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Billy Connolly reveals cancer and Parkinson's diagnosis
Billy Connolly has revealed how he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and Parkinson's disease on the same day. Speaking on the ITV documentary Billy Connolly's Big Send Off, the 71-year-old recalled the "funny week" in which he received the news.
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Billy Connolly: Parkinson's disease first spotted by fan
Billy Connolly's Parkinson's disease was first spotted by one of his fans, the comedian has revealed.
Connolly said he was approached by a man in a hotel who had noticed that the way he was walking showed signs of the disease.
"He said 'Billy, I'm a big fan, and I don't want to depress you, but I'm a surgeon and your gait would suggest you have early onset Parkinson's - and he was right.', Connolly says on the ITV documentary Billy Connolly's Big Send Off, which will be broadcast on 7 May at 9pm.
Connolly said he "wasn't unduly worried" when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer on the same day as learning he had Parkinson's.
Billy Connolly: I'm on a 'strict regime' of crosswords
Comedian Billy Connolly said that doing crosswords and writing words down in notebooks helps him to cope with memory problems caused by Parkinson's disease.
"I've put myself on a strict regime of crossword books," he told ITV documentary Billy Connolly's Big Send Off. "They remind me of everything. I have to train my memory."
The 71-year-old added: "I've got a notebook with all the words I tend to forget. It's the same ones cropping up again and again."
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Billy Connolly reveals double diagnosis on the same day
Comedian Billy Connolly has revealed how he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and Parkinson's disease on the same day.
Speaking on the ITV documentary Billy Connolly's Big Send Off, the 71-year-old recalls the "funny week" in which he received news of the double diagnosis.
"On the Monday I got 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 disease," he says.
Connolly, who been given the all-clear after treatment for prostate cancer, also says he was "angry" at suggestions that drugs to combat Parkinson's had led to him forgetting things on stage.
"I've lost my train of thought all (through) my career! It's what makes me different from everybody else," he argues.
Billy Connolly's Big Send Off airs on May 7th at 9pm on ITV1