{"id":375219,"date":"2025-08-26T15:05:13","date_gmt":"2025-08-26T15:05:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/375219\/"},"modified":"2025-08-26T15:05:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-26T15:05:13","slug":"glasgow-to-hold-billy-connolly-weekend-during-850th-birthday-events","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/375219\/","title":{"rendered":"Glasgow to hold ‘Billy Connolly weekend’ during 850th birthday events"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n Highlights of the weekend will include a comedy showcase presented by the Glasgow International Comedy<\/a> Festival, featuring past winners and nominees of the Sir Billy Connolly Spirit of Glasgow Award, and a screening of Big Banana Feet, a documentary following Sir Billy on his 1975 tour of the island of Ireland.\n<\/p>\n

\n The Big Yin Weekend is part of the wider Glasgow 850 programme, a year-long celebration led by Glasgow City Council<\/a> to mark the city\u2019s 850th birthday.\n<\/p>\n

\n Susan Aitken, leader of Glasgow City Council, said: \u201cThroughout our birthday year Sir Billy Connolly\u2019s name has come up time and time again.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cAs arguably the city\u2019s best loved and most famous modern-day Glaswegian, we couldn\u2019t celebrate this landmark year for the city without honouring Billy.\n<\/p>\n

\n \u201cBilly\u2019s pioneering stand-up has always drawn on Glasgow\u2019s spirit, resilience and uniquely funny bones, and then added his very own special brand of freewheeling genius to bring laughter and joy to millions.\n<\/p>\n

\n \u201cThis weekend responds to the huge affection people have for the Big Yin with a living tribute to his comedy, music, storytelling and contribution to the arts \u2013 and to Glasgow.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\"SirSir Billy Connolly features on a mural in the east end of Glasgow (Jane Barlow\/PA)<\/p>\n

\n During the weekend Gallus Pedals Tours will host walking and cycling tours inspired by Sir Billy\u2019s life and legacy, taking in key locations and mural sites across the city.\n<\/p>\n

\n Other events include a free pop-up musical performance at The Park Bar featuring Gary Innes & Friends and the premiere performance of a new song entitled Big Yin by Scottish group Manran.\n<\/p>\n

\n The comedian, also affectionately known as the Big Yin, was knighted in 2017 for services to entertainment and charity.\n<\/p>\n

\n Born in Glasgow in 1942, Sir Billy began his working life as a welder in the Clyde shipyards before embarking on a career as a folk singer and musician alongside Gerry Rafferty in The Humblebums, and then developed the stand-up act that made him famous.\n<\/p>\n

\n The comedian was awarded the Freedom of the City of Glasgow in 2010.\n<\/p>\n

\n Krista MacDonald, director of the Glasgow International Comedy Festival, said: \u201cSir Billy Connolly is the heartbeat of Glasgow\u2019s comedy spirit, a trailblazer whose wit, warmth and honesty put Scottish comedy on the world stage. He embodies the humour, resilience and character of this city, and continues to inspire every performer who steps onto our stages.\n<\/p>\n

\n \u201cAt the Glasgow International Comedy Festival, his legacy is felt in every laugh, reminding us that comedy here isn\u2019t just entertainment, it\u2019s part of who we are. We are excited to celebrate the Big Yin and Glasgow\u2019s 850th celebrations with a special comedy event in the new Stand Comedy Club.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\n Read More:<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n

\n The pop-up musical performance is free to attend and the council said tickets for the other events are being sold at reduced prices to allow as many people as possible to attend.\n<\/p>\n

\n Paul Gallagher, head of programme at Glasgow Film, said: \u201cWe\u2019re thrilled to be part of The Big Yin Weekend with a special screening of Murray Grigor\u2019s Big Banana Feet at GFT, complete with an introduction from Glasgow-based comedian Scott Agnew.\n<\/p>\n

\n \u201cRarely screened since its initial release, the documentary captures Billy Connolly\u2019s comic genius, musical flair and unmistakable Glaswegian charm off-stage.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Highlights of the weekend will include a comedy showcase presented by the Glasgow International Comedy Festival, featuring past…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":375220,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7826],"tags":[748,918,4884,712,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-375219","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-glasgow","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-glasgow","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-scotland","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/375219","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=375219"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/375219\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/375220"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=375219"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=375219"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=375219"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}