WORDS: Neil Smith | PHOTOS: BAFTA; BAFTA/Andy Buchanan; BAFTA/Doug McKenzie; BAFTA/Sylviane Poitau | PORTRAIT: Sarah Dunn
Clockwise from top left: With actor Judi Dench and wife Pamela Stephenson at A Tribute to Billy Connolly in 2002; his 2012 A Life in Pictures, hosted by Francine Stock and held in Glasgow; hosting the 1995 Awards, with Joan Collins as citation reader
By a quirk of fate, BAFTA trophies tend to come Sir Billy Connolly’s way every 10 years. It was in 2002 that the gregarious Scot received a Special Award, while 2012 saw him celebrated by BAFTA Scotland for his Outstanding Contribution to Film and Television. It seems fitting, then, that 2022 should bring him the Academy’s highest honour, one he accepts with gratitude and his usual good humour. “I had no idea the Fellowship existed but I’m told it’s a big deal,” he chuckles. “It’s lovely to be recognised and to become a jolly good fellow.
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