Nicola Sturgeon will not be at the memorial service for her one-time friend and mentor Alex Salmond – and will instead attend the funeral of a Scots comedian.
The former First Minister, who will snub the service at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh, is due to be at the funeral for Janey Godley – best known for her voiceovers of Ms Sturgeon’s daily media briefings during the pandemic.
First Minister John Swinney and Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes are both due to attend the service for the former SNP leader.
Salmond’s friendship with Ms Sturgeon collapsed spectacularly in recent years amid investigations into complaints about his conduct when he was in Bute House.
He won a judicial review case against the Scottish Government in the Court of Session, which found the government investigation into complaints had been unlawful and tainted by apparent bias.
Salmond was then cleared of all sexual assault charges following a trial.
Last month, Ms Sturgeon opted against attending a motion of condolence in the Scottish parliament.
She said at the time that she wanted to pay appropriate respect in a way which felt right and did not distract from the grief of the Salmond family.
She concluded that ‘it is best for me to remember Alex privately’.
A source close to Ms Sturgeon confirmed she was taking the same approach for today’s memorial service.
In one of his last major interviews prior to his death, Salmond told a BBC documentary: ‘I don’t really do hurt feelings very much but it is a big regret that Nicola and I are no longer on speaking terms, and I seriously doubt that it is going to improve.
‘We’ll just have to let the past take care of itself.’
Salmond’s family said Saturday’s event would celebrate Scottish culture and arts, which were close to his heart.
It will feature performances by musicians Dougie MacLean and The Proclaimers.
Tributes will be delivered by former Alba Party MP Kenny MacAskill, who was ever-present in Salmond’s SNP government, and advocate Duncan Hamilton, KC, while long-serving Nationalist MSP Fergus Ewing will read from The Wild Geese by Violet Jacob.
Christina Hendry, Salmond’s niece, told the BBC: ‘I’m not sure there’s really been time to fully process things and fully grieve but as a family we’re sticking together, keeping close and keeping going.’
Reflecting on the many messages the family have received since his death on October 12, she said: ‘It has given us a chance to think back on everything he did and just… how proud we are of him.’
Ms Sturgeon will be in attendance at Ms Godley’s funeral at St Mary’s Cathedral in the West End of Glasgow today.
The comedian died on November 2 after receiving palliative care for terminal cancer.
She revealed she had ovarian cancer in November 2021 but returned to touring and was given the all-clear in 2022 – but later that year she said another scan had shown signs of the disease in her abdomen.
