So did the Bafta juries get it right at the 2006 TV awards? No doubt about the undisputed winner of the night: the BBC, providing the government with a timely reminder of what it does best as negotiations over the future of the licence fee enter a crucial final phase.
Individual Bafta winners included: Doctor Who, Bleak House, The Thick of It, Chris Langham, EastEnders, Jonathan Ross, Help, The Apprentice, 10 O'Clock News (all BBC); Jamie's School Dinners, the Ashes, The Government Inspector (Channel 4); The X Factor (ITV - the broadcaster's sole award last night).
All a far cry from last year's Bafta TV awards, when Little Britain was one of relatively few BBC winners on a night when Channel 4 picked up most of the glory with the likes of Shameless, Sex Traffic and Green Wing.
So were last night's awards a fair reflection of the best of British TV in 2005?
