Anthony Quinlan's son has made his and Nikki Sanderson's "dreams come true".
Anthony Quinlan carrying his newborn son out of hospital / © Instagram
The soap couple welcomed their bundle of joy into the world days before their April 25 due date, and the ex-Emmerdale actor and Hollyoaks actress are excited to begin a new chapter as a family of three.
Anthony - who played Pete Barton in ITV's Emmerdale from 2013 until 2020 - took to Instagram on Wednesday (29.04.26) and posted the moment he walked out of the hospital holding their baby in a carrier.
It was captioned: "The most special day! The smallest passenger, carrying the biggest piece of our hearts.
"He has no idea yet… but he’s already made all our dreams come true!"
Nikki - who played Maxine Miniver in Channel 4's Hollyoaks from 2012 until 2025 - declared Anthony "the best Daddy" in the post's comments section, where the pair's celebrity pals congratulated the couple.
Former Hollyoaks star Gemma Atkinson, 41, penned: "I'm SO happy for you both Quinny! (sic)"
Emmerdale alum Michael Parr, 39, wrote: "Poppa Quinehh!!! You guys are gonna be amazing parents x (sic)."
And Shadowhunters alum Roxanne McKee, 45, typed: "Your baby boy is here!"
On April 25, Anthony, 41, and Nikki, 42, took to Instagram to reveal their son had already arrived.
Sharing a black and white photo featuring her tot's head of dark hair, but with his face not in the shot, they wrote in a joint post: "Happy due date little man.
“You blessed our lives a few days earlier than expected and filled our world with so much joy.
“Daddy and Mummy love you so much Son. (sic)"
The couple - who struggled to conceive for over two years, underwent fertility treatment and were on a waiting list for IVF before they learnt they would have a natural pregnancy - are yet to share his name.
But days before the little one's arrival, Anthony said he and Nikki have a “shortlist of three or four” baby names.
He told Emmerdale Insider on behalf of Which Bingo: "I do love traditional names - there’s something about them. Though there are probably seven or eight kids with the same traditional name in every school now, which makes it tricky.
"Interestingly, girl names came a lot more easily than boy names for us - they came much more naturally. But we’ve got a few shortlisted, and we’re going to wait until he’s here to see which one fits. It’s very exciting."
Tagged in Gemma Atkinson Nikki Sanderson