A comic genius whose capacity for surreal invention still inspires comedians today, Spike Milligan was, as yesterday’s auction illustrated, also a deeply troubled figure who was plagued by depression. Even when he was being funny there was a darkness at the core of his being.

Take his annotation to his own copy of Silly Verse for Kids, written nearly 50 years ago and still popular with children today.

“Most of these poems were written . . . under great stress due to unbearable tension in my married life,” he wrote. “This book was written down as an attempt to register my undying love for my children. I think it was for the best, but who’s to ever know?”

His first efforts at comedy came during the Second World War when, in between serving as a gunner in North Africa and then Italy, he entertained the troops – part-time at first, then full-time after he was wounded.

His wartime memories provided the material for several memoirs, starting with Adolf Hitler: My Part in his Downfall.

After the war he teamed up with Harry Secombe – a friend from the North Africa campaign – Peter Sellers and Michael Bentine for the unpredictable, surreal, visionary and wildly popular The Goon Show. Beyond the Goons he wrote poetry, a novel, Puckoon, a play, The Bed-Sitting Room, and starred in the highly successful Q series of television sketch shows.

His black sense of humour never deserted him. After Sir Harry Secombe died, he said: “I’m glad he died before me, because I didn’t want him to sing at my funeral.” He once joked that he wanted his headstone to bear the words: “I told you I was ill”. After his death in 2002 the Chichester Diocese refused the epitaph, but then allowed it, translated into Gaelic.

He summed up his life in his own words when he wrote his own obituary: “He wrote The Goon Show and died.”

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