That's stretching it a little IMO.

@FrayedBear
I agree he was not the very best of stand-up comedians (That was Bob Monkhouse) nor was he the Greatest comic (That was Spike Milligan)
I base my opinion on his technical skill, his timing, his ability to push the envelope, break rules and open up comedy on TV for those who came after him. He was the first comic on the BBC to use the F word in a routine and get away with it (well before Billy Connolly).
This is before you get in to his second career as an investigative TV journalist and his dramatic acting career or his early days as a stunt performer and daredevil.

@LenHazell53 I missed all of your ultimate paragraph. I'm not denying that he did more to expose the horror of Catholicism than any single other person. For that he was more worthy of a Nobel than any Robert Zimmerman or Obama!