Where is Cillian Murphy from? All about his wife and kids as actor moves family out of London

Cillian Murphy (Image via Jason Mendez/Getty Images)
Cillian Murphy (Image via Jason Mendez/Getty Images)

On Monday, April 11, Peaky Blinders star Cillian Murphy appeared on Dax Shepard's podcast, Armchair Expert, to chat about Irish culture and heritage, as well as his desire to pursue music as a career. In the episode, the actor revealed the reason behind his decision to move his family away from London.

The star revealed that his wife, Yvonne McGuinness, and their children had lived in London for 14 years before moving to Dublin, Ireland. While Murphy is extremely private about his personal life, the 45-year-old actor revealed that both of their children were born in London.

While speaking to Shepard, Murphy revealed that one of the primary reasons behind their move was the accent their sons picked up while living in London.


What reasons did Cillian Murphy cite to explain his 2015 move from London to Dublin?

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Cillian Murphy, who is set to star in Christopher Nolan's upcoming biopic Oppenheimer biopic, told Shepard,

"...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."

The Dunkirk star further explained how he wanted to be close to his own and his wife's parents back in Ireland. Murphy further elaborated that it was not uncommon for Irishmen to move out of their native land for work and then return. He explained how it "seems to be a common narrative for Irish people."

It is apparent that Cillian Murphy and his wife, Yvonne McGuiness, wanted their children to be raised with Irish culture and heritage that would have been lacking in London. Furthermore, it seems that the actor's fondness for his home country, Ireland, would prevent him from staying in any foreign country permanently. This was evident in his comments on California while speaking with Dax Shepard. Murphy explained,

"I'd feel like a bit of an interloper if I lived in California, I couldn't envisage living there permanently."

Cillian Murphy's family and children

As per multiple publications, Murphy and his visual artist wife Yvonne McGuiness married around mid-2004. The Irish couple reportedly dated for several years before tying-the-knot.

They share two sons together, Malachy and Aran Murphy. According to data pooled from several publications, Malachy was born in December 2005, making him 16-years-old. Meanwhile, Aran was reportedly born in July 2007, which makes him 14-years-old.


Murphy's Irish roots and first move to London

Murphy was born in Cork, Ireland, which is the second-largest city in the northwest European country. He was reportedly raised in the quasi-village suburb of Cork, Ireland, named Ballintemple. His first go at flexing his acting skills was during his college days at University College Cork around 1996 when he studied law. Prior to his course, the musician turned actor co-founded a band with his brother Páidi and named the group The Sons of Mr. Green Genes.

During the early days of his career, Cillian Murphy appeared in numerous Irish theatre projects. Later in 2001, the actor shifted to London. A year later, Murphy starred in Danny Boyle's zombie horror, 28 Days Later, which was a breakthrough role for the actor.

Cillian Murphy's most iconic role as Tommy Shelby in BBC's Peaky Blinders coincidentally also has partial Irish roots. Following his recent career, Murphy was labeled the 12th greatest Irish actor on a list by The Irish Times in 2020.

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