I grew up listening to radio comedy in the 1960's. At the time, Tony Hancock was THE biggest name in comedy in the UK, and would remain so, until his personality defects and addiction to alcohol gradually overwhelmed him and destroyed his career. In many ways, Hancock was an exemplar of the "comedian as sad person" archetype.
Hancock's radio scripts utilized shrewd observation of British life. The episode where the Americans move into a local airbase, inspiring Hancock to rent out his shed as a "luxury apartment" to them, is classic with more than a hint of truth to it. Along with the satirical observation, the writers also worked on the creation of Hancock's comic character, that of a blustering blaggart, cocksure until confronted with his own failings. They also skilfully utilized the straight man-comic man dichotomy, a role filled by Syd James up until the point that Hancock, worried that James was getting too many laughs, insisted that he be removed from the show. This was the beginning of Hancock's decline, as his insecurities overwhelmed him, drove him into a spiral of alcohol abuse, and essentially ended both his career and his life.
However, until he self-destructed, Hancock was a brilliant comic actor. Here is his famous episode, The Blood Donor, where, in typical Hancock style, he blusters his way into a hospital to do his public service, only to fall victim to his own terror of medical procedures and needles.Also note the brief reference to my home town in the first scene...