First Minister Nicola Sturgeon opted for the works of one of the great English novelists as one of the items she would take with her to a desert island.

Interviewed on BBC Radio Four’s Desert Island Discs, she chose the complete works of Jane Austen along with a coffee maker.

The eight records she chose included Step inside love by Cilla Black and Letter from America by The Proclaimers, though the one she would rescue was the Burns’ poem My love is like a red, red rose, sung by Eddie Reader.

When asked by interviewer Kirsty Young if she had chosen the list personally, Ms Sturegon said that “for better or worse this is me”.

Ms Sturgeon (pictured above in a shoot for Vogue) spoke about her “ordinary but loving” family background and how she conquered shyness. She also said she regretted that some people made certain assumptions about her and her husband being childless.

Her desert island discs:

Step inside love – Cilla Black

Freedom Come All Ye – Pumeza Matshikiza

Ordinary World – Duran Duran

Letter from America – The Proclaimers

My love is like a red, red rose – Eddie Reader

Wuthering Heights – Kate Bush

Sisters are doing it for themselves – Eurythmics and Aretha Franklin

Something inside so strong- Labi Siffre