Hugh Grant reckons his 5 children saved him from becoming a 'scary old bachelor'

Hugh Grant is happy fatherhood has seen him avoid the life of a "scary old golf-addicted bachelor".

The 60-year-old actor has welcomed five children in the past nine years and married the mother of three of his offspring, Anna Eberstein, in 2018.

Reflecting on his life prior to having a family, he told the Daily Mail's Weekend magazine: "I think I turned into a slightly scary old golf-addicted bachelor, and to tell you the truth I’m glad to see the back of him."

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In addition to the three children he shares with Eberstein, Grant is father to two children with ex-partner Tinglan Hong.

Despite taking enjoyment in being a father later in life, the Four Weddings and a Funeral star has admitted that having five children under the age of 10 as a 60-year-old can take it's toll.

"I mean, it’s completely knackering trying to be a young father in an old man’s body and I’ve found that if you’re 60 and there are five small children in the house you can’t have a hangover either," he went on. "But it's worth it. Absolutely."

Grant added that people have suggested he's become a better actor over the past decade, something he's attributed to having children.

Grant was famously unattached for many years although did enjoy a high-profile romance with Elizabeth Hurley. Following their split, the pair remained friends and Grant was named godfather of Hurley's son Damian in 2002.

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Last year, he confessed he had been "plain wrong" about his views on marriage and family life.

"Well, I was wrong, I was just plain wrong," he told Chris Evans on the DJ's Virgin Radio show. "And children, you know. I used to roll my eyes. People would say, 'Oh Hugh you don’t understand it', but they were right."