If you've ever doubted that a dog is man's best friend, speak to Tom Hardy.
Because the The Revenant star has recently penned what can only be described as the MOST adorable letter to his late dog Woodstock (known to fans as 'Woody').
'I am completely gutted,' Tom wrote in a Tumblr post last week, one guaranteed to get your lip wobbling and eyes watering in moments. 'The world for me was a better place with him in it and by my side,' he continued.
The dog – a stray Tom picked up whilst filming Lawless in Georgia, Atlanta in a dramatic (and serendipitous) encounter he relays in detail in the post – has died at six years old, following a 'short 6 month battle with an aggressive polymyostisis' Tom explained.
'We at home are devastated by his loss,' he said. 'I am ultimately grateful for his loyal companionship and love and it is of some great comfort that he is no longer suffering.'
In the post he also detailed how his wife, actress Charlotte Riley, had worked 'tirelessly' to get Woody through a bad bout of separation anxiety, and that the dog guarded her 'fiercely' when she was pregnant with their child.
He described too, how Woody had been on numerous film sets and attended world premieres and had even been named the 73rd most influential animal in TIME magazine, ahead of JAWS.
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'I don’t normally speak out about family and friends,' he continued, 'but this is an unusual circumstance. Woody affected so many people in his own right'.
The Mad Max star then ended his post with – grab those tissues, ladies – these words:
'Thankyou Woody for choosing to find us. We will love you and be with you and you with us forever. Never ever ever forgotten. Your Boy tom xxx I love you beyond words. To the moon and back again and again to
Infinity and beyond. Run with Max now and the Angels. I will see you when I get there.
'With all of me I love you. Always Thankyou for Your love beautiful boy.'
Very sorry – sniff, sniff – we have nothing more [grabs the Kleenex] to say on this matter...
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