Malky McCormick (1943- 2019) and Billy Connolly met through the Scottish folk scene of the 1970s.  Bonding over their love for music and banjo playing, they became friends and found that they shared the same sense of humour.

This friendship sparked the creation of ‘The Big Yin’, a cartoon strip for the Sunday Mail that featured two pals – ‘The Wee Man’ and ‘The Big Yin’ – who were reflections of their creators. Not only was the cartoon written in Scots, it was a homage to life in Scotland’s Central Belt. The cartoon caught on, and the characters became firm favourites with readers. The strip ran successfully every week from 1975 to 1977. The ‘Big Yin’ name became synonymous with Billy Connolly as he embarked on his comedy career. For Malky McCormick, it was the big break that cemented him as one of Scotland’s most famous cartoonists.