Frank Sinatra's daughter says he was a "distant, physically absent parent" - but she hopes to see her late dad again one day to praise him as "wonderful".

The 77-year-old film producer and talent agent was just seven months when her famous father left the family home, meaning her mother, Nancy Barbato, had to bring her and her siblings up.

But Tina doesn't think she would've seen much of the iconic crooner even if he hadn't left home.

Speaking on ITV's This Morning, she said: "He was a distant, physically absent parent, obviously.

"But if he were living at home he would've been gone 42 weeks a year anyway. Because he was always on the road, nightclubbing."

Tina has told how recently watching London-based Sinatra The Musical - which follows Sinatra's rise, fall, and comeback - was "revealing" to her, and it made her think her mother was "smarter than [she] gave her credit for".

She said: "I'm used to the iconic part of Frank, and nobody knows mom.

"She turns out to be quite a woman. And smarter than I gave her credit for.

"I hope I see them again some time to say, 'I didn't realize how wonderful you both really were.'

"And the mess they get into is ... it's kind of universal."

Frank had an infamous affair with actress Ava Gardner in 1949, and it led to him and Nancy divorcing in October 1951, with the crooner going on to wed Ava a few weeks later in November 1951.

However, Tina didn't ever see her mother and Ava share a "negative word" between them.

Asked about the affair being an integral part of her family's life story, Tina said: "He created ... I call it a wake. Not a bad wake.

"It was something to contend with, and you had to get older to begin to emotionally understand it.

"I would come through that, through my young adulthood and we'd become friends with Ava. Personal friends.

"We never lost contact with her. Mother and Ava never had a negative word. No one made it worse once it was completely done.

"It wasn't horrible. It was who we were."