Billy Connolly: “I like the guy I’ve invented. I can’t remember the old one.”

Comedy legend Sir Billy Connolly has said the progression of his Parkinson’s disease has made every passing day “stranger” as the disease “creeps up on him”. The 80-year-old Scottish icon and actor was diagnosed 10 years ago with the condition and announced his retirement from live performances in 2018. He has become a keen artist after taking up drawing while in Canada in 2007.

Sir Billy, in a rare interview, told Saturday’s edition of The Times: “Art has made my life magical at a time when I thought it would be unbearable. My disease creeps up on me every day it gets stranger and more different. I don’t know how I would have coped without drawing. It’s taken me out of the scene and put me somewhere else, where I can survey it from a different angle.”

Affectionately known as The Big Yin, Sir Billy said he wanted to be remembered as “a good laugh and being a force for good”. His knighthood was for services to entertainment and charity. Last week, Sir Billy unveiled his latest sculptures, which are made of polished stainless steel, and are inspired by travel and his love of music.