The man who led the successful referendum campaign to persuade Northern Ireland voters to support the Good Friday Agreement is working as an adviser for Better Together.
Quintin Oliver, a Belfast-based public affairs consultant, has been providing expert advice on contesting referendums to the No campaign on the back of roles campaigns in Cyprus, South Sudan and Sweden.
His role for Better Together is essentially to co-ordinate political parties and individuals who are normally adversaries.
The role pits him against Alex Salmond, a friend from Mr Oliver's student days at St Andrew's University in the 1970s.
In 1998, Mr Oliver resigned from his post as director with the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action to co-ordinate the broad coalition of political parties, clergy and civic society seeking an endorsement of the freshly-brokered Northern Ireland peace accord.
The 'Yes' campaign was backed by all the main parties in Ireland and Britain, with only the late Ian Paisley's DUP and the now defunct UKUP urging the electorate to reject the power-sharing agreement.
Although at one point during the campaign opinion polls had support for a Yes vote dipping below 50%, in the end 71% of voters in Northern Ireland backed the agreement from a turn-out of 81%.
Since his involvement with the successful Yes campaign 16 years ago, Mr Oliver has also worked on several international referendum campaigns.
He told the Belfast-based Irish News this morning: "Referendums are very different from elections and I have been advising Better Together on cross-party work which is impossible during elections.
"I'm also giving advice on non-party input, as referendums attract artists, sports people, celebrities and community groups in a way elections don't."
The 59-year-old, who led the Youth for Yes campaign in the 1979 Scottish referendum on devolution, has also claimed he believes the Better Together campaign will be successful in Thursday's poll.
He said: "I think No will prevail because the law of referendums says you really need to have 60% support going into the vote because of the problems with turning your vote out.
"Also the Don't Knows after a three-year campaign will still be undecided and won't vote or they will vote in support of the status quo, which is No in this case."
He also revealed that he has been friends with Mr Salmond for four decades.
He said: "On my first day at university in Scotland back in 1973 I knocked on the door next to mine in the halls of residence and introduced myself.
"The figure at the door said: 'Hello my name's Alex Salmond.'"
Mr Oliver said he has kept in touch with the First Minister and regards him as a friend.
Asked if Mr Salmond was aware of his role in advising Better Together, he said: "Not as far as I'm aware."
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