Just a comment on Mark Knopfler. He may have made his fortune playing electric guitar with Dire Straits, but his roots are definitely in the folk world and he cut his teeth - and guitar fingers - on folk music, playing in pubs like many another of us.

Now he's established and rich enough to do whatever he wants, he's obviously gone back to those roots. Whether you like him or not is up to you, but don't assume that he's always been a "commercial" musician.

I personally couldn't care less - from what I've seen and heard of the man, he seems a genuine guy who really knows about and cares about music. As for being "commercial", I wish I'd written and recorded just one of his songs.

And as for the Folk Awards (as I've said before on other threads) - couldn't give a toss.