Tom: Silent births are not so bad

Tom Cruise has defended the controversial Scientology practice of giving birth in silence, which his fiancèe is about to attempt.

The actor, 43, said: 'It's about respecting the woman. It's not about her not screaming.'

He also revealed he knew Katie Holmes, 27, was pregnant before she told him. 'I just picked something up because I notice things in people,' he told GQ magazine.

He joked his baby could play with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's expected child.

Earlier this week, the Mission: Impossible star told how his father bullied and beat him as a child.

He told Parade magazine: "He was a bully and a coward. He was the kind of person where, if something goes wrong, they kick.

"It was a great lesson in my life - how he'd lull you in, make you feel safe and then, bang!"