The Irish Mail on Sunday

... As Benedict names secret Cumberbaby after Hiddy

- By Charlotte Griffiths and Daisy Collingwoo­d

HE HAS yet to formally announce the news – but Benedict Cumberbatc­h has become a father for the second time.

The actor’s wife, Sophie Hunter, 39, gave birth to their second son at the £1,200-a-night Portland Hospital in London on March 3. And in true thespian style, Cumberbatc­h named his boy after a Shakespear­ean hero.

Hal was the nickname Henry V had before he became the hero of Agincourt. But in choosing the name, Cumberbatc­h could also be acknowledg­ing his affection for fellow screen star Tom Hiddleston.

The pair starred together in 2012 in The Hollow Crown, an amalgamati­on of Shakespear­e’s history plays in which Cumberbatc­h played Richard III and Hiddleston took the role of Hal.

They have been close pals ever since meeting on the set of Steven Spielberg’s film War Horse in 2010.

‘We became friends for life,’ Hiddleston has said. The baby’s full name is Hal Auden Cumberbatc­h, and is a brother to Christophe­r, who was born in June 2015.

 ??  ?? BARD BoY: Cumberbatc­h in The Hollow Crown
BARD BoY: Cumberbatc­h in The Hollow Crown

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