So, you ask, what should have won the Mercury Prize each year?

Strangely, it's a slightly different question from What was the Best British Album of each year since 1992, and it's certainly a bit different from What was my Favourite British Album of each year since 1992.

It's difficult in some years because there are too many great contenders, it's difficult in other years because there's a desert of good British albums (I kind of understand now how Speech Debelle won), it's difficult for me to do this because, who am I kidding, if it was me there'd be about 5 Furries albums, 3 Blur albums, 2 James Yorkston albums, 3 Belle and Sebastian albums and probably a Bob Dylan album for good measure.

Still, I think I've come up with an OK alternative (where alternative is actually required) list, and a few others for some years which would be worthy winners.

But this is a bit unsatisfactory and I acknowledge I'm narrowing the range rather than expanding it. There are a few years where you can safely say they chose an album that didn't go on to great acclaim and success, which looks strange in hindsight, and I can reasonably suggest what would have been a more fitting winner, but there are other years where my alternative choice is a little weak,

I've tried to get it right in terms of the fact that entries are usually July to July or so each year

Year	Actual Winner	My Winner	Alternatives
1992	Screamadelica -Primal Scream	Screamadelica
1993	Suede - Suede	Suede	Tindersticks - Tindersticks, Giant Steps - Boo Radleys, Modern Life is Rubbish - Blur
1994	Elegant Slumming - M People	Parklife - Blur	Dog Man Star - Suede
1995	Dummy  - Portishead	Dummy	The Bends - Radiohead, Definitely Maybe   - Oasis, Maxinquaye - Tricky, Grand Prix - Teenage Fanclub
1996	Different Class - Pulp	Tigermilk - Belle and Sebastian	Help - War Child, Fuzzy Logic - Super Furry Animals, Different Class - Pulp,  Everything Must Go - Manic Street Preachers, What's the Story … - Oasis
1997	New Forms - Roni Size/Reprazent	OK Computer - Radiohead	If You're Feeling Sinister - Belle and Sebastian, Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space - Spiritualized, Blur - Blur, Radiator - Super Furry Animals
1998	Bring it On - Gomez	When I was Born for the 7th Time - Cornershop	Mezzanine - Massive Attack
1999	OK - Talvin Singh	Guerrilla - Super Furry Animals (A TRICKY  YEAR!)	Surrender - The Chemical Brothers, Come On Die Young - Mogwai
2000	Hour of the Bewilderbeast - Badly Drawn Boy	Hour of the Bewilderbeast	Doves - Lost Souls, Little Black Numbers - Kathryn Williams
2001	Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea - PJ Harvey	Asleep in the Back - Elbow	Free All Angels - Ash, Rooty - Basement Jaxx, Kid A - Radiohead, Gorillaz - Gorillaz, Here Be Monsters - Ed Harcourt
2002	A Little Deeper - Miss Dynamite	Run Come Save Me - Roots Manuva	Original Pirate Material - Streets, Moving Up Country - James Yorkston and the Athletes
2003	Boy in Da Corner - Dizzee Rascal	Boy in Da Corner	Hate - The Delgados
2004	Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand	Franz Ferdinand	A Grand Don't Come For Free - The Streets,  Dear Catastrophe Waitress - Belle and Sebastian
2005	Hope There's Someone - Antony and the Johnsons	Arular - MIA	Silent Alarm - Bloc Party
2006	Whatever People Say  I Am … - Arctic Monkeys	Whatever People Say …
2007	Myths of the Near Future -  Klaxons	Back to Black - Amy Winehouse
2008	The Seldom Seen Kid - Elbow	Midnight Organ Fight - Frightened Rabbit	In Rainbows - Radiohead, 22 Dreams - Paul Weller
2009	Speech Therapy - Speech Debelle	When the Haar Rolls In - James Yorkston	Lungs - Florence and the Machine
2010	xx - The xx	The xx	Total Life Forever - Foals, I Speak Because I Can - Laura Marling, The Defamation of Strickland Banks - Plan B
2011	Let England Shake - PJ Harvey	Let England Shake
2012	An Awesome Wave - Alt-J	An Awesome Wave (PRETTY TERRIBLE YEAR)	Mid Air - Paul Buchanan, Django Django - Django Django, iLL Manors - Plan B
2013	Overgrown - James Blake	AM - Arctic Monkeys	Settle - Disclosure
2014	DEAD - Young Fathers	American Interior - Gruff Rhys	DEAD - Young Fathers, The Cellardyke Recording and Wassailing Society, LP1 - FKA Twigs