THE BEST NEW MEMOIRS

Windswept & Interesting Billy Connolly

Two Roads £25

This is everything a celebrity autobiography should be and more. Beginning life in a Glasgow tenement building and surviving brutal abuse at the hands of his own family, comedy’s wild man (right) faced some daunting early odds. He grew up to become a shipyard welder and then banjoplaying (and streetfighting) folk musician before discovering his true calling. His unique voice rings out from every page, full of fearlessness, humility and life-affirming silliness.

The Opposite Of Butterfly Hunting Evanna Lynch Headline £20

‘Neither love, money, riches nor a part in a Harry Potter will compel a person to recover from their eating disorder if they don’t want to let it go,’ confides the Luna Lovegood actor in this myth-busting comingof-age story. As well as charting her adolescent battle with anorexia, it offers a darkly compelling, highly topical account of journeying from girlhood to womanhood in the spotlight of global celebrity.

The Lick Of Love: How Dogs Changed My Life Julian Clary Quercus £20

An autodography? Julian Clary’s candid, colourful memoir doubles as a love letter to his canine companions.

From his earliest days of stand-up to telly stardom and deciding to move to the countryside, there’s invariably a dog in the picture. Sometimes these pooches are cast as chaperone, sometimes life coach or co-star, but they always bring out the best in him as a person and as a writer.

A Funny Life Michael McIntyre Macmillan £20

After getting his big break in the 2006

Royal Variety Performance, Michael McIntyre expected a smooth ride to fame and fortune. Happily for readers of this latest instalment of his autobiography, the world’s biggest-selling comedian couldn’t have been more wrong. Panel show disasters, talent judge flops, having his trousers fall down in front of three policemen – there are plenty of guffaws, but it can be moving, too.