The Handmaid’s Tale star Yvonne Strahovski said her “heart has been stolen” after giving birth to her first child.

The Australian actress, 36, announced via Instagram she and husband Tim Loden had welcomed a son.

Strahovski shared a black and white picture of her cradling the baby, along with the caption: “My heart has melted into a billion pieces a thousand times already. We have been blessed with the greatest joy of our lives, our baby boy.

“Welcome to the world Peanut, your parents love you beyond measure and you are already my little dream boat. My heart has been stolen!”

At the Emmy Awards in September last year, Strahovski surprised fans with the news she and Loden had secretly tied the knot over the summer.

Speaking on the red carpet to E! News, she revealed they had married in northern California.

She said: “We ended up jumping in the lake in our suit and gown, it was ridiculously hot. But we had a great time.”

Strahovski plays Serena Joy Waterford in Hulu’s dystopian drama The Handmaid’s Tale.

The series is based on the best-selling novel by Margaret Atwood which sees the few remaining fertile women forced into sexual servitude.