Mercury Prize shortlist to be announced

The shortlist of 12 nominees for this year’s Mercury Prize will be announced today.

The award, now in its 17th year, aims to promote the best albums released in the year by Irish and British artists.

Previous winners include the Arctic Monkeys, Pulp and Portishead, and young female artists Little Boots and Florence and the Machine have been tipped for success this time around.

Last year’s surprise win for Elbow, with the Seldom Seen Kid, began a hugely successful 12 months for the indie underdogs.

The winner of the prize, now sponsored by Barclaycard, is decided by an independent panel of industry figures and music journalists and will be announced in September.