Rebekah and Jamie Vardy have introduced their newborn baby girl in an exclusive interview and photoshoot with HELLO! magazine. The happy couple also reveal the new addition's name to the magazine: Olivia Grace. Born on December 28, Olivia's four siblings - Megan, 14, Taylor, ten, Sofia, five, and three-year-old Finley - helped choose her name. And Jamie tells HELLO! that he couldn't be more delighted.
WATCH: Behind the scenes with the Vardys as they introduce baby Olivia
"Although Becky tells me I'm a typical man and don’t show much emotion, deep inside I'm over the moon with my kids," Leicester City football star Jamie tells the magazine. "I love having a big family. It's matured me and kept me grounded."
Becky tells the magazine how Jamie helped her with the birth, which she feared may have come when she was alone. "I'd been very ill with anxiety and stress and was panicking that she might be born on Christmas Day, while Jamie was training and I was on my own with the kids. The last thing I wanted was to miss Christmas Day with our children."
Welcome to the world Olivia Grace!
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She was eventually admitted to Leicester General Hospital on December 27, enduring a 16-hour labour. "Jamie was brilliant - so supportive and encouraging," she said. "He even tried to crack a joke about the epidural needle to take my mind off it and the painful contractions." Talking about her joy at Olivia's birth, she added: "I couldn't wait to see the back of 2019. But with a new baby and a new year ahead of us, it’s like a fresh start."
Rebekah shared this photo just before giving birth
Shortly after confirming the arrival, Rebekah exclusively told HELLO! she was thrilled that her husband Jamie was present for their precious daughter's birth. The mum explained: "I was so happy to be able to have Jamie at my side for the birth of our beautiful daughter." She added: "I'm ecstatic that we have another little girl in our family." Proud dad Jamie had told his fans on Twitter: "Over the moon to let you know our beautiful little girl has arrived." He continued: "Becky and baby are both doing well and we are all totally in love with the newest member of our team."
Rebekah, 37, announced her pregnancy in August and the new arrival is her fifth child; she and Jamie already share two children together - Sophie and Finley - and she has two other children from her previous relationships, Megan and son Taylor. Jamie is also father to another daughter, Ella. The couple met in 2014 when Rebekah was working as a nightclub promoter. Then two years later, they married at Peckforton Castle in Cheshire, in a wedding exclusively covered by HELLO! magazine. The nuptials were a lavish affair, boasting a star-studded guest list, including One Direction singer Louis Tomlinson, rapper Tinchy Strider, Serge of rock band Kasabian and Jamie's Leicester City team-mates.
The couple's pregnancy announcement in August
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At the time, Jamie confessed he never saw himself as the marrying kind. "Even when Bex and I first got together I told her it wasn't for me," he said. "But then it started playing on my mind. I knew I didn't want to be with anyone else. In many ways marriage won't change anything because we couldn't get any closer than we were already. It just cements things, I guess, bonds our family properly."
In agreement, Rebekah added: "It's the final piece in the jigsaw. When we first met, I made Jamie chase me for months before I agreed to go out with him and one of the reasons for that was that, as a mother, I didn't want to introduce anyone to my kids who might then disappear. But he persevered, I'm glad to say, and here we are."