John Gibson: Enough to make you weep, Billy

C’MON, Billy, not you,too! Everybody’s gushing tears these days. It’s the thing to do. But we have to ask Billy Connolly, a hard man weaned on the Clyde shipyards, are you a welder or a wimp?

He sobbed at the BAFTA awards in Glasgow when they gave him one. I knew him from his Humblebum days at the Palladium in Edinburgh and laughed lots with him in all those subsequent years.

But no. We didn’t need the waterworks, thanks. His welder pals surely would have given him a banana boot up his bum at the soppy spectacle.

On your bikes

We’re told a safety drive has taken place encouraging cyclists to take extra care in the dark during the winter. What’s needed, as a priority, is a campaign to teach cyclists to take care in the daylight the year long.

Ever seen a cop pull up a cyclist for a lecture, let alone a fine? Neither have I.

Mac the knife

Typically reticent, John McEnroe, below, is whispering: “These guys (Federer and Djokovic) handle themselves unbelievably well. I don’t know how they have this incredible control. I’m not going to sit here and pretend I had the same control they did and to some degree I wish they’d let it out a bit more.

“They’ll probably have ulcers when they’re 35. I don’t know how they can shrug it off. Maybe they look at their bank balances at the end of the year and that helps.”