Fiona Bruce: Question Time host talks unlikely gift from husband in rare marriage insight

Question Time host Fiona Bruce, 56, has said she tends to avoid Twitter, but admitted she has some tweets framed after her husband Nigel Sharrocks alerted her to them on the social media site. The presenter has been married to her husband since 1994.

She shared: “I rarely look at Twitter because that way can lie madness.

“But, my husband did once show me two consecutive tweets, one said, ‘Fiona Bruce is to the left of Trotsky’ and the next one said, ‘Fiona Bruce has virtually turned this programme into a Conservative Party Broadcast’.

“So I have that in a little frame on my desk,” she added.

During lockdown, Fiona continued to present Question Time and BBC News, but with a less packed schedule than usual, she admitted she had become anxious.

Explaining why, she divulged: “In the first week or so I was very anxious, and fearful and worried for my family.

“But then I got used to it and as time went on I forced myself to become more zen.”

Despite this, Fiona said she had enjoyed spending quality time with her husband Nigel and their two children; Mia and Sam.

On what she got up to in her home life, the host went on to reveal what her spouse had fixed for her.

She added to Radio Times: “I cleared out every cupboard in the house, got the sticking key on the piano mended – by my husband, actually.

“But all the things I meant to do, like getting my piano playing up to scratch or learning another language, just didn’t happen.

“I did work out a lot, did a lot of running and dog walking.”

Fiona will be back on screens for Question Time tonight after a brief summer hiatus with a virtual audience.

The host became the first female presenter to front the show in January 2019 when she replaced David Dimbleby.

The show’s ratings improved after she replaced the host, but the mother-of-two admitted they have gone down recently as she believes “people are fed up of coronavirus”.

“At the beginning of lockdown, people just wanted information, so there wasn’t much debate. But as time moved on, that changed,” she added.

Fiona went on to say she had no further ambitions in her television career as she continued: “I didn’t expect to be working at this age. Things have improved in that sense.”

The return of the show this evening comes as coronavirus cases continue to soar across the UK.

In line with safety measures, there will still be no audience in the studio, however participants will be projected onto a large virtual wall.

Fiona said of her return to the show: “I can’t wait to get started with Question Time.

“We’re coming back on air at a time where our elected representatives are making crucial decisions that will affect all of us, from coronavirus to Brexit.

“What better time for our audience to be able to make their views heard and get their questions answered?”

Question Time airs tonight on BBC One at 10.45pm.