Instead, they created the effigy, replete with tears on its face and a can of lager clutched in its hand, next to petals spelling out “We miss you Alex”.

Mrs Baker, who first discovered the effigy, said she was “utterly horrified” and removed the dummy before her friends saw it.

“When I walked into the bedroom, all I can describe is a dummy body on the bed,” she said.

“Staff had gone through my friend’s wardrobe and stuffed the clothes with towels to make it look like a body on the bed. They even put tears down the face and a can of lager in his hand.