Caitríona Balfe is a mom!
The four-time Golden Globe nominee, 41, has given birth to her first child, a son, with husband Anthony “Tony” McGill, 45.
Balfe announced the news on Instagram Wednesday, sharing a black-and-white photo of her newborn son’s hand and explaining that she’d taken a break from social media “to enjoy cooking up this little human.”
“We are so grateful for this little soul … that he chose us as his parents. I’m in awe of him already and can’t help stare and wonder at all the possibilities of who he will become, where he will go and what he’ll do on the big adventure of his life,” Balfe wrote.
Balfe used her announcement to promote organizations like World Child Cancer, Choose Love, Unicef and the UN Refugee Agency.
“Right now he seems so small and fragile and I constantly think how grateful I am that I live in a place, in a time where he is born into peace and safety and yet at the same time I see so many in the world right now that aren’t afforded that same privilege and opportunity … who are born into famine or war and how unjust it is that the same safety isn’t there for all children,” she wrote.
Balfe added, “Here in the west we have so much, we are so lucky and so if you’d like to join me in supporting any of the wonderful charities that need help trying to give those that are forgotten dignity and hope, we can give the gift of peace and safety and opportunity to a few more children.”
The actress and her Scottish music producer husband tied the knot in August 2019, at St. Mary’s Church in Bruton, Somerset, in the U.K. Much like their pregnancy news, the couple was discreet with their intimate nuptials.
Balfe later revealed that they “managed to squeeze it in” on a weekend off from production on her Starz romantic drama Outlander, which has been renewed for both a sixth and seventh season. She told The Philippine Daily Inquirer at the time, “What was most beautiful about it is that I had my very close family and friends there.”
“I just want to be happy in my life (laughs),” she added. “I want to stay sane. I’m lucky that I have a job that I love. It’s very important that your career can’t be your only thing. So, I feel lucky that I’ve also found someone who makes me very happy. As long as I can keep those two things going well, then I’ll be good.”
The Ford v Ferrari actress exclusively revealed their engagement to PEOPLE in January 2018, showing off her engagement ring at that year’s Golden Globe Awards. “It happened over the break. I’m very happy,” she said at the time. They were romantically linked as early as 2015.
Balfe previously shot down pregnancy rumors in 2019, writing on Twitter, “To all those who think it’s appropriate to ask. No, I’m not pregnant, just having my period and was bloated…. so yeah… thanks for asking. #notreally #notallstomachsarewashboards”
Back in 2016, she raved about playing a pregnant woman on Outlander during an interview with E! News.
“Obviously I’ve never been pregnant, so [Author Diana Gabaldon] was talking to me about it, and it was this thing about how you do feel sexy, and you do feel womanly, and it was great to be able to celebrate that and to watch this couple bond and really connect over their impending child,” she said. “We both thought that was really important.”
