Returning to Ireland: Cillian Murphy's Private House Tour

Easily one of the most famous living Irish actors, Cillian Murphy was born in the city of Cork. However, he spent most of his adult life living between Dublin, Ireland and London, England, while starring in wildly popular films and TV shows like The Dark Knight Trilogy, Red Eye, 28 Days Later and of course Peaky Blinders. Now at 46 years old, Cillian is starring in the biggest project of his career, Christopher Nolan's film Oppenheimer, portraying one of the most important figures in history and a father of the atomic bomb. Despite the fact that he's been one of Hollywood's most sought-after actors for decades, Cillian has never considered living in the state of California. For a good old Irish boy like himself, that would be a bridge too far. In fact, even as far back as 2005, he once told People Magazine, According to Murphy, he struggles with America's passion for monoculture and living in an industry town like LA wouldn't provide him with the buffer he needs to keep his work and private life separate. It would also make things much harder to avoid the spotlight, which is important to Cillian as well. So much so, that he's told interviewers over the years, The less people know about me, the better. But of course, he hasn't been able to keep everything about his personal life under wraps. For instance, we know that Cillian married his partner, artist Yvonne McGuinness, back in 2004, after meeting her almost a decade earlier during his days in the rock band The Sons of Mr. Green Jeans. At that point in his young adult life, Cillian was content to live in London, but it wasn't something that would last. He told The Guardian back in 2016, I loved living in London in my 20s and 30s, but after a while you kind of go, right, is this it? Is this it for the rest of my days? Or is there some other possibility? As it turns out, there was. Cillian Murphy and his wife Yvonne made what they'd call the best decision of their lives by moving their family from London to Dublin. At the time, their young sons Malachi and Aaron were approaching adolescence and moving back home was spurred on by Cillian's sons having developed English accents. Something that didn't quite sit right with their Irish father, who told the Armchair Expert podcast, We wanted the kids to be Irish. They were sort of at that age where they were pre-teens, they had very posh English accents, and I wasn't appreciating that too much, so we decided to come back. So in 2015, Cillian and his family did what many Irish families have done over the years. They returned home after decades spent abroad. Not only did it help with their kids' accents, but it brought them closer to their extended family as well, ensuring Cillian's parents could watch their grandchildren grow up. Better yet, at least for Cillian, soon after arriving in Ireland, his sons' English accents were on their way out. Now, let's take a closer look at the home Cillian and his family moved into, a 1.8 million dollar residence in South Dublin. According to the real estate agent who sold Cillian Murphy his property, this Irish home is a historically protected structure, and a Victorian-era terraced mansion located in the prestigious neighborhood of Monkstown. Better yet, all of the estate's original details have been preserved to ensure that Cillian's Irish family home is as sophisticated as it is welcoming. Constructed sometime around the year 1863, this 3,444 square foot house is said to boast six double-sized bedrooms, as well as a living room and several original wrought iron fireplaces spread throughout. Unfortunately, outside of an image or two, Cillian has kept the interior of these living spaces with their high ceilings and bay windows largely out of sight. All we know for sure is that shortly after the home was purchased, his family submitted plans for renovations and received permission to upgrade the residence in order to put their own stamp on it. As nice as the home no doubt is, the neighborhood might be more so. It's only a five minute walk to the sea, and close to a number of incredible amenities, including yacht clubs, city parks, and high class schools for the kids to attend as well. But if you're wondering what the strangest thing I was able to find out about Cillian's home life was, it's definitely this. He absolutely refuses to install internet in the house. Really. During a conversation with The Mirror UK, in which Cillian discussed his return to Ireland, he revealed that he's a firm believer in not letting his kids hop online. And he's not too fond of smartphones either. He told the media outlet, It's a very complex time growing up. Things are changing a lot at a very accelerated rate. We're all aware of the effect of the internet online and life online. Feels to me like lots of kids, like their lives exist inside of this device. The idea that empathy would form part of a curriculum is an excellent idea. Young people are caring and compassionate and willing to be. That might have worked when Cillian's sons were entering adolescence, but I would be interested to know if he's been able to keep them offline now that they're much deeper into their teenage years. Today, Cillian Murphy and his family live in Dublin most of the year. And whenever he gets the call from Stephen Knight to star as Tommy Shelby in the hit series Peaky Blinders, Nearly got ******* everything! Cillian heads off to Liverpool, England, where he holes himself up in a rented apartment for the duration of the shoot. During the entire time he's staying there on his own, Cillian has admitted to having zero life in terms of social engagement. He simply shuts himself inside and learns his lines. He told The Guardian, It's cancelled life. You go home to your tiny apartment at the end of the day and you feed yourself for sustenance and you learn the lines for the next day and you try to get as much sleep as you possibly can, which isn't much. And then you get up and you do it again. When filming finally does wrap up, it always takes Cillian a bit of time to decompress upon returning to Ireland. More than just a buffer that helps Cillian keep his work and family separate, living in Ireland allows Cillian to concentrate on the little things that make family life enjoyable too. For instance, he once told GQ that he and his wife enjoy average everyday activities such as cooking, watching films, and listening to music whenever they're lucky enough to be sharing time together. He explained to the popular magazine, That work-life balance thing is hard. I have an amazing wife and I couldn't do this without her and her understanding. But it is a struggle. I think it is for any dad whose work takes him away, which it generally does and which consumes him, which my work does. All right, folks. Thank you so much for watching today's house tour. And before you head out, consider answering the following question for me. Would you ever consider living in a home without access to the internet? I think in these days, that's got to be a hard no. But maybe for a bit, it would be relaxing. Let me know how long you'd last trying to stay offline in the comments below. Otherwise, like, subscribe, and turn on those notifications to make sure you never miss an episode. My name is Cara the Vampire Slayer. Follow me on Instagram to chat and I will see you all next time. Bye! What a work a man can achieve, gypsy witchcraft.