Billy and Albert: Billy Connolly at the Royal Albert Hall

STAR RATING: ***** The Works **** Just Misses the Mark *** That Little Bit In Between ** Lagging Behind * The Pits

The well-known and highly successful Scottish comedian performing at one of his most prestigious venues, the Royal Albert Hall, in July 1987. Connolly discusses everything, from the difficulty of pronouncing linoleum, spiders and their wily ways to the joys of masturbation and something involving Bacardi he will do 'never again.'

There is an 18 certificate on the front cover of this, one of Billy Connolly's most renowned shows, along with a warning about containing material that could offend some viewers. But personally I'd have just done away with this and given it a 15 certificate, because there's really nothing overly rude or offensive in the whole thing, especially in the light of other, more adult comedians.

But that aside, I've been trying to get into stand-up comedy a bit more lately and this first BC outing I've witnessed, I'm sorry to say, didn't impress me that much. I've been trying to get into Jim Davidson a bit more (not literally, of course) lately as well, and I've just found his stand-up shows generally more hilarious than Billy's. None of the jokes really struck me and I failed to find it funny in any way, apart from one or two gags which raised a mild chuckle. Plus Billy appears through-out in a white coat and trousers with black stripes running down them, along with his long, frizzy goatee beard (facially, he reminds me a little of my old martial arts teacher.)

To be fair, it has to be said that Connolly does have a natural rapport with his audience and he is a fairly engaging guy to see stand and listen to talking. Maybe I don't understand Scottish humour that well, heck, maybe I'm a bit too young to grasp it, but at the moment anyway, this one just didn't strike a chord with me. **

have seen the video and have watched it time and again, would like to buy a copy but can't get in western Australia, and is it available on c.d billy keep up with the shows as laugher is a good cure for all the sorrows in the world, we need more doctors like you!everybody that i have watched the show with has enjoyed this one the most and during the summer nights here in good old Perth we open get some of the ones out that i have and crack a few tinnies till the sun comes up. if you should ever come back to Perth you will have to drop in the our place an have a drink at the CRACKATININN and may be some chocolate, i have saved all the ginger ones for you.

I am not really a fan of stand up comedy but I would have to say that I really enjoyed this.I was told by my brother to watch this show and so I did.I wasn't disappointed by it at all.I wouldn't give this video a 18 certificate maybe a 15 certificate.This video had a lot of swearing in it but that was okay.I have watched this DVD a couple of times and I never stopped cracking up.I didn't laugh as hard as my brother but I really enjoyed it.All of the jokes were very funny - I had a very hard time deciding what one I liked the most but I couldn't pick one.

I gave this DVD a 9 / 10 because I really enjoyed it and it was a great stand up comedy show. This has to be a must see for any stand up comedy fans

Recorded in July 1987 in the final stages of his world tour which covered England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Australia, New Zealand and America. It was on this tour that he actively pushed to become popular in the America and it was on this tour that he began re-styling his material. It was also the last tour that he played his banjo or guitar on. What we have here is a document that shows an end of an era, but the beginning of something even bigger and better for one of Britain's best loved stand up comedians.

In the 1980's any comedian that chooses to book the Royal Albert Hall in London on the basis of making 5,000 people laugh for a couple of hours would considered suicidal. The Royal Albert Hall had never been a place where comedians played before this and even after this mainly due to it's enormity. Plus an added factor was that The Royal Albert Halls regular clientèle would not have been comedy fans. Connolly had a fan base but his fan base was the complete opposite of the Royal Albert Halls. But another problem consisted that in Connolly's bid to win over America he had not been present in the U.K. to keep up his larger than life profile. Also there was the tabloid publicity that had engulfed him in the early 1980's, his marriage break up had made the front pages, and his present relationship with Pamela Stephenson of Not The Nine O'Clock News fame had also made him into good copy. Another interesting aspect of this show was that Billy Connolly was performing his first ever tour in a sober state. Despite all this Billy Connolly proved that he still possessed the same humor that had made him famous. He sold out every night at the Royal Albert Hall and from it he produced this Show that went on to sell in excess of 500,000 copies world wide and is still seen to be a very popular DVD of his today.

In the 90 minutes that this show runs Connolly tells us a selection of wild and wonderful stories. These range in mother care baby monitors, Ronald Regan, what really happened in the Khyber Pass, two naturalists in the plains of Africa and their methods of escape in case of a lion attack, a Glaswegian couple reminiscing their marriage through some of the notoriously turbulent times of the 20th century and my own personal favorite story is his advice on what to do in case you are ever caught masturbating. His Banjo pieces are irrelevant and do nothing for the piece. I have often heard Connolly being described as a fine banjo player and I have no doubt that he is and I have witnessed him playing in his travel documentaries but in this the Banjo pieces he plays are very half hearted and they seem to be exercises that ease him into the work at hand. He never played banjo again after this tour and from what I witnessed on this DVD that that may not be such a bad thing. Other than that this is really good show. Granted I will admit some of the stories don't grab my attention as much as what other ones do, but 80% of this video is hilarious. Another point I noticed about it that may put off people who are familiar with Connolly's later work might be put of by the slow start that this DVD has and the laid back style that Billy Connolly delivers in. But it is worth giving him a chance because the Connolly persona of later years is very much present in the stories he tells.

This DVD should be watched by avid Connolly fans but I think it will hold enough of an interest for people who are curious about Billy Connolly. 90 minutes worth watching if you interested enough. 8 out of 10