BBC Breakfast viewers 'switch off' as they fume over 'waste of time' Nicola Sturgeon interview - and have a burning question for show bosses
In Tuesday's installment of the morning news programme, hosts Jon Kay and Sarah Campbell spoke to the former Scottish First Minister ahead of the publication of her new memoir.
Sturgeon, 55, told how the upcoming book, titled Frankly, delves into the details of her 2023 arrest as part of an investigation into the SNP 's finances.
It also explores her experience of suffering a miscarriage, her past handling of legislation and her sexuality - which she does not consider 'to be binary'.
'I've become used to my life, over the years, being talked about in great detail,' she said.
'I don't complain about that, I put myself into the public eye. But I wanted at this stage of my life to tell my story in my words.
'[Of] the remarkable experiences I've had in politics and the ups and downs of a life in politics.
'So, inevitably, some of the challenges and the low points of being covered, because I've tried to speak really candidly about them.
'But the book's also really, really full of all the really positive, extraordinary experiences I've had over 30 years of the most remarkable period in modern Scottish and, to some extent, UK political history.
'So, it's been a lot of fun reminiscing about all of that, writing all of that, and remembering it all.'
But viewers were not impressed with the sheer length of the interview - with Sturgeon's segment consuming a whopping 20-minute slot.
Fans flocked to social media to criticise what many perceived as a 'commercial'.
One wrote: 'Fifteen minutes of Nicola Sturgeon, and counting, equals a very slow news day.'
Another said simply: 'Seriously, that's enough now,' while a third chimed in: 'A huge BBC breakfast plug for Nicola Sturgeon's new book. A full 10-minute commercial for her, and to plug her book tour.'
And several viewers questioned whether there was enough news to pad out the 3.5 hour show.
One wrote: 'Just turned BBC Breakfast off. Why are they giving more airtime to Sturgeon?'
And another added: 'This interview with Sturgeon is a waste of time. Apart from the break for the local news, we've had 30 mins of in-studio interviews... No news?'
Elsewhere in her memoir, Sturgeon claims the late Queen asked for 'gossip' about the Alex Salmond sex claims.
The Monarch immediately asked for details when the women met at Balmoral Castle a few weeks after misconduct claims against Salmond first emerged in 2018.
Claiming the Queen 'loved a bit of gossip', Sturgeon wrote in her autobiography Frankly: 'She asked me about it almost as soon as I sat down. She wanted to know more of what was going on.'
Describing herself as a republican 'at heart and by instinct', Sturgeon lavishes praise on the late Queen as 'utterly fascinating' and 'an incredible woman'.
She says she was 'struck by the aura' she 'exuded as she entered the room', and said she had 'a mystique' around her that no other member of the Royal Family has.
Sturgeon's 470-page book is officially released on Thursday, when she is due to talk about it at the Edinburgh Book Festival.
But copies went on sale in branches of Waterstones across Scotland on Sunday, with the company insisting no sales embargo was in place.
Writing about a visit she and her husband Peter Murrell made to Balmoral in September 2018, Sturgeon said she enjoyed her audiences with the Queen at the Highland estate.
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