Father's Day is always a special time of the year for dad's – even more so when it’s their very first one. This year, the day will hold extra special meaning for a number of brand new fathers, including George Clooney and Liam Payne, who both became parents in recent weeks.
For George, who lives primarily in the UK with wife Amal Clooney, it will be his first big celebration since the birth of twins Ella and Alexander on 6 June. The 56-year-old star is likely to spend the day quietly with his new family, at the couple’s home in Sonning, Berkshire.
Liam, meanwhile, became a first-time father on 22 March, when his girlfriend Cheryl gave birth to their baby son Bear Grey Payne. The 23-year-old is clearly relishing being a dad, and frequently speaks about his little boy during interviews, just recently revealing that the three-month-old has now started giggling.
Charlie Thomson
Alex Jones and her husband Charlie Thomson welcomed their first baby together at the start of the year. The happy couple became proud parents to son Edward Alun Burrell Thomson – known as Teddy – on 22 January, at the Hammersmith and Fulham Hospital. Alex confirmed her baby's arrival live on The One Show via a phone call, when Teddy was just four days old.
She admitted that she and Charlie were struggling to come up with a name. "We're a bit behind on the whole name thing because we didn't know if we were having a boy or a girl,” she said. “We thought, 'When we see him we'll know what he looks like', but actually it's really hard."
Olympic sailor Sir Ben Ainslie and his wife Georgie Thompson became first-time parents back in July, when the Sky Sports News presenter gave birth to their baby daughter Bellatrix. The proud new parents shared a black-and-white image with fans, showing them both posing with their tiny newborn. "Our little star has arrived," Georgie captioned the photo. "Here she is with very proud Mummy and Daddy… Bellatrix Ainslie. #bringthebabyhome."
Josh 'JP' Patterson
Made in Chelsea stars Binky Felstead and Josh 'JP' Patterson became first-time parents on 12 June, with a rep confirming exclusively to HELLO! Online that their baby daughter had been born. Proud new daddy JP then shared a sweet black-and-white image with his Instagram followers, showing him holding his little girl's tiny hand. "I'M A DADDY!" he captioned the photograph.
George Clooney and his wife Amal Clooney became first-time parents on 6 June with the arrival of their twins, babies Ella and Alexander. A representative for the couple confirmed the happy news in a statement to HELLO! Online, saying: "This morning Amal and George welcomed Ella and Alexander Clooney into their lives. Ella, Alexander and Amal are all healthy, happy and doing fine. George is sedated and should recover in a few days."
Jonathan Rhys Meyers
Tudors actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers became a first-time father shortly before Christmas when his fiancée Mara Lane gave birth to a baby boy. The couple decided to name their son Wolf Rhys Meyers, and they proudly introduced him to the world with a picture shared on Instagram on Valentine's Day. Prior to their son's arrival, Mara confirmed her pregnancy with a series of baby bump pictures at the start of December. One image saw Mara compare her blossoming bump to Santa Claus' belly in a Christmas-themed photoshoot. She simply captioned the picture with, "#IncomingPackage best present," alongside the hashtags, #ThankYouLord and #SantaBelly.
Former Emmerdale star Kelvin Fletcher and his wife Liz Marland welcomed their first child together, daughter Marnie, in September. Kelvin, 33, took to Twitter to announce the baby's safe arrival. "Our hearts are filled with love," he wrote. "She's the most beautiful little thing I've ever seen."
Kieron Richardson
Hollyoaks actor Kieron Richardson and his husband Carl Hyland became first-time parents on 22 May, when they welcomed twins via a surrogate. Kieron, 31, who plays Ste Hay in the Channel 4 soap, announced the happy news by tweeting a photo of the babies' hospital wristbands. "Welcome Chase and Phoebe Rae x," he wrote alongside.
Speaking on This Morning ahead of the birth, the actor said: "I'm having two babies, which is absolutely brilliant, by a surrogate. We tried really hard for it. I understand when people in heterosexual relationships want to have a baby, you go to bed, you have a womb, but it's not that easy for us." He also previously said: "I'm most excited about making what I thought was the unachievable, a reality. And having a family unit and being able to share a love with these little things that I never dreamt was a possibility."
Comedian Russell Brand became a first-time father back in November when his fiancée Laura Gallacher welcomed their daughter Mabel. In an interview with John Bishop, the 42-year-old opened up about his baby girl. "When she was born, I felt something really quite profound," he said. "I felt extremely present in that birth, completely overwhelmed by it. I've heard a lot of men say, 'I didn't know I had so much love in me', but I did know I had so much love in me. I just didn't know what to do with it. And when I saw her, I felt something switch on – this sense of very determined and clear purpose."
He added: "I feel this candid, plain, all-encompassing love for this child – this surging, ridiculous, giddy love. I feel like everybody deserves this love. The thing that has been the most spectacular thing in my life has been the most ordinary thing: a baby came out, like all of us did, the same experience we've all had. A completely ordinary thing."
Coronation Street star Shayne Ward and his girlfriend Sophie Austin welcomed their first child together in December – a little girl named Willow May Ward. X Factor winner Shayne, 32, announced his daughter's arrival on social media, tweeting: "Proud to share our incredible news. Me and Sophie had a beautiful baby girl. We are completely besotted and in love with the deepest of hearts. Our world. Willow May Ward."