Nicole Kidmans father has revealed why they called their daughter Sunday. It was inspired by Australian artist Sidney Nolan's muse Sunday Reed.

He said: "There was a lady named Sunday Reed who was a prominent patron of the arts in Victoria," Dr Kidman said from his practice in Lane Cove.

"I have read a bit about Sunday Reed and her husband John - she was a key mover and shaker in the arts around the beginning of the century. The name Sunday struck me as being a nice name for a woman, so my wife and I mentioned it."