The Accidental Artist, published by John Murray Press, will be released in hardback on October 24 of this year.
The comic’s three previous books with the imprint – Tall Tales & Wee Stories, Windswept & Interesting and Rambling Man – have all been major bestsellers with combined sales of over two million copies across all formats.
Featuring over 200 of Connolly’s artworks alongside accompanying stories from the beloved comedian, actor, storyteller and artist, The Accidental Artist welcomes the reader into the icon’s visual world.
In what are described as “elegant, simple lines”, Connolly conjures up a land of “fantastic beasts, mysterious inventions, and blissful calm”.
The art works offer glimpses of his childhood and of Scotland, as well as some of the far-flung places he’s visited, as well as demonstrating his lifelong love of music, wildlife and fashion.
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Billy Connolly said: “My drawings started by accident. I was on tour in Montreal a few years ago and found myself sheltering from the pishing rain in an art store.
“I went in to get dry and came out with an armful of felt-tip pens and a sketchbook, then went straight back to my hotel room and started to draw. I’ve never looked back. People think I paint or draw things on purpose. I don’t, I just draw. It is a portal for my imagination. And, just like my stand-up, I never know where it will lead.”
Nick Davies said: “It has been an absolute pleasure to work with Billy on his trilogy of huge Christmas bestsellers: Tall Tales & Wee Stories, Windswept & Interesting and Rambling Man.
“The Accidental Artist is something completely fresh – a beautiful explosion of art, wild imagination and storytelling. It is a very special book from a very special man.”
Coinciding with publication this autumn, a major new BBC Arts documentary will be broadcast, featuring a first-person interview, personal archive, and rarely seen performances.
This spring saw the BFI re-release of the intimate fly-on-the-wall documentary of Connoly’s groundbreaking 1975 tour of Dublin and Belfast Billy Connolly: Big Banana Feet.
The comedian was first inspired to start drawing while on tour in Canada.
He said: “I’d never drawn in my life until this point, but I just started drawing weird islands and carried on drawing.
“I asked my wife to tell me if they were getting better and she said ‘definitely’.
“My manager sent them to the gallery, and now I make pictures and they’re lovely to me.
“And the fact that other people like them and want to live with them in their homes blows me sideways.
“To have somebody who wants a part of your mind in their life – I thought my wife had been the only one to fall for that, but it turns out that she’s not alone.”
