And the final nominees are...

And so the final shortlist for the 2005 Man Booker Prize are:

The Sea by John Banville
Arthur & George by Julian Barnes
A Long Long Way by Sebastian Barry
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
The Accidental by Ali Smith
On Beauty by Zadie Smith

Rushdie's out, Coetzee's out and - shock! - McEwan is out on his ear. I thought it was law that every McEwan novel makes the shortlist. Then again, it's not as if the shortlist is lacking in literary heavyweights. Barnes is the bookies' favourite: Ladbrokes have him at 6-4, William Hill at 5-4.