The popular actor and comedian Billy Connolly has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, it emerged today. Connolly, 70, recently voiced the character of Fergus in Brave and is soon to be seen in The Hobbit: There And Back Again. He has said that he intends to continue working and is shortly to being filming on a new television series.
Connolly, who recently underwent successful surgery for prostate cancer, had become concerned about his mental health after he began to find himself forgetting his lines. He is said to be in the early stages of the disease, which is presently incurable, and is receiving the best available treatment.
Individual responses to the disease and its treatment vary considerably. Michael J Fox continues to work despite having lived with it for 20 years, whilst Bob Hoskins announced his retirement earlier this year because of its effects on him.
