Tom Courtenay plays Billy, a cheeky, naughty young man who is as daft as a brush and lives semi-permanently inside his own Walter Mitty-ish fantasy world. Billy wants to be a comedy writer, and he is, after all, the experienced comedy writer of preposterous situations that are happening inside his own head. But Billy has a complicated love life (though we can assume that as a nice young unmarried man he is still a virgin). And it is this final act of nerve-loss that has always soured me on Billy Liar, despite its massive reputation. It is however a lovely performance from Courtenay, an enduringly amazing actor who is still doing outstanding work right now.