Warehouse worker up for top Novello

A warehouse worker without a record deal has been nominated for one of the music industry's most prestigious awards alongside international artists including Coldplay and Duffy.

Nick Hemming, guitarist and songwriter from little-known indie band The Leisure Society, has been shortlisted for the best song musically and lyrically at the 54th Ivor Novello Awards and will battle it out with Mercury Prize winners Elbow and The Last Shadow Puppets for the award.

Meanwhile, Coldplay and Duffy lead the nominations with both acts going head-to-head for best album, best-selling British song and most performed track of 2008.

Other notable nominees include Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood, shortlisted for the best film score Novello for the music to Oscar-winning Daniel Day-Lewis movie There Will Be Blood.

Hemming, who is originally from Burton-on-Trent but now lives in south London, said the song, The Last of the Melting Snow, came about in the best traditions of the tortured ballad - he wrote it alone in his flat with a bottle of vodka one New Year's Eve after an awkward encounter with an ex-girlfriend.

"I went home for Christmas to Burton and I bumped into my ex who I was with for about eight years - I moved to London because we split up," he said.

"She invited me back to her house, and I thought we were going to get back together, but instead she had invited me round to tell me about her new boyfriend."

The Novellos are judged by specialist eight-person juries made up of songwriters, rather than people from the record industry.

The awards will be held at a ceremony at London's Grosvenor House on May 21.