Nicola Sturgeon has spoken openly about her estranged husband Peter Murrell for the first time since he pleaded guilty to embezzling SNP funds, telling an Edinburgh Fringe audience she feels like a “mug” for ever worrying about him.
The former First Minister took to the Fringe stage and did not hold back when the subject of Murrell came up, making clear she has no intention of visiting him in jail and that she now knows he was deceiving her throughout the entire period when she stood by him publicly.
“He was lying to me right up until he pled guilty,” Sturgeon told the audience, in what is one of her most candid admissions since the scandal surrounding the SNP’s finances first broke.
Murrell, who served as the SNP’s chief executive for more than two decades and was married to Sturgeon throughout much of her time as party leader and First Minister, pleaded guilty earlier this year to embezzling funds from the party. The case sent shockwaves through Scottish politics and left many questions hanging over the SNP’s leadership and internal culture.
For Sturgeon, the fallout has been deeply personal as well as political. She resigned as First Minister in February 2023, with the couple later separating after Murrell was arrested as part of the police investigation into SNP finances, known as Operation Branchform.
At the time of his arrest, Sturgeon publicly expressed her support for him. She has since made clear that support was based on information she now knows to have been false.
Speaking at the Fringe, she described the feeling of having stood by someone who was not being straight with her. The word she used, “mug”, captures the sense of betrayal she appears to feel. She was, in her own words, worrying about a man who was not giving her the truth.
On the question of whether she would visit Murrell in prison, Sturgeon was unambiguous. She will not be going.
The appearance at the Edinburgh Fringe marks a notable moment for Sturgeon, who has kept a relatively low profile since stepping back from frontline politics. The Fringe, with its mix of comedy, performance and public conversation, gave her a platform that sits outside the usual political arena, and she appeared to use that space to speak more freely than she has done in formal interviews.
The SNP itself continues to deal with the consequences of the scandal. The party has faced intense scrutiny over how its finances were managed and who knew what during the years in question. Murrell’s guilty plea removed the need for a full trial but also meant many of the details that might have emerged in open court were never fully aired in public.
For Scottish voters and SNP members, Sturgeon’s comments add another layer to an already complicated picture. She was the most prominent face of Scottish nationalism for nearly a decade, and her relationship with Murrell was seen as a personal and professional partnership at the heart of the movement. The revelation that he was misleading her raises questions that go beyond their marriage.
Sturgeon has not indicated any plans to return to active politics. Her Fringe appearance suggests she is finding ways to engage with the public and speak her mind outside the structures of party and government, and on this occasion at least, she had plenty to say.