News & Media

It's all 'au revoir' to local castle for Depardieu

Courtesy of Castleknock Gazette - Sept 2011

STAFF at Luttrellstown Castle waved au revoir to French actor Gerard Depardieu last week, after he finished filming on the grounds of the landmark castle for the fourth instalment of the Asterix film franchise.

The Green Card actor left just as quietly as he and the film crew for Asterix, did when they arrived in Castleknock some weeks ago. The grounds of the Castle, where Victoria and David Beckham wed, was transformed into a movie set for the film Asterix and Obelix: God Save Britannia, co-written and directed by Laurent Tirard. The French language film sees Gerard Depardieu play one of the title roles as Obelix, while Edouard Baer plays Asterix.

Speaking to the Gazette this week, Sue Hannon, of Luttrellstown Castle and Country Club, said there was great excitement about the place during filming. "They were filming at the grounds of the castle. We have a lovely gardener's cottage and that was the house that they used. It looked wonderful. There was a huge buzz about the place. There must have been 100 people here - vans, camper vans all sorts needed on a film set. It was great.They were here for two weeks before filming, getting it all set up for the scene. It finished up last week."

This is not the first time the spectacular grounds of Luttrellstown were used for filming. Ronan Keating brought the six finalists from his category for the Australian X-Factor here to film the judges selection last year. Filming of British TV Series Primeval took place here last year and a Hallmark movie, called Honeymoon for One, was another movie shot here.

The castle itself is going through some renovation so that the bedrooms can open again for use during events. According to Sue Hannon: "Until now, the castle was used for weddings, private parties, corporate dinners and the bedrooms have been closed for about eight years. So, what we are doing now is we are doing major renovations on the bedrooms so they can be used as accommodation for such events. We have 12 bedrooms and they are the most amazing bedrooms because every single room is so different."

When asked what attracts such big names to the castle, Sue said it was a combination of things, such as the ambiance, the look and the historic feel about it. "It is so unique, we are 15 minutes outside the city and we arc 560 acres, totally private. The fact that it is so private, it is perfect for filming.There is plenty of car parking, it has everything," Sue said.

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Luttrellstown Re-Launch Party.

Host of well known personalities toast the re-launch of famous Irish venue.

Courtesy of Castleknock Gazette - Nov 2011

A HOST OF WELL KNOWN IRISH PERSONALITIES, including the Minister for Transports, Tourism and Sports, Leo Varadkar, attended the relaunch of West Dublin’s historic Luttrellstown Castle last week.

The stunning castle is once again open for exclusive rental, follow-ing the stylish renovation of its 12 bedrooms. Situated just minutes from Castleknock Village, the castle has caught the eye of many well-known faces, including David and Victoria Beckham, who exchanged vows at the estate back in 1999. Last week, the castle was officially relaunched following the extensive renovation of its bed-rooms to make it more appealing for weddings, filming and corporate events. More than 80 people were in attendance at last week’s party.

Sue Hannon, of Lut- trellstown Castle and Country Club, described the evening as a huge suc¬cess, telling The Gazette: “Everyone was delighted to see the work that was done and to see that it is back open. The rooms are all ready now and they look amazing. “We are really trying to develop the castle more. We are promoting it hugely now, and it is prov¬ing very popular among businesses for next year. We really just want to let people know that it is back, it’s open, and to get people to come in and look at the product is super,” she said.

Each of the 12 rooms renovated for visitors to stay at the castle have been individually named, and, in total, the rooms can cater for up to 24 people. The rooms have historic artifacts, antiques, paintings and four-poster beds, to give the unique castle a sense of luxury. It also has four public rooms, including the Van Stry Room - the castle’s main reception room.

The exact age of the castle is unclear, but its name orginates from the Luttrell family. They owned the estate for more than 300 years, until 1811. It is now under the ownership of Irish businessmen, JP McManus and John Magnier, who purchased the estate in November, 2006.

The castle’s vast grounds have featured in numerous films. It has also been featured in numerous TV shows, including the Australian version of the popular song contest, The X-Fac- tor. In the judge’s houses’ episode, Ronan Keating brought his acts to stay at Luttrellstown, and they filmed their performances there.

Green Card actor Ger-ard Depardieu was also spotted filming the latest instalment of the French film, Asterix, at the castle recently.

The castle is adjacent to, and part of, Luttrellstown Castle Golf and Country Club in Castleknock.