Nicola Sturgeon working on bombshell memoir just two months after being arrested

The publisher has promised a “deeply personal and revealing memoir” that will chart Sturgeon’s rise from a shy child in a working-class Ayrshire family to the steps of Bute House as Scotland's first female and longest serving First Minister.

Announcing the news on social media, Sturgeon said: “Very excited to be doing this. I’ve always had an ambition to write.”

The former First Minister noted that the news was “bitter sweet,” for the announcement coincided with the funeral of her uncle, the journalist Iain Ferguson.

Sturgeon, 53, said: “This is something that I always hoped we might work together on some day. Instead, it will be a book I dedicate to him”

The autobiography is billed to provide detail of interactions with notable figures and provide her “unique perspective” on the most eventful and tumultuous era in modern Scottish and British politics.

The memoir will chart the establishment of the Scottish Parliament, the SNP’s election to government, the Scottish Independence Referendum, Brexit, and Covid.

Nicola Sturgeon said: “I am thrilled to be working with Pan Macmillan, a globally renowned publisher with proud Scottish roots.

“I have loved my life in politics but ever since I was a child, I have harboured an ambition to write. Embarking on this book is therefore exciting, if also daunting.

“I aim to chronicle key events of the past three decades of Scottish and British politics and take the reader behind the scenes to describe how it felt to be ‘in the room’, who else was there, the relationships involved and how decisions were arrived at.

“I will talk about what I am proud of and be frank about my regrets. I will reflect on the challenges of being a woman in politics and reveal more about the person behind the politician.

“I will also draw on my 35 years of experience to offer some thoughts on the future of Scotland, the UK and democracy in general.”

Mike Harpley, Pan Macmillan’s Non-Fiction Publishing Director, said: “As well as spending her career in frontline politics, Nicola is a lifelong avid reader, lover of literature and a keen supporter of bookshops and the wider book trade.

“As a result, it is no surprise that the extracts she has already written are notable for their wit, honesty, and excellent writing. We are very much looking forward to working with her on this book.”

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Pan Macmillan fought off stiff competition from eight other publishers for the British and Commonwealth rights to Sturgeon’s memoir.

Sturgeon was questioned by police in connection with the inquiry into the SNP’s finances and was released without charge on June 11 pending further investigation.

She was the third person to be arrested as Police Scotland investigated how more than £600,000 in donations to the party earmarked for an independence referendum had been used.

Her husband, Peter Murrell, the SNP’s former chief executive, and ex-SNP treasurer Colin Beattie MSP were also arrested and later released without charge pending further investigation.