Michael Flatley (Riverdance)!!

Flatly hunts gems by Irish greats.
Article, Irish Sunday Independent July 20th, 2003 written by Ralph Riegel

Ralph Riegel is taken on an exclusive tour of the dancer's 18th-century Castlehyde Mansion in Cork. The Lord of the Dance multimillionaire Michael Flately has ordered his private buyers to scour the world's libraries and art galleries for a priceless collection of works by Irish greats including Yeats, Wilde and Joyce for his lavish new home. The revelation came as the Sunday Independent received an exclusive tour of the Irish-American dance superstar's 18th-century Castlehyde Mansion in North Cork which is now being hailed as the most successful restoration project in Irish history. Costing a staggering €30m, Castlehyde House now boasts 14 lavish bedrooms, an entire first-floor suite for Flately and his partner, Lisa Murphy, two climate-controlled wine cellars, a Roman spa, a 20-seat private cinema, an African safari room, a Jameson-designed whiskey room, a three storey 3,000-volume library, a music room, a gym and various reception rooms, not to mention a reinforced steel, eigth-bay garage for the star's collection of Ferraris, BMW's and Rolls Royce cars. Incredibly, that €3om price-tag does not include the collection of artwork, antiques and collectibles that Michael Flatley is now hoarding for his private palace. On August 9, having performed at the famous Monaco festival, Flatley will fly to Moscow for a private art viewing to collect special works. As if that isn't enough to impress; consider the fact that Castle Hyde's red-wine cellar will, thanks to the star's collection of fine Bordeaux labels, become the most valuable collection in the country: The three-storey library, topped with a meticulously painted ceiling mural and American walnut shelves will house 3,000 volumes and, at the dancer's insistence, will boast first editions and signed copies of the most famous works of Irish literature including tomes by James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, William Butler Yeats and Sean O'Casey. "Michael loves Joyce's Ulysses so we have private buyers now searching out suitable works for the collection, architect Peter Inston explained. Incredibly just four years ago this famous mansion built in 1760 and extended in 1800 - was falling apart with flood damage to its basement and roof. Its foundations were subsiding due to over 100 years of flood damage and its main walls were leaning outwards by over 10 inches at their outer peaks. "To be honest, it would have been easier to demolish the house," explained David Higgins, co-owner with his wife, Monica, of Cornerstone Construction, the family firm entrusted with turning Flatley's dream into reality. But, with the Riverdance and Lord of the Dance star determined to retain the mansion's original character, a painful and laborious process of restoring and rebuilding was launched. "Just to put it in context, every window in this house has been restored from the original. It cost over €500,000. But' if we had torn them out and put in cheaper PVC windows; it would have cost less than €250,000," he explained. Hailed by Flatley as "my dream home", the four storey , River Blackwater mansion will now be formally completed in October when the Chicago-born dancer is scheduled to move in. Flatley's friend and world renowned architect, Peter Inston, admitted he has never handled a project of such magnificence in 20 years of work for the world's rich and famous. I've worked for the King of Qatar and other royals but I've never seen anyone take such a hands-on interest in restoring a property as Michael has, Inston told the Sunday Independent. Peter stressed that, in his opinion, CastleHyde Mansion will be regarded as the finest restoration project in Ireland and, quite probably Europe, for decades to come. "The point is that everything in this house is original. We've saved absolutely everything we could. We've repaired and restored the original floors; windows, ceilings and slates. In the basement, we even stripped out the original bricks, numbered them, repaired the flood damage and then replaced the bricks exactly ' as they were," he added. Castlehyde Estate caretaker and local historian Pat Bartley admitted that the house is now back to its l8thcentury splendour, when it was one of the most famous features on Ireland's aristocratic `social circuit'. "This house is a treasure and only Michael could have ensured that it was restored the way it is," Bartley explained. Castlehyde's location is a suitable setting for such a project - the River Blackwater was, for a time, known as "the Irish Rhine" thanks to its plethora of great houses and castles. Landscaping is now underway on the rolling parkland which sweeps in front of Castlehyde House down to the river. But if the location of the house is spectacular - with the river providing its frontage and, to the rear, a sheer cliff-face topped by the ruin of a 13th century Condon Castle - entering the mansion literally takes the breath away. "This house was restored to bring it back to its former glory, " Peter Inston explained. "But we restored it so that it could once again be lived in and enjoyed. This isn't going to be a museum. It's a family home." Castlehyde's most famous features are its collection of 18th century fireplaces - regarded as priceless - as well as its stone cantilever staircase, which is widely acknowledged as the finest in Ireland.
Taken from the Irish Sunday Independent July TEAM INVOLVED: TKB & Associates DATE: 2003

(Submitted by Jim)