Stephen Graham has built a reputation playing tough characters, but at home he is simply “a soppy twat” who hugs his children every chance he gets.
The Adolescence star, 52, told The Times in 2025 that he is “constantly hugging our Alfie and Grace,” the two children he shares with actress wife Hannah Walters. The couple met while training as actors and married in 2008, forming a tight-knit unit that now cheers one another on across red carpets and social-media feeds.
At a Glance
- Stephen Graham calls himself a “soppy” dad to Grace, 21, and Alfie, 19.
- Grace studies film and singled out her father’s This Is England role as her favorite.
- Alfie launched a modeling career in 2025 and regularly posts TikToks with his dad.
- Why it matters: The Emmy-winning actor says hearing his kids laugh with their partners is the moment he knows his “objective complete as a father.”
Grace Graham, 21
Born in 2005, Grace grew up on film sets and in video shops. Graham told The Times that he took her to a local video store as a child, jump-starting what would become her formal film education. The effort paid off: during a 2022 GQ interview Graham revealed that Grace watched This Is England in a college class and later told him, “Wow, you’re actually good. I can see why people like you.”
She has attended multiple award shows to support her father, most memorably the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards, where Graham collected three trophies for Adolescence. From the stage he thanked “my kids Grace and Alfie, and my adorable wife,” calling them “my rock…my will…my soulmate.”
Alfie Graham, 19
Alfie arrived in 2007 and has already carved out his own spotlight. In December 2025 he celebrated his first professional modeling shoot with an Instagram carousel that drew thousands of likes. He also runs a TikTok account where he and his dad dance to trending sounds and film family “try not to laugh” challenges. One February 2025 clip features the entire Graham clan cracking jokes on a couch.
The father-son duo also appeared together on the British reality series Gogglebox UK in 2023, reacting to weekly television from their living room. When Graham earned his first BAFTA nomination for 2021’s Boiling Point, he found Alfie gaming downstairs. “I tapped him on the shoulder and go, ‘Guess who’s been nominated for Best Actor,'” Graham told GQ. Alfie responded with a quick fist-bump and returned to his screen.
Family First
Despite a career that spans Gangs of New York, Boardwalk Empire and Peaky Blinders, Graham insists the real reward is domestic. “One of the things that gives me the most joy in my life,” he told The Female Lead in 2025, “is walking past my kids’ bedrooms, while they’re in there with their partners, and hearing laughter.” He admitted the moment makes him emotional because “that’s my objective complete as a father.”
Graham and Walters acknowledge the work required to keep their bond strong. “We have ups and downs, of course,” Graham said to The Times. “Luckily…the relationship we both have with our children is beautiful – but it takes work.”
Key Takeaways
- Stephen Graham balances global fame with hands-on parenting, prioritizing hugs and laughter over accolades.
- Grace channels her dad’s cinematic influence into her own film studies, publicly praising his performances.
- Alfie is turning social-media fun into early modeling success while keeping the family’s sense of humor front and center.
- For Graham, personal fulfillment is measured not in trophies but in the sound of his children’s laughter down the hallway.
