[Hampshire] HDMI output from linux

All,

I would like to use HDMI output to get my Linux media centre working on an
LCD TV. (I don't have the TV yet though!). What I want to do is to do away
with my expensive and small media centre PC and have a high powered PC
which can sit in the understairs cupboard, using nice big low noise fans,
and generally be out of the way.

This means running all the output from the cupboard to the Telly :)

Looking around HDMI would seem to be the best way of doing this, I can
send stereo and digital audio over HDMI along with the video signal, and
have it automagically picked up by the TV. The digital audio can then go
into the amp and be turned into surround sound if required (when playing
back DVDs). Best of all long HDMI cables are fairly cheap, and it means
only running 1 cable.

Now this is all well and good in theory, but I cannot find much
information on how to achieve this, and certainly not in linux. There
appear to be a few cards out there with HDMI out for video but no way of
getting the audio into the HDMI signal.

Does anyone know of any video / sound card pairs that fit the bill, and
most importantly actually work on Linux!

Cheers.