‘Dear Billy’, A Love Letter to the Big Yin

Strathpeffer Pavilion - 08/06/23 

This latest offer from The National Theatre of Scotland is an affectionate but flawed piece of theatre. 

The show is built around a project over several years collecting stories from people all over Scotland about the Big Yin. This has been made into a performance by Gary McNair (Writer/Performer). On stage for an hour and 40 minutes backed by two musicians, a BSL signer, and various props. I am not sure what the audience expectations were. Was it going to be a tribute show? Or a talk? The Pavilion was almost full, with the usual buzz of excitement on experiencing a show about Scotland’s most famous raconteur and comedian. The response was polite laughs and a rush for the exit after the final bows. Not unusual in Highlands. Centre stage was storyteller Gary McNair leaping left and right trying to create the different characters who had stories to tell. Most of the time he employed the Connolly voice but without the clarity and perfect timing of the man himself. As English with a good ear, I had difficulty in understanding as did some of the Scots around. The joy of Billy Connolly’s act was in whatever country he was performing, you could always clearly understand every word, with pause and pace for the maximum laughs.  So, we missed all those lovely stories. In fact, the BSL, performed by Karen Forbes, became the star of the show. It was almost better to follow her. The supporting musicians and composer, Simon Liddell and Jill O’Sullivan, were charming and more of them would have been a bonus. The concept is a great idea to take to small venues but let down by the focus on the central performer who quite frankly is not in the same class as Connolly.