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Milligan was a genius. When I was a kid, just outside of NYC, late at night I used to be able to pick up the Canadian Broadcasting System on AM (out of Toronto?), playing old recordings of The Goon Show.

It was the best. I almost remember the name of the orchestra that played during the breaks.

Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, and Harry Seacombe. (One of Seacombe's identities was Sir Cedric Sea-Goon). I think Milligan played the deranged, apparently retarded character named Eccles, among a dozen or so others.

RIP, gents. You changed the world for the weirder, and better.

"Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, and Harry Seacombe. (One of Seacombe's identities was Sir Cedric Sea-Goon). I think Milligan played the deranged, apparently retarded character named Eccles, among a dozen or so others"

- I believe the regular characters for the Goon Show were:
Peter Sellers - Blue Bottle, Major Bloodnock, Grip Pipe Thin and Buddy
Spike Milligan - Eccles, Min and Moriarty
Harry Secombe - Neddy Secombe
I think the band was Ray Ellington and his Orchestra and there was some other guy who played a harmonica solo each week.
Milligan wrote most of the scripts and his influence on British comedy is clear, starting with Monty Python right through to Black Adder.
Unfortunately, Milligan had a nervous breakdown while under fire as a soldier during the war and he never was completely cured. He suffered throughout his life from fits of depression and fear.