Who’d have thought Madness prannying around had anything to do with Zulu earplugs? Photograph: Matthew Fearn/PA Another week, another set of fascinating anthropological indie questions to wade through. Thanks for all the posts and remember – if you have a question you’d like me... 

Road trip … Viggo Mortensen is to star in a big-screen version of Jack Kerouac’s novel. Photograph: Jim Cooper/AP Walter Salles, the director who made his name with Central Station, and then cemented it with The Motorcycle Diaries, will return to the transportation theme with a... 

Klaxons at Village Underground, London (l-r, Simon Taylor-Davis, Jamie Reynolds and James Righton). Photograph: Gus Stewart/Redferns No matter who makes the shortlist, the nominations for the Mercury prize always prompt the same response. The reaction to this year’s runners and riders... 

Northern Rock will be one of the targets for the Square Mile when the government starts to offload bank assets nationalised during the financial crisis. Photograph: Christopher Thomond A takeover battle is looming for control of banks such as Northern Rock, which was bailed out by the taxpayer...