McEwan

He also revealed that he is in a book club with other dads from his daughter's former school and that they have read 40-50 works of classic fiction, including JD Salinger's The Catcher in The Rye, Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca and Ian McEwan's On Chesil Beach.

Joan McEwan from Marie Curie told BBC News NI that their research showed that young people wanted "bereavement support and grief education" in schools.

The Reverend Ian McEwan, a family friend, will lead the private ceremony at 13:00 in Strichen Parish Church, near the former first minister's Aberdeenshire home.

Mr McEwan, who led the funeral for Salmond’s father Robert in 2017, said that while Salmond was ebullient and confident in public, he was also a "remarkable people person" who "cared about ordinary folk".

"We are doing everything possible to retain our team and support those impacted," said chief executive Julie McEwan.