look exactly the same afterwards.” | Getty Images
2. Billy Connolly on...intelligence
"My definition of an intellectual is someone who can listen to the William Tell Overture without thinking of the Lone Ranger." | Getty Images
3. Billy Connolly on...rumours
“If you haven’t heard a good rumour by 11am, start one.” | Getty Images
4. Billy Connolly on...women
“A woman’s mind is as complex as the contents of her handbag; even when you get to the bottom of it, there is ALWAYS something at the bottom to surprise you!” | Getty Images