Details of Nicola Sturgeon's estranged husband Peter Murrell's spending habits were laid bare today after he admitted embezzling £400,000 from the SNP. The 61-year-old, who pleaded guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh yesterday, reportedly used the cash to buy trendy Le Creuset cookware, a Dyson vacuum cleaner, video games, and vintage whisky.
Also on Murrell's shopping list were £2,600 Lalique salt and pepper grinders and a £4,225 Montblanc fountain pen. But, as far as outrageous shopping sprees are concerned, Murrell isn't the only offender.
Historical shopping sprees
Michael Jackson
In 2003, footage of Michael Jackson splurging $6 million on antiques at a Las Vegas boutique sparked disbelief when it was aired during ITV's programme Living with Michael Jackson. During the interview, Martin Bashir's crew followed Jackson to The Grand Canal Shoppes inside the Venetian Resort. At Regis Galerie, the pop star ordered a marble statue, two vases worth over half a million dollars, a carved chess set, oil paintings, and bronze sculptures for his Neverland home.
Imelda Marcos
Former First Lady of the Philippines, Imelda Marcos, had such a taste for luxury that she spent over $3 million during a one-day shopping trip to New York in 1993. Her spree included fine jewellery from Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier, and Harry Winston, along with books worth $23,000, limo rides costing $35,000, and luxe Italian linen over $10,000.
Elton John
With an estimated net worth of £470 million, Sir Elton John made headlines in 2000 when details of his £40 million spree were revealed. Between January 1996 and September 1997, he spent the equivalent of £76 million today, including £293,000 on flowers and £9.6 million on property.
Evalyn Walsh McLean
The Colorado-born heiress and wife of the Washington Post owner spent over $200,000 during her honeymoon in Europe, buying the 94-carat Star of the East Diamond. She also purchased the 45-carat Hope Diamond in 1911 and once shopped from a Rolls-Royce, having shopkeepers show her jewels in the back of her chauffeured car.
Peter Murrell's spending spree
The extraordinary shopping list of Peter Murrell, the estranged husband of Nicola Sturgeon, was revealed today after he admitted embezzling more than £400,000 from the SNP. He used the cash to buy a £125,000 campervan and other luxury goods including Lalique salt and pepper grinders worth £2,600 and Fortnum and Mason advent calendars at £200 each.
Murrell was shown to have developed a liking for pricey fountain pens, whisky, and vacuums as he compulsively bought items over the years. He also splashed cash on DVD box sets, games, and games consoles during his spending sprees.
It may have started small with the purchase of two Ali Baba laundry baskets, worth £70.89, in September 2010, among the first. But the buys became increasingly extravagant, with more than £12,000 splashed on Apple brands nine years later.
Murrell purchased games and consoles to the tune of £419.18 in November 2011. In January 2013, he spent £75 on Borgen: The Complete Seasons One and Two DVD. He also bought a Volkswagen Golf in 2016 using £16,489 from the party coffers.
In March 2017, he bought a Montblanc white gold £4,225 fountain pen, and on May 28 that year, he splashed out £4,555.25 on a white luxury Bremont watch. Just days later, on June 10, he bought the same watch in black, costing £4,795.
Just ahead of Christmas 2018, he spent almost £500 on a Dyson vacuum and the following month, he paid £205.39 for 15-year-old Laphroaig and £149.99 for the same vintage Macallan whisky.
In January 2020, he forked out £2,618.16 on two Feuilles Pepper and Salt Grinders from Lalique UK. In the same year, he bought a Niesmann and Bischoff motorhome using £124,550 of SNP funds and spent another £54,000 of the party's cash to buy a Jaguar I-Pace.
Other items include The Origins of Totalitarianism for £159.99 from The Folio Society Ltd, purchased in March 2022. In March 2024, he spent £49.80 on a Le Creuset wine pourer, a Le Creuset champagne and sparkling wine bottle opener, and a Le Creuset three-in-one corkscrew. That November, he bought a £1,299 Miele coffee machine, and just before Christmas that year, he paid £42.99 on Grand Theft Auto V for the PS4.
