A classic balls-up as the first episode of BBC2’s eagerly awaited you-the-jury drama Murder started out with an impressive two million viewers.

Sadly, by the end of the hour-long whodunit only 570,000 die-hards were still watching. The alarming mass desertion was spurred along by crass scenes of gratuitous nudity.

Every time the prime suspect took his kit off, people switched off. In their droves. A masterclass in how to turn a hit into a flop in just sixty minutes.

But was it purely the sight of an accused killer’s crown jewels that ruined the ratings? Or was it also down to the fact that the whole show was criminally boring? Er… yes.

The unusual format involves the characters breaking off from the narrative to talk to the camera as if they’re addressing a court. The audience is supposed to work out who’s guilty. You decide.

Nice idea… shame about the tedium. With the disastrous damage done, a mere half a million tuned in to the slightly less dreary second instalment starring Peter Bowles... wearing clothes.