David Tennant has opened up about a deeply personal and “heartbreaking” aspect of family life, revealing the sadness of his children never getting to know their grandmother.

The Doctor Who star, 53, who shares five children with wife Georgia – Olive, Wilfred, Doris, Birdie, and Georgia’s son Ty, whom he adopted – reflected on the loss of his parents in a new piece, admitting their absence weighs heavily on him.

“Being without my parents now is miserable,” he wrote in Radio Times. “My mum never got to meet any of my kids, and that’s a bit heartbreaking, because she would have loved them.”

While his father was able to meet most of his grandchildren, Tennant shared the painful reality of how time has eroded their memories of him. “My dad got to meet all but one, and that – obviously – was wonderful, but their memories of him are fading.”

The Scottish actor also reflected on how his parenting style differs from the one he grew up with, admitting his household now is much more openly affectionate than his own upbringing.

“Because my parents were very consistent and very solid, I never doubted for a second that they were absolutely committed to us without that ever being stated,” Tennant shared. “That’s the bit that’s quite interesting, because in our house now, everyone’s saying ‘I love you’ all the time. It’s lovely, and I love it, but it’s very foreign to me.”

He continued: “I don’t remember that ever being said in our house growing up. I mean, I never doubted it was true but it was never said out loud.”

Away from the glitz and glamour, Tennant has also landed a major role in ITV’s highly anticipated drama The Hack, which will delve into the notorious News of the World phone hacking scandal.

He is set to portray real-life investigative journalist Nick Davies, alongside Trainspotting star Robert Carlyle as former Met Police Detective Chief Superintendent Dave Cook, and BAFTA-winning actor Toby Jones as former Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger.

David Tennant is gearing up to host the BAFTA Film Awards for a second year but has openly dismissed the value of awards, calling them “fabricated nonsense.”

Reflecting on last year’s ceremony, where he lost Best Male Comedy Performance to Mawaan Rizwan, Tennant admitted his biggest regret was a joke he made about Cate Blanchett. “I was just trying to be witty and make a point about how you’ve got lots of prizes, and we love you,” he told Radio Times, recalling how she looked “a little bit p****d off”.

Determined to take a kinder approach this year, Tennant vowed to avoid “picking fights” or making guests feel “uncomfortable.” “If I have a style, it’s only that,” he declared.

Despite this, Tennant didn’t hold back his scepticism, calling awards “fabricated nonsense.” While acknowledging they can be career-defining, he added: “They mean things professionally to people, but I don’t suppose they change their life.”