Billy Connolly Announces New Book ‘Rambling Man’

For decades, Scottish comedian Billy Connolly has been making the world laugh, and in doing so has become one of the most well-loved comedians to ever take up the mic. No stranger to putting pen to paper, Connolly has published a number of books over the years, and he’s not done yet. It has been announced by Two Roads, an imprint of John Murray Press, that they are teaming up with the Scottish funny man to publish a new book, Rambling Man: My Life on the Road. Set to be published later this year on 12th October, the book will also feature an audiobook narration by Connolly himself.

Simply put, Rambling Man is billed as a globe-trotting adventure with the greatest travelling companion you could ask for, with the publisher saying: “When Billy set out from Glasgow as a young man he never looked back. He played his banjo on boats and trains, under trees, and on top of famous monuments. He danced naked in snow, wind and fire. He slept in bus stations, under bridges and on strangers’ floors. He travelled by foot, bike, ship, plane, sleigh – even piggy-backed – to get to his next destination.”

“Rambling Man brings together hilarious new stories from Billy’s lifetime on the road – from riding his trike down America’s famous Route 66, building an igloo on an iceberg in the Arctic, playing elephant polo (badly) in Nepal and crashing his motorbike (more than once), to eating witchetty grubs in Australia, being serenaded by a penguin in New Zealand, and swapping secrets in a traditional Sweat Lodge ritual in Canada.”

As The Bookseller reports, speaking of his upcoming book, Connolly said: “Being a Rambling Man was what I always wanted to be, to live the way I damn well pleased. I’ve met the weirdest and most wonderful people who walk the Earth, seen the most bizarre and the most fantastic sights – and I’ve rarely come across something I couldn’t get a laugh at.

“In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad trip. Well apart from in the 1970s, but that’s a whole other story. In writing Rambling Man I’ve re-lived my favourite journeys and my most extraordinary encounters from a lifetime on the road. It has been an absolute joy.”

Connolly has been writing books since 1976, and has sold over 1.19 million copies, amounting to £11.8m. His recent 2021 memoir, Windswept and Interesting, being his bestseller, with over 345,620 copies sold in hardback alone. Nick Davies, managing director for the publisher, said: “Not only has Billy travelled to every corner of the globe, but he has a genuine curiosity about the world around him and a unique ability to connect with everyone he meets. Billy is an old-fashioned troubadour too – a storyteller, a musician and an entertainer – which makes him the perfect travel companion. It’s been a great pleasure to work with him on the book.”