Robbie Williams becomes father to baby girl

Williams, 38, announced the birth of his first child on his blog, where he wrote: "Praise be, it's Theodora Rose Williams, affectionately known as Teddy..... Born 3.33pm on 18.9.12, 7Ibs 4OZ.

"Baby, Mummy and Daddy are all rockin.... Thank you for your best wishes XXXX."

Congratulations have flooded in for the former Take That singer and his wife, US actress Ayda Field, with X Factor judge and Gary Barlow tweeting: "Massive congrats Rob and Ayda. So happy for you".

The message from Barlow, Williams' former Take That bandmate, were made more poignant by the fact that his own fourth child was delivered stillborn in August.

Williams had recently announced that he had a private jet on standby to ensure he did not miss the baby's birth as he toured other parts of Britain. It was not clear whether he had to use the jet or not. 

He also said that he wanted the baby to grow up in Britain rather than in the United States, where he and his wife currently live, saying that children in Los Angeles have a "massive sense of entitlement". 

"I don't want to educate our baby in LA because I would much prefer her to have English sensibilities," he said.

Williams first rose to fame as a member of 1990s boy band Take That, later becoming one of the UK's best-selling singers as a solo artist.

He reunited with Take That in 2010, only to split from the band again in 2011 after signing a new solo record deal with Universal Music.

Williams and Field have been together for five years, marrying in 2010.