Nicola Sturgeon is about to set off to knock on doors around the deprived Glasgow suburb of Easterhouse when she is distracted by a loud shriek from across the street.
It is not an outraged No voter; nor is it an excitable teenager recognising her from the television. It isMartin Farrell, a local resident who only popped out to buy some teabags but happens to be her biggest fan. "I've always wanted to see Nicola," he said, after warmly shaking Scotland's Deputy First Minister by the hand and exchanging a few words with her. "I think she's been here once before - I bolted out of my door and ran down the shops when I heard, but I missed her. I really like her, she really comes across well."
Such is the aura that now surrounds Sturgeon. The 44-year-old, who joined the SNP at the age of 16, has been described as the heir apparent to leader Alex Salmond and has made no secret of her ambitions to eventually succeed him.
If Scotland does vote Yes in just over a week's time, Sturgeon will play a key role in the negotiations with the UK Government over the thorny issues of a currency union and immigration policy, to name but two. And come the 2016 Scottish parliamentary elections, she could find herself right at the top of the country's government.
