Round two is well under way in Salford. How do this lot compare with the seven leaders? You can watch on the live coverage tab above.

Columnist Peter Hitchens says that with the exception of Nigel Farage, all of the leaders had "rehearsed incessantly" in order to avoid making mistakes on tonight's debate.

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Image source, AFP

A look at Twitter shows SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon was the most mentioned leader by a long way. Here's the full breakdown of mentions during the two-hour debate:

@NicolaSturgeon 36,958

@Nigel_Farage 18,404

@NatalieBen 17,999

@Ed_Miliband 16,036

@LeanneWood 13,279

@David_Cameron 11,196

@Nick_Clegg 6,204

Had your fill of political debate? Of course you haven't. Question Time is just getting under way now. You can watch on the live coverage tab above.

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There are quite a few polls being released, and it's fair to say they don't exactly concur. Here's one from the Guardian/ICM.

• Miliband: 25%
• Cameron: 24%
• Farage: 19%
• Sturgeon: 17%
• Clegg: 9%
• Bennett: 3%
• Wood: 2%

Another finding from the ComRes snap poll. 40% said David Cameron was "most capable of leading the UK" followed by Ed Miliband on 28% and Nigel Farage on 10%.

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Respondents to an ITV News/ComRes poll scored the debate quite differently to YouGov.They recorded a dead heat between David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Nigel Farage on 21%. Nicola Sturgeon was one point behind, with Nick Clegg trailing on 9%, Natalie Bennett on 5% and Leanne Wood on 2%.

Reality Check

Nick Clegg highlighted that more than half of those taking up apprenticeships are women. He’s right. From 2010/11 onwards, more apprenticeships have been started by women than men, according to a House of Commons Library analysis, external of BIS data.

Image source, House of Commons Library

More from the spin room. "I knew there would be no brain fade tonight," says the Green Party's Darren Johnson, in a reference to Natalie Bennett's struggles in a recent radio interview: "I knew she would put in a storming performance". Lib Dem Care Minister Norman Lamb says he is "proud" that Nick Clegg was the only leader to raise the importance of mental health investment.

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Reality Check

Lots of praise for Nicola Sturgeon. But how do her claims about tax stack up?

The SNP leader says that for the last 30 years the Scots have paid more tax per head than the English.

Whether that's true depends on how you share out revenue from North Sea oil.

If you apportion them on a geographic basis then she's right (that's a division that counts almost all North Sea oil revenue as coming from Scotland).

If you divide the revenue equally across the people of the UK then Scots have not paid more than the English, and that is also the case if you exclude oil revenue completely.

Jim, S. Lanarkshire:

More than anything, tonight's debate has demonstrated the need to have more women at the top of British politics. Very impressed by all the women - including Julie Etchingham who conducted superbly.

The SNP says that early poll suggesting Nicola Sturgeon came out on top is backed up by an increase in membership. The party claims to have gained 1,200 new members during the course of the debate.

The final results of that YouGov poll of 1,100 people are in. Pollster Peter Kellner says SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon was the "clear winner". Plenty more polls are being carried out, but here are the YouGov scores:

Nicola Sturgeon 28%

Nigel Farage 20%

David Cameron 18%

Ed Miliband 15%

Nick Clegg 10%

Natalie Bennett 5%

Leanne Wood 4%

Phil, Manchester:

Too many NHS middle managers/ bureaucrats? Happy to do a job swap with Cameron / Farage for a week!