For more than sixty years Ken Dodd discomknockerated audiences in packed venues across Britain with his unique blend of madcap humour. Despite his advancing years he continued to perform his legendary five-hour sets to his adoring fans: his final tour, Ken Dodd's Happiness Show, still delighted audiences in his ninetieth year.

This fascinating biography – based on interviews with friends, colleagues and fellow comedians – uncovers the man behind the performer, the man who lived in his childhood home in Knotty Ash throughout his entire life, never leaving the roots that meant so much to him. What drove this extraordinary man? What was the truth behind his strange relationship with money? How did this feather-duster salesman from Liverpool become one of the greatest, though least-lauded, comic geniuses of his generation?

Affectionate, enlightening and entertaining, this biography is a fitting tribute to a remarkable man.