According to the Gleneagles Hotel, which Fairlie owned and operated, he was surrounded by his family at the time, with his wife Kate Fairlie commenting: “We are utterly heartbroken that Andrew has gone, but are so thankful we had this extraordinary man in our lives.

“He was a beautifully kind, generous loving son, father, husband, brother and friend, and enriched the lives of anybody lucky enough to meet him.

“He has taught us so many lessons in life, not least to be kind.

“He worked incredibly hard and his favourite thing to do was to create magic for us in the kitchen at home.

“We will miss his calm, wonderful spirit, his cheeky sense of humour and his loving nature.”

As well as holding two Michelin stars for the past 12 years, Fairlie has achieved global culinary recognition as the first ever Roux Scholarship (1984); first Scottish Chef of the Year (2002) and one of only seven UK chefs to be named a Relais and Châteaux Grand Chef du Monde (2011).

Stephen McLaughlin, head chef at Restaurant Andrew Fairlie (since Fairlie stepped down last year) said: “We are heartbroken that Andrew has gone and our thoughts go out to (his) wife Kate and family.

“Our sadness is matched only by our tremendous pride in all his achievements, and our thankfulness that we had the opportunity to share in his life and career.

“We have lost our colleague, mentor and friend, who was always on hand with great judgement, humour and inspiration.

“We will miss him terribly but take strength and huge pride in continuing to burn the flame of outstanding cuisine, service and culture that he established.”

A private funeral will take place followed by a memorial service at Gleneagles at a later date this spring. Details are to be released in due course.