SEAN CONNERY - CONNERY CONFIDENT OF SCOTTISH INDEPENDENCE

Actor SIR SEAN CONNERY is confident his native Scotland will soon have independence from the British Isles. The star, who is a vocal supporter of autonomous rights in his homeland, insists the country will be an independent state in his lifetime. Connery has previously refused to return to Scotland until the country's inclusion in the United Kingdom alongside England, Wales and Northern Ireland - and currently lives in The Bahamas as a result of his strong political convictions. But he insists the move is "within touching distance".