William Hollywood was born in Lancashire, England in 1923. At an early age his parents moved to Belfast. He received his diploma in Art & Design from Belfast College of Art in Ireland. He joined a commercial design studio, eventually forming his own business which he ran successfully for many years. In 1968, as a result of a strong desire to establish himself as a creative artist, he left the commercial field and concentrated on painting wildfowl and game birds in their natural habitat. A few years later, he left Northern Ireland and set up home in the Republic of Ireland with his wife, Eileen. He had immediate success, for the public was quick to realize that he could paint wildlife subjects in oil with unbelievable softness and richness, portraying great feeling and knowledge. Bill was a quiet, modest man, except on the subject of cruelty to animals, which he detested in any form. He stated: "I am strictly a conservationist who loves the beauty of birds, and I am fearful that soon few will be around to enjoy. Therefore, I get great pleasure from painting them.” Hollywood was one of the few overseas members of the Society of Animal Artists. He exhibited at the Mooreland Gallery, Ackerman Gallery, the Sire Peter Scott Annual Exhibition, the County Landowner's Association Game Fair in Great Britain, and the 1980 Bird Art Exhibition at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum. His paintings are in the Ulster Museum and Art Gallery and many private collections throughout Europe and the United States.