Nicola Sturgeon and best pal Val McDermid at Glasgow Comedy Festival launch days before former FM ended marriage

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Pictures have emerged of Nicola Sturgeon and Val McDermid as they enjoyed a night out just three days before the former First Minister announced her marriage to Peter Murrell was ending.The pair turned up to enjoy the launch of Glasgow’s International Comedy Festival in the Merchant City’s The Social Hub on Friday, January 10.

The duo, who announced they will be appearing at the fest on March 22 at the King's Theatre in Glasgow to talk Books and Banter, travelled from Edinburgh for the occasion and enjoyed being in the audience.Sturgeon and McDermid are long time friends and the former First Minister had been snapped leaving a high-end flat in Edinburgh's New Town owned by McDermid earlier this month.It is understood she has been staying on occasion at the property when she works at Holyrood.At Friday's event, Sturgeon said: “We are appearing at this year’s comedy festival which is as much as a joke to us as it is to anybody else.

We don’t have a double act name but watch this space - it might happen. We did a gig together, haha, ‘a gig’ together, before Christmas about books and it went well and we thought ‘why not’?”Sturgeon, who drove to the launch party after passing her driving test at the age of 53 in October last year, ensured she was sticking to soft drinks from the free bar on the night whilst McDermid went for something more spirited.

Sturgeon said: “I’m driving so I’m going to have an Irn Bru." McDermid then referred to Sturgeon's newfound driving skills as she quipped: “I’m going to have a drink because it makes it easier to be driven by Nicola when I’ve had a drink.” Sturgeon added: “She just slagged off my driving by the way.