Beth Gibbons earnt her second nomination – now 59, she won in 1995 with Portishead – for Lives Outgrown, a gripping, intimate study of ageing, life and loss, while 39-year-old east London rapper Ghetts’ fourth album On Purpose, With Purpose swapped his former blistering polemic for measured ruminations on growing older and a (little) wiser.
Grappling with a stripped back ceremony – a result of the prize failing to find a sponsor this year, after FREENOW withdrew – and growing accusations of irrelevance, the Mercury’s made the right call in rewarding a band with the potential to pack out venues and festivals across the country. An artist already as famous as Charli xcx doesn’t need a fancy statue to feel worthy – but for new, thriving bands like English Teacher, a Mercury is a lifeline.