Billy Connolly Admits Fears After Facing Death Amid Health Struggles

Billy Connolly has openly discussed his thoughts on death amidst his ongoing battle with health issues. The beloved Scottish comedian, often referred to as “The Big Yin,” was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2013. This brain disorder can cause unintended or uncontrollable movements like shaking, stiffness, and problems with balance and coordination, potentially becoming more severe over time.

Despite facing increasing physical challenges, the 81-year-old actor and comedian maintains a positive outlook. Last year, he shared that he doesn’t feel “close to death.” Following his diagnosis, Connolly realized that death is “not the big thing everyone has made it out to be.” In a recent interview, the retired stand-up comic remarked, “It is nothing – it is just a sudden nothing.”

Connolly recalled the daunting day he learned about his Parkinson’s and prostate cancer diagnoses. Speaking to The Mirror, he said, “Yes, it was a funny week I had. On the Monday, I had hearing aids. On the Tuesday I got pills for heartburn, which I have to take all the time, and on the Wednesday, I got news that I had prostate cancer and Parkinson’s. The doctors told me on the phone, ‘Look we have had the results and it is cancer.’ I said ‘Oh, nobody has ever said that to be me before.’”

Thankfully, Connolly received treatment and was later given the all-clear from prostate cancer. Confronting both diagnoses head-on, he advised, “You just confront it and make decisions based on it. You just have to think ‘Don’t think you are being badly treated [by life] or you have the bad pick of the straws. You are one of millions. Just behave yourself and relax.”

Five years after his Parkinson’s diagnosis, Connolly retired from his stand-up career due to the increasing difficulties brought on by the illness. He has also offered insight into the everyday realities of living with Parkinson’s. Even though he doesn’t feel close to dying, he has discussed with his wife, psychologist Pamela Stephenson Connolly, about what he’d like inscribed on his gravestone. He humorously wrote, “I was thinking I’d like: ‘Jesus Christ, is that the time already?’ on mine, but my wife Pamela was shaky about it, so we settled on ‘You’re standing on my balls!’ in tiny wee writing.”

Connolly is set to share more about his life and career in the upcoming series titled In My Own Words, airing on BBC One on Monday (2 September). The special promises to offer “unflinching honesty and brilliant humour, Sir Billy looks back on his triumphs and failings as an entertainer, husband and father.”

Source: The Mirror, Getty Images