Billy Week

Articles
On 12th July, Billy was featured in a round-table discussion with four young acting students as part of The Guardian's "Class of 2009" series. ( Text under the cut )

Film
The Edmonton Sun ran a good review of "Stone of Destiny" on 3rd July: ( Text under the cut )

Television
Many news sites ran stories on the possible/probable/almost certain demise of the long-standing Glasgow police series "Taggart", after ITV failed to commission any episodes for next year. Billy was mentioned in The Scotsman's piece here.

Appearances
Billy was a guest at a dinner hosted by Scotland's First Minister on 23rd June to celebrate the Edinburgh International Film festival. The story, from the Press and Journal is here.

Film
"Stone of Destiny" is now available on DVD in Canada, and a very good review was published in the Sudbury Star on 30th June. ( Text under the cut )

Television
According to The SunBilly has signed up to appear in Jack Osborne's "Celebrity Adrenaline Junkie" TV programme later this year. The story is here.

Blogs
There is a new LOTR cast community at Dreamwidth - http://lotr-cast-fandom.dreamwidth.org/ - for all news-related items concerning members of the LOTR cast and crew. (LOTR-related fanfic can be found at http://lotrip-all-fic.dreamwidth.org/)

Charity
The Sapphires Agency is offering ultra-limited-edition signed photographs of Billy and other actors on eBay to benefit The Prince's Trust, a UK charity. Six prints of each actor are available, with a "Buy it now" option (of £250.00 plus P&P). The bids are open until approximately 12 noon on 11th June (GMT) for the first lot and approximately 10pm on 12th June for the second lot.

eBay disclaimer: "We have no control over and do not guarantee the quality, safety or legality of items advertised, the truth or accuracy of listings, the ability of sellers to sell items, the ability of buyers to pay for items, or that a buyer or seller will actually complete a transaction".

Charity
The Sapphires Agency is offering ultra-limited-edition signed photographs of Billy and other actors on eBay to benefit The Prince's Trust, a UK charity. Six prints of each actor are available, with a "Buy it now" option. The bids are open until approximately 12 noon on 10th June (GMT).

eBay disclaimer: "We have no control over and do not guarantee the quality, safety or legality of items advertised, the truth or accuracy of listings, the ability of sellers to sell items, the ability of buyers to pay for items, or that a buyer or seller will actually complete a transaction".

LiveJournal
monaboyd_month featured Billy in video, images and stories during the month of May. Check out the community for more details.

For Purchase
"Stone of Destiny" will be available on DVD from Amazon Canada from 30th June. The price is CDN $29.99 plus P&P.

Appearances
Not really an appearance as such, but Tom Harris, MP, blogged that he met Billy coming out of the BBC building in Glasgow last week. Let's hope that his visit means more work for us to see, hear and enjoy.
( Text under the cut )

Appearances
1. As previously noted, Billy participated in the charity event "The Rescue" on 25th April. Another story describing his involvement was posted at The Carnoustie Guide and Gazette.
( Extract under the cut )
2. On 18th May, a message from Billy was presented at the "Only Boys Allowed" event at the Perth Concert Hall. The BBC reported the event here (with embedded video) and in their blogs section here.
( Billy's message to the boys )

Film
Stealth Media Group, a new UK film distribution company, has acquired the rights to "Stone of Destiny" and is looking sell it to overseas buyers.

"Save Angel Hope" will be available for DVD rental (not purchase) in Australia on 24th June. Bigpond Movies already has it listed and the major stores should have at least one copy. The press release from Gryphon Entertainment is here.

"Jusqu'à Toi" (formerly known as "C'est toujours mieux quand on sourit sur la photo") will be released in France on 29 July, according to IMDB.

Blogs
On 11th May, nerwende posted a Where Are They Now? feature in the ONTD community. It includes two embedded videos - one from the LOTR:EE interviews, and the trailer for "Stone of Destiny".

Appearances
On 25th April, Billy participated in the charity awareness event "The Rescue" in Edinburgh. TheOneRing.net reported the event here and a video of his speech can be found here.

Film
"Stone of Destiny" was screened twice at the Ancaster Film Festival on 20th April and was received very favourably. There is a short but positive review here.

Video
On 26th April, The OneRing.net celebrated its 10th birthday. Among the celebrations was a video compiled from some of the thousands of images from the TORn photo library, several of which featured Billy. You can view the video here.

Film
The Palm Beach Film Festival opens on 23rd April. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Florida, ran a story on 15th April, and mentioned that "Stone of Destiny" will open the festival. ( extract under the cut )
Articles
On 12th April, Billy was mentioned as a shining example of Scottish talent from RSAMD, in an article from Scotland on Sunday concerning Piers Morgan's comments on the auditions for "Britan's Got Talent" (presumably this was before he heard Susan Boyle singing).

For Purchase
The DVD of "Stone of Destiny" is now available from Amazon UK for £9.98 (plus P&P, less VAT if ordering from outside the UK). The other listing is now marked as "unavailable".

Film
"Stone of Destiny" continues on the festival circuit and will open the Palm Beach International Film Festival in Palm Beach, Florida, on 23rd April. On 29 March IndieWire ran an article on the festival here.
( Extract under the cut )

On 3rd April, "The Record" (Ontario, Canada) ran a review of "Stone of Destiny" which continues in general release:
( Text under the cut )

For Purchase
Amazon UK now has two listings for the "Stone of Destiny" DVD, both with a revised issue date of 20th April. Version 1 from Contender Home Entertainment is listed at £9.98 (RRP £17.99) and Version 2 from E1 films is listed at £11.69 (RRP £15.99). Version 1 uses the movie poster as its image, version 2 has what looks to be the actual DVD cover. Both are PAL / Region 2. I can't identify any real differences (screen size, length, extra features) from the information provided.

Appearances
It was reported here that Billy would be appearing in Dressed To Kilt in New York on 30th March during Tartan Week. However, Billy posted an entry here to explain that a clash of dates prevented his appearance.
( Blog text under the cut )

Film
"Stone of Destiny" was shown at the Vernon Film Festival in Canada on 6th March.

Articles
On 6th March, the Edinburgh Evening News ran ran a story which said that the "Kilted Scots" calendar, sales of which were to benefit the One City Trust, were to be pulped after failing to sell. However, an enquiry to the Trust by sassywitch revealed that the news story was false.

Images
On 8th March, mata090680 posted some pictures of Billy here.

For Purchase
The "Kilted Scots" 2009 calendar can still be purchased from the One City Shop; the price is £5.00 (plus P&P, amount depending on your location).

Appearances
On Saturday 21st February, Billy appeared at the Independent Spirit Awards in Los Angeles. Images are here and some of them were reposted here and here.

Film
"Stone of Destiny" opened in Canada on Friday 20th February. There were several reviews posted, rather mixed:
( EyeWeekly.com )
( Canada.com )
( The Gate )
( CTV.ca )
( The Star )
( MetroNews.com )

Video
On 19th February in bboyd, kleini posted a link for Billy videos at Getty Images:
http://www.gettyimages.co.uk/Search/Search.aspx?contractUrl=2&language=en-GB&p=billy%20boyd&assetType=film&src=quick

Images
On 19th February, mata090680 posted a series of icons featuring LOTR actors here.

For Purchase
"Stone of Destiny" will be released on DVD (Region 2) on 23rd March. It is listed as available from Amazon UK at £9.98 plus P&P.

Film
Billy is currently in California, shooting a new film called Carmel.

There was an open call for 800 extras to shoot ballroom scenes on 13th & 14th Feb, it was only posted on 12th Feb in The Californian and Blog Monterey, so I hope they got the numbers they needed.

Television
On 13th February, Billy was mentioned in a Guardian article on Annie Griffin, an American TV writer living in Scotland, who has a new series (New Town) out shortly. The paragraph reads: Before all that there was Coming Soon, Griffin's dark, slightly deranged comedy about the travails of a Scottish theatre company. Starring David Walliams, a pre-Lord of the Rings Billy Boyd and a then-unknown Julia Davis, it was, to put it mildly, a bit bonkers, but very funny.

Images
On 27th January, mata09080 posted a series of pics featuring LOTR actors, including Billy. See them here.

Articles
1. On 16th January, Billy was mentioned briefly in an article on photographer Wendy McMurdo and film-maker Paul Holmes: "Holmes is a British filmmaker and lecturer at Napier University in Edinburgh, Scotland. He wrote and directed the short film Sniper 470, working with actors Billy Boyd and Carmen Pieraccini, and producer Michael Hines."

2. There was a flurry of articles in the third week of January concerning the possibility that the four hobbit character from LOTR might find their way into "The Hobbit" or the bridging film. The story appears to have originated in an MTV article.

3. On 31st January, the Times Colonist (Victoria, BC, Canada) ran an article on "Stone of Destiny" which was screened as part of the Victoria Film Festival. ( Text under the cut )

It's been another quiet period for Billy.

Images
On 25th December nverlandposted various LOTR photos here (you will have to be a member of the community to view the photos)

On 9th January, asco_310 posted a series of hi-res photos here from a couple of different (old) shoots.

Back in mid-December, mukkianglia posted 57 Billy icons here.

Facebook
Billy appears to have a Facebook account - I have no way of checking the authenticity of it, and it doesn't seem to be very active.

Blogs
Billy was mentioned in Tom Urie's blog on 2nd January: "The early part of this year also saw me working with two fantastic actors - Gregor Fisher and Billy Boyd - in 'Empty', a very quirky and original BBC2 comedy. I don’t think it took off in quite the way we’d planned, but I loved it." (For those who don't remember, Tom played "Super Barrio" the plumber).

Film
On 13th December the Daily Record posted a brief but very positive review of "Stone of Destiny" ( Text under the cut )

Articles
On 9th December, the STV website posted a story on a new calendar featuring Scottish personalities, including Billy. Proceeds from the sale of the "Kilted Scots 09" calendar will benefit a charity that helps the homeless in Edinburgh. The story is here.

Images
On 17th December, morebliss posted a picspam featuring actors in scarves, including several pictures of Billy, here.

On 22nd December, mata090680 posted a series of older LOTR cast pics here.


For Purchase
The "Kilted Scots 09" calendar is available from the One City online shop as well as various shops in Edinburgh. Cost is £19.95 (plus P&P).

It's been a long time between updates but Billy has been fairly quiet lately.

Appearances
Billy appeared with his band Beecake at the Tartan Clef Awards on 22nd November. For more details see our sister community, beecakeweek

Articles
Billy was mentioned briefly in an article in The Sydney Morning Herald on 22nd October concerning "Tolkienalia" and the value that Tolkien-related items are accruing. Read the article.

Images
There have been several icon posts in the last month:
a. mctime_lord here;
b. justforeverme here;
c. mata090680 here and here.

Other images of Billy can be found in the following posts from mata090680: 10th November, 18th November, and
25th November

For Purchase
The CD of the second series of "Dirk Gently" is now available from Amazon UK, price £9.59 (plus P&P).

Film
More reviews of "Stone of Destiny" have appeared on the web, some good, some bad:

1. 14th October - Long Aye-lander
2. 15th October - ( Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser )
3. 19th October - Joe Middleton

Radio
The second series of Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency continues on BBC Radio 2 on Thursday evenings.

Articles
On 16th October, the Arbroath Herald had an article on "Stone of Destiny" and its possible effects on Scottish tourism. ( Article under the cut )

For Purchase
The CD of the second series of "Dirk Gently" is available for pre-order from Amazon UK, provisional price £9.59 (plus P&P). Release date is 13th November.

Film
1. "Stone of Destiny" has been featured in the Vancouver International Film Festival this week. It opened the "Canadian Images" section on Friday 26th September and was shown again on Wednesday 1st October.

2. "Stone of Destiny" has a charity screening in Braehead on Wednesday 8th October. Several sites have reported this:

( Paisley Daily Express )

The Daily Telegraph

The Press Association

3. "The List" posted a rather lukewarm review of the film on 2nd October.

Radio
Billy is reprising his role as Richard MacDuff in the second series of "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency - The Long, Dark Tea-Time of the Soul" which commenced broadcasting on BBC4 on Thursday 2nd October. ( More information under the cut )

Articles
There have been several articles featuring "Stone of Destiny" in the last couple of weeks:

1. On 23rd September, Billy was mentioned in an article in the Evening Herald, Dublin, on Irish actress Brenda Fricker, who appears in "Stone of Destiny":

"The Irish actor's latest role is in a movie called Stone of Destiny, the film chosen to close the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival. Stone of Destiny was written and directed by Charles Martin Smith and also stars Robert Carlyle and Billy Boyd. The movie is based on the true story of four Glasgow University students who attempted a coup on Christmas Day, 1950, trying to repatriate an ancient coronation stone from London's Westminster Abbey to its ancestral home in Scotland. The film is set for wider release at the end of this year.

http://www.herald.ie/entertainment/around-town/brenda-tells-of-her-agony-after-shoulder-break-1480682.html

2. Canada.com is hosting two interviews with Charles Martin Smith (director of "Stone of Destiny") from 25th and 26th September, as part of their coverage of the Vancouver International Film Festival. The interviews don't have anything new about Billy but you can read them here and here.

3. On 28th September The Times posted an article on "Stone of Destiny" and its possible effect on Scottish politics - you can read it here.

4. Also on 28th September, the Daily Mail posted an interview with Kate Mara but demonstrated their lack of editorial skills by giving it the headline "Hollywood star pays tribute to Stone of Denisty nationilst".

5. On 4th October The Press and Journal (Aberdeen) published an interview with Charlie Cox.

6. On 5th October The Sunday Herald posted an interview with Ciaron Kelly.

There were also two mentions of Billy that were not related to SOD:

1. On 5th October Billy was quoted in an article from Scotland on Sunday on kilts: "Billy Boyd: AS A true Scotsman, I love to wear a kilt. Wherever I go in the world, I have a better time with my kilt on."
http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/spectrum/Kneesy-does-it.4557769.jp

2. On 7th October The Daily Record had a story on a new recording of BA Robertson's "We Have a Dream" for charity. Several stars are involved in the project, including Billy, and there are plans to record the crowd singing during half-time in the Scotland vs Norway game at Hampden on Saturday 11th October. You can read more about the project here

For Purchase
The BBC radio production of the second series of "Dirk Gently" will be released on 13th November 2008. It is available for pre-order from Amazon UK, provisional price £9.59 (plus P&P).