Sturgeon flipped but she is a long way from flopping

At this rate of progress, we might just see him scything the number of SNP MPs entering parliament. A few caveats are required, mind. First, the election would have to be postponed to May 2050, with three televised debates being held every day till then. Secondly, the moon must be aligned with Jupiter on polling day. Thirdly, a seventh son of a seventh son would be required to make a blood sacrifice of a unicorn. But get all those ducks in a row and there is no telling how many MPs he could lop off the SNP tally. One? Two? All hail the slo-mo comeback kid.

Fascinating as it was to see a dead man walking, talking, and losing the rag with Ukip, something far more significant resulted from the STV and BBC encounters. If Mr Murphy is a slo-mo Lazarus, then Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister, is emerging as a gymnast in a hurry, a veritable Olga Korbut of the 2015 General Election. Gasp as she cartwheels over a second referendum before executing a partial back flip! Cover your eyes as she leaps from the top bar over Trident! Squeal as she triple somersaults to full fiscal autonomy! Never mind the Sparrow from Minsk, will the Capercaillie from Glasgow Southside score a perfect 10?

One might want to hold on to those score cards for just a moment, for there were other lessons to be learned from the Scottish debates. First, it was soon clear that anything London broadcasters can do when it comes to televised rammies, Scotland can do just as well, if not better. The Scottish events were more riveting because this was not a first time at the rodeo for any of the main contributors. They knew their stuff, ditto the moderators, the audience in the hall and at home, so the debates could skip quickly out of beginner territory and into richer, more advanced realms. A week ago in Salford, the First Minister's performance was outstanding. No question. But at the Edinburgh and Aberdeen events she was among her ain folk, a folk who knew their referendums from a hole in the ground and their full fiscal autonomy from their independence.

The first wobble arrived when the FM was asked on Tuesday about the possibility of another independence referendum. Having said previously that the vote was a-once-in-a-generation event, her initial response in the studio was to say she respected the result of the 2014 vote and that the Westminster election in May was not a re-run of that poll. But when it came to planning for the 2016 Holyrood elections, that was "another matter". A strange jumble of sounds rose from parts of the audience and spread around the land. You've heard of the silence of the lambs. This was more like the clamour of the hens on hearing Mr Fox would be coming round for his tea again next Tuesday.

Ms Sturgeon looked taken aback by the reaction. One wonders why. Can she really believe the hype that there is nothing the Scottish public would like more than another divisive, expensive referendum? Within 24 hours, mind you, her response had been recalibrated, as they say. Henceforth, something "material" would have to change; the proposal for a referendum would be contained in a manifesto and voted on; and finally the people would decide. The clatter now was that of locks turning, one, two, three.

The FM was not done with demonstrating her flexibility just yet. Having successfully avoided putting a timescale on bringing in full fiscal autonomy (FFA), she declared that her MPs would press for it as early as next year. What had been an aspiration with a deliberately vague delivery date was now in the diary. This was despite the Institute for Fiscal Studies warning that the move would blow a £7.6 billion hole in the books. The FFA idea, if it was to stand a chance of ever being accepted by sceptics, required a well-thought out strategy, time and space to bed down. Ms Sturgeon's declaration of intent, in contrast, looked like the worst sort of rush job.

Still, when it came to the renewal of Trident, the FM, commendably, dispensed with any notions of flexibility and told her opponents straight: Trident was a red line, written in blood. "There are no circumstances where we will support it," emphasised Ms Sturgeon. "Is that clear enough for you?" Jaw-droppingly clear. Forget about any tentative hand of friendship being extended towards Labour, this was a "talk to the hand because the face ain't listening any more" moment. Ms Sturgeon's declaration appeared to be that rare commodity in politics, a cast iron pledge from which there is no escape. That will not stop the questions, though.

After the shouting was over and the balloons had been cleared away (speaking of Ukip's David Coburn, can the entire nation, as one, hide behind the sofa when next he visits?), one was left with a new appreciation of what lies ahead for Ms Sturgeon as FM of this Janus nation. There she stands, between a vast and growing army of supporters who think she can sprint on water, and those who really do not fancy putting a toe in the referendum waters again any time soon, thanks very much. If she is tired of that view, she can look out on a Labour leadership in Scotland and London who cannot wait to blame her should the Tories return to power at Westminster. Praised or pilloried, patronised or put on an impossibly high pedestal, urged to be more daring or counselled to be more cautious. This has to be one of the toughest jobs in politics at one of the most interesting times in British political history.

She appears to be thriving on it, but that is what they once said about Nick Clegg. The Liberal Democrat leader was another who was torn between the wishes of the party faithful and a desire to play a part in government and endure all the compromises that requires. Somehow, I cannot see Ms Sturgeon's future standing in politics matching that of Mr Clegg's. He stumbled into power long before he was ready for it. Over-exposed, lacking experience at the higher reaches of government, and too blindly adoring of his own abilities, he and his party can look forward to a place in history as prime examples of how not to manage an alliance with a bigger party.

Ms Sturgeon is made of different stuff, but the demands on her are more onerous and the expectations greater. There are, one can be sure, a few more twists and turns ahead. As for the resurgent Mr Murphy, he has his own leaps to worry about. His performances this week notwithstanding, one wonders if he has any preference between the frying pan or the fire.