The shortlist for the highest honour sought by any British or Irish artist was announced today amid a frenzy of commentary.

Adele - 19
British Sea Power - Do You Like Rock Music?
Burial - Untrue
Elbow - The Seldom Seen Kid
Estelle - Shine
The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age of the Understatement
Laura Marling - Alas I Cannot Swim
Neon Neon - Stainless Style
Portico Quartet - Knee-Deep in the North Sea
Robert Plant and Alison Krauss - Raising Sand
Radiohead - In Rainbows
Rachel Unthank and the Winterset - The Bairns

Many of the predictables are here - Radiohead, anything that has anything to do with Alex Turner, British Sea Power - but the list is perhaps most notable (and credible) for snubbing Coldplay, the UK’s most popular export.  Anyone who values music over and above what they see on an Apple ad, however, will not object to Martin and company being excluded.  More controversial snubs include Portishead and M.I.A. - the fact that neither of these will be on tenterhooks on September 9 is a source of great consternation to some.  You can, of course, continue to rely on us here at NLtS for continuing coverage of all things Mercury Prize.