When Hollywood House in Glenealy, Co Wicklow, was launched on the market in 2008, the dramatic Georgian house came with an A-list price tag of €9 million with 50 acres. This time around, like an ageing Hollywood actor, it's working its assets a little harder and comes with a refurbished roof, more than 100 acres and a new price of €4 million through estate agent Savills.
But time has been kind to this fine period house which dates back to the 1760s. Perfectly poised above rolling parkland at the end of a long tree-lined avenue, the first impression ticks all of the “big house” boxes. What’s surprising is that once you’ve passed through the panelled double doors of the imposing front porch, the experience becomes more homely despite the house’s sprawling 720sq m (7,760sq ft) over three floors.
Hollywood has been home to the O’Reilly Hyland family since the 1970s. Dermot and Constance O’Reilly Hyland reared seven children in the house, and today their daughter and her family still live here. Dermot was a well known quantity surveyor and the interest in property passed to his son Charlie O’Reilly Hyland, a seasoned investor. Last year, he and his business partner Aidan Farrell, sold Woodhouse Estate in Stradbally Co Waterford for €2 million. Constance was a keen sportswoman and, just beyond the rolling fields that stretch out in front of the house, she founded the Wicklow Hunt Pony Club in 1975.
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Much of the décor at Hollywood remains unchanged since the previous generation lived here, but it has stood the test of time. The entrance hall is grand with parquet flooring and Ionic fluted columns leading to a wide staircase. Light pours into this space via a very unusual and beautiful lantern roof above. At some point the carpet on the stairs was removed – to allow parents monitor the nocturnal activities of errant children – and it jars a little with the otherwise decadent entrance.
The receptions on either side of the hall are large, well proportioned rooms with all the features characteristic of the period – ornate cornicing and plasterworks, sash windows and working shutters and carved marble fireplaces. The drawingroom has a beautiful bow window at one end, with French doors through to the garden. There are small surprises here and there – off the livingroom is a small bar/office, that at one point was used as a gun room – under the floorboards there’s a small trapdoor stash for gun cartridges.
Formidable diningroom
In 1892 the house suffered fire damage and the interiors were remodelled by James Beckett and Sons. The enormous and formidable diningroom is dominated by a 16-seat dining table and wall friezes depicting the four seasons are believed to have come from the same mouldings as those used in Áras an Uachtaráin. Another quaint feature is a floorbell at the head of the table for the host to discretely summon service from the kitchen. Every home should have one.
And it’s here that the grandeur ends in Hollywood House, but there’s a shabby charm to the rest with a well used family room at the rear and a great bright country kitchen with an Aga at its heart. New owners would have scope to allow more light by knocking through a wall to the enclosed courtyard beyond.
The basement enjoys the same space as the reception accommodation above, and as a consequence it’s vast. There’s a great space, perfect for a teenager’s den or playroom, a couple of bedrooms and lots of storage including an enormous ancient Chubb safe that might as well have “Swag in Here” emblazoned on it. As a consequence the O’Reilly Hylands used it to store jam.
Upstairs is bright, thanks to the light pouring through the 16 lantern roof-windows and the six huge bedrooms enjoy fabulous views over the surrounding countryside. New owners will no doubt want to update these rooms with en suites and walk-in wardrobes.
But let’s hope they don’t go overboard with clean lines and curtain wall windows everywhere. Hollywood is a great country house, and much of its charm is tied up in the old worldliness. To the side of the house is a glasshouse with a glass-topped veranda leading on to a small lawn. It’s a sun trap and perfect for outdoor entertaining. In turn, this area leads to woodland pathways past the three-bed guest lodge and on to a castellated gate into a huge sloping redbrick walled garden. It has recently been cleared in readiness for a fresh planting.
The grounds, which spill into thousands of acres of woodland, are a child’s paradise. A fenced perimeter has been newly installed throughout, and with a pet cemetery here, an exemplary ice house there, paddocks, stables and an old tennis court, hours of roaming fun are guaranteed.
Hollywood may be in need of a facelift, but its star quality still shines through.
