Channel 5 has commissioned a drama telling the story of how Nicola Sturgeon’s husband, Peter Murrell, embezzled £400,000 from the Scottish National Party (SNP). The one-time chief executive of the SNP was sentenced to five years and three months in prison after pleading guilty to embezzlement.
Operation Branchform investigation
Former Scottish first minister Ms Sturgeon was arrested and questioned by police in June 2023 as part of Operation Branchform, which led to Murrell being jailed. The drama, titled To Nicola, Love Peter, promises to tell the story of how Ms Sturgeon came to discover her husband’s crime, which included falsifying receipts and using secret codes to carry out the deed.
Luxury purchases and creative team
Murrell used the money to purchase a range of luxury household goods, including high-end coffee machines, luxury watches, a robotic lawnmower, a pressure washer and a £124,550 motorhome, as well as spending £2,618.16 on two luxury salt and pepper grinders.
Ben Frow, chief content officer at 5, said: “This is an epic tale of Shakespearean proportions. An extraordinary tale of power, envy, deception and greed. It’s both a high-stakes political melodrama and bizarre domestic drama that has dominated headlines and gossip columns. We will be pulling together the events and characters involved to create a compelling revealing drama, as well as answering that very important question – why would anyone pay £2,600 for a pair of salt and pepper grinders?”
David Abraham, executive chairman of production company Wonderhood Studios, said: “This project reflects our growing ambition to develop quality dramas about contemporary stories that resonate with broad audiences. We are delighted to be working with the brilliant team at 5 once again.”
Sturgeon’s response
Bafta-nominated director Misha Manson-Smith will direct the project, with the script written by fellow Bafta nominee Lucy Brydon. Ms Sturgeon was released from police custody without being charged, and declared she had been “totally cleared”.
Speaking at the Edinburgh International Book Festival this month, Ms Sturgeon was asked if she should apologise for Mr Murrell’s crimes. The former first minister told the audience she was “very, very, very sorry that it happened”, adding she was “more sorry than I can ever find words really to properly convey”. She also said it was an “important point of principle” that she should not apologise for her ex-husband’s crimes because “I don’t think it is for me to apologise for the crimes of somebody else, because they are not my crimes”.
