A Timeline of Cillian Murphy and Yvonne McGuinness’s 27-Year-Long Romance

Years before Murphy made a name for himself as an actor, he was a law student at University College Cork who performed rock gigs in his free time. According to Marie Claire, Murphy met McGuinness after one of his band’s shows in 1996. At the time, Murphy was just beginning his acting career by performing in a play called “Disco Dogs.” The production became such a huge hit that it toured around the world for 18 months.

In a 2016 interview with The Guardian, Murphy recalled the tour as “the most important period” of his life not only because he met his “closest friends” through it, but because it played a big part in his relationship with McGuinness as well. “It was around the same time I met my wife. She came on tour with us. It was so exciting,” he said. “20 years ago or whatever it was – we were all just kids, trying to find our way – but such a special, special time.”

Murphy and McGuinness were together for eight years before they officially tied the knot in August 2004, per Irish Central. The couple reportedly exchanged their vows at McGuinness’s father’s vineyard in Provence, France.

According to People, Murphy and McGuinness welcomed their first child – a son named Malachy – in 2005. The “Dunkirk” actor opened up about his growing family in a 2006 interview with The Guardian, during which he revealed his wife was pregnant while he was filming “The Wind That Shakes the Barley.” Since the movie was shot in the Cork countryside, he was able to remain close to McGuinness in the months leading up to his son’s birth.

“Easily my best experience in terms of the process of acting. Plus, it was during the summer months,” he said. “I was living at home with my folks; my wife was pregnant with our son; and we were running around the hills of west Cork shooting up Black and Tans. Fantastic!”

Murphy and McGuinness’s second son, Aran, was born in 2007. Although not much is known about the couple’s kids, Aran is following in his father’s footsteps by becoming an actor as well. In 2019, Aran starred in the play “Hamnet” as Shakespeare’s son. According to Broadway World, Aran first gained acting experience by performing in school plays before going on to further his craft at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Murphy talked about his son’s performance in a 2021 interview with The Guardian. “He was so chilled about it, you know? He would come off stage and ask what the score was in the Liverpool game. And, again, you’re slightly jealous of that!” Murphy said. “There’s the danger that overanalyzing everything can erode the simplicity.”

After living in London for decades, Murphy and McGuinness moved their family to Dublin in 2015. While talking to The Guardian in 2016, Murphy explained there were a few reasons that inspired the family to relocate, including craving a change of scenery. “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?'” Murphy said, adding that the family longed to live near the sea.

Another reason for the move was that Murphy and McGuinness wanted their kids to be closer to their grandparents. “We wanted them to be Irish, I suppose,” he said. “It’s amazing how quickly their accents have adapted. Even within a year of moving back, they are fading into this rakish west Brit kind of thing. Which I think, hopefully, will get them lots of girls when they’re 15.”

Despite having been married for nearly 20 years, Murphy and McGuinness are rarely seen together out in public. In August 2016, they were spotted taking a stroll around New York City while the actor was in the United States to promote his film “Anthropoid.” Although the two haven’t been seen together in public since, they remain happily married.

In a 2019 interview with GQ, Murphy said it’s “hard” being away from his wife and kids due to work obligations. “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,” he explained.

To combat this, Murphy said he tries to spend at least six months per year at home. “I make sure that I try not to go from job to job to job, because that means you live in a bubble of set, hotel, set, hotel, plane, film festivals – which, to me, is not reality,” he said.