SOME people might consider this a bit odd, but I’ve always quite liked a good murder.

By that, I don’t mean a street attack, a death resulting from a pathetic display of violence or a shooting in a rubbish 1970s American cop show.

I mean the sort in which the perpetrator goes to extreme lengths to wreak revenge on an adversary who committed an unforgivable sin such as stealing his newspaper or knocking his drink over 20 years ago. One which makes it almost impossible to work out exactly who did it.

Hammer brought such cases to TV in its House Of Horror series, while over the past decade the likes of Morse and Midsomer Murders have featured cases which would perplex the World Cryptic Murders Solving Champion.

So, it is only appropriate that, as is the case with comedy, film and general drama, we have an awards ceremony dedicated to crime writing.

For some reason, actor Alan Davies presents and introduces the likes of Ricky Gervais, Dame Helen Mirren and Donal Macintyre to hand out awards to the small collective of people whose crime stories actually make it on to television these days.

The Bourne Ultimatum is hastily named as the film of the year so the real business of TV writing can be concentrated on.

The whole thing is lacking the atmosphere of a good murder story, set as it is in London’s Grosvenor Hotel and looking as if it was filmed in the middle of a dozy summer afternoon.

Generally, this awards ceremony is less thrilling than the programmes it is here to pay tribute to and has more of a “why do it?” than a “who dunnit?” ring to it.

Criminal Justice gets the gong for TV Crime Drama of the Year and some posh bloke wins the Best Actor, with Ian Rankin taking the Best Writer prize for Rebus.

Just to create some tension, the nominees for the Writers’ Award for Classic TV Drama are spread throughout the ceremony, building up to a grand announcement at the end.

PD James, Val McDermid, Ruth Rendell, Lynda La Plante, Ian Rankin and Colin Dexter are battling it out, but, just in case you weren’t excited enough, Dame Agatha Christie, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and PD herself have to be initiated into the International Crimewriting Hall of Fame first, before . . . eventually . . . Dame Helen announces that the winner is . . . Colin Dexter. Colin, of course, can’t be there, so relays his delight by video, ensuring the whole thing ends up as dead as a Morse character played by a bit-part actor.