【Foreign Archives】

Despite the fact that Tom Hardy's super famous and Foreign Archivesin a bunch of films and stuff, he's still something of a mysterious figure.

SEE ALSO: Tom Hardy is apparently the new favo(u)rite to play James Bond

It's not that often that you see him on chat shows or being interviewed, for instance, and unlike some of his contemporaries -- Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hiddleston, etc. -- it's not all that often that he's in the public eye.

Beneath his surly exterior, though, there's a dog-loving Dubsmash fan just waiting to get out.

From his early foray into social media to his clear love of nudity, we've rounded up some facts about Hardy you might not be aware of.

1. He can read a mean bedtime story.

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Tom Hardy has now appeared on the BBC's kids' channel CBeebies on three different occasions to read bedtime stories -- once for NYE 2016, once for Valentine's Day, and -- most recently -- for Mothers' Day. Each was more mouthwatering than the last.

2. He's partial to a good Dubsmash.

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That's one of several Dubsmashes shared on Instagram by stuntman Jake Tomuri, who worked with Hardy on films like Mad Max: Fury Roadand The Revenant. If that isn't evidence of a man who knows how to have a good time, we don't know what is.

3. And his taste in music is clearly pretty wide-ranging.

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Turns out Hardy is just as committed to his Dubsmashes as he is to his acting.

(OK, one more.)

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To be honest, we could watch these all day.

4. He loves dogs.

Via Giphy

That's a clip from Paul O'Grady's ITV show For the Love of Dogs, which featured a cheerful Tom Hardy visiting a dog rescue centre with O'Grady and making friends with a large pooch called Titch.

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"They let me come in to see the dogs and to give them a cuddle," says Hardy in the clip, before going on to say that there's someone for every dog.

"It's just a question of being able to connect them together, isn't it?"

Via Giphy

Daww.

5. He's not afraid to shut down people who ask him questions he doesn't like.

Despite the fact that he can be a fun-loving softy at times, Hardy definitely has an edge -- especially when he's asked a question about his private life that he doesn't think is appropriate.

During a press conference for Legend, a reporter made the mistake of enquiring about Hardy's sexuality. It didn't end well.

6. He used to have one hell of a Myspace page.

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Tom Hardy is woefully absence from social media these days, but back in the heady days of 2008 he was busy taking Myspace by storm. His account doesn't appear to be online anymore, but someone has helpfully collected together his old photos on here.

7. He likes wandering naked through streams.

During an appearance on Alan Carr's Chatty Man to promote BBC drama Taboo, Hardyspoke about his enjoyment of nudity.

"Every week there was a naked Monday [...] I was naked, and I had to walk around in the water in Tilbury, around the woods.

"It was so cold and it felt so good. There were people there to watch me and none of it was going to go on screen -- it was just purely for pleasure."

8. He's just as badass in real life as he is on the big screen.

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Yep: earlier this week, there were reports that Tom Hardy had helped chase down and catch an alleged moped thief in Richmond, London -- and from the sounds of it, they're true.

"We can confirm that there were two people on a stolen moped that went through a red light and crashed into another vehicle," a spokesperson for Richmond Police told the BBC.

"The males ran off and one was detained by Tom Hardy."

Total. Badass.

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