Ok, whenever I see a decent PhD advertised, I always try and get in touch with the supervisor - as we all know, that way the supervisor knows who you are, and it can only stand you in good stead when they're browsing through all those applications. Most of the time, there is some question that I can ask.

However, I've just found a PhD which I'd be so interested in doing (it's pretty much my topic of interest at the moment, and I based my Masters thesis on the same subject), but the advert has pretty much every thing I could want on it - the different aspects of the PhD, the reasons for doing it, suggested reading... everything! So how can I get in touch with this guy - wouldn't an email saying how much I'm interested in the topic etc just be a bit lame?

if you're interested just apply.

Nothing wrong with doing that at all.. It shows you are keen.

For every PhD that I applied for I contacted the supervisor, there is nothing wrong with asking for more information, or simply emailing saying you are interested and why you are interested with a copy of your CV. I found that if you email them direct with your CV then that is better as an initial step than just applying to the graduate school. From my experience its not uncommon for supervisors to meet students and decide that they want them prior to the advertised application deadline.

Wow, Tricky, I certainly never even considered that. Thanks a lot, I'll get on that right away ^_^

if the suggested reading is papers the supervisor has written you could ask for copies, or ust ask for some of their latest publications.