Michael Flatley’s Castlehyde estate: The restoration, the parties and the court cases

But it’s not the last dance, with legal cases set to continue.

Thanks to his own fancy footwork in the 1994 Eurovision interval act, Riverdance, his subsequent creation of the global dance phenomenal, Lord of the Dance, and his own shrewd investments in property, Flatley had amassed a personal fortune of around €500m when he spotted Castlehyde from the air as he flew in a helicopter over Fermoy in the late 1990s, scouring the countryside for an Irish retreat.

Built in the 1760s, it was the ancestral home of Dubhglas de hÍde, the first President of Ireland. With its symmetrical design, grand façade, and expansive grounds overlooking the sweeping Blackwater, it was once a prime example of Georgian architecture.

When Flatley found it, the house was effectively derelict with extensive water damage, structural decay, and the grounds were overgrown

But this proud Irish-American, with a deep appreciation for his Irish heritage, saw its potential. And he had the bank balance to realise it.

He bought Castlehyde and its 100-acre estate in 1999 for €3m, and set about its full and complete restoration, ploughing at least €27m into its repair and a further €20m on interiors, art and books.

The restoration was vast and meticulous with skilled craftsmen, architects, and designers, many of whom specialised in period restoration, hired to work on it.

Its basement had flooded and the walls were tilting dangerously, putting pressure on the roof.

One expert said that it would have been easier and much cheaper to simply gut the house and rebuild it.

But Flatley wanted to retain its original structure, and he spent €500,000 alone on flood proofing the basement before work could start on replacing the roof.

He insisted on using authentic materials whenever possible and all the original slates and bricks were numbered, removed, and then replaced.

The quality of the restoration work became the stuff of legend, with reports of craftsmen who had worked on Buckingham Palace being flown in to restore the gold leaf decorations and the windows.

New heating, plumbing, electrical and insulation systems were installed before the focus switched to the interior — which was adorned with fine antiques, hand-painted wallpaper, and elaborate moldings.

Flatley took a hands-on approach to the decoration, with artwork, artifacts, and memorabilia reflecting his career and interests.

Much of the restoration budget went into sourcing period-appropriate furniture and artwork, as Flatley set out to recreate the opulence of the 18th century while maintaining a comfortable living space — all infused with his own personal taste.

The restored home became a showcase of luxury, with eight themed ensuite bedrooms, a whiskey room, wine cellars, a bar, a music room, a formal dining room, a hunting room, a fully equipped 20-seat private cinema, and a three-storey 3,000-book library panelled in American walnut, housing many first editions including signed copies of works by James Joyce, Oscar Wilde, WB Yeats, and Sean O’Casey.

There was also a gym, a dance rehearsal room, and a pool. The entrance hall, which extends the length of the house, doubles as a banquet hall with capacity for 300 guests.

Outside, sat a garage housing a collection of vintage cars — its roof reinforced to withstand any possible rockslides from the cliff behind.

The extensive grounds were revamped, with the gardens and surrounding landscape restored to their former splendour, featuring manicured lawns and walking paths through the idyllic rural setting overlooking the Blackwater. Flatley even added a helipad.

The restoration project was long and painstaking with the dancer saying he saw his cash “disappear into a financial abyss”.

However, despite the setbacks and expense, he has always insisted that the finished house “was worth every bit of it”.

It was, in every way, a symbol of his success — not bad for a kid from a working-class background in Chicago. And for a while, the dream was real

Castlehyde was the venue for Flatley’s marriage to Niamh O’Brien in 2006, and it was a favourite with his late father, Michael James, with Cliff Richard, Maureen O’Hara, George Hamilton and The Chieftains among the guests to visit and attend legendary parties.

In 2008, it hosted pop icon Michael Jackson — during which Jackson, who was particularly taken with the mansion’s spiral staircase where Fred Astaire had once danced in the 1940s, challenged Flatley to a dance off on the stairs.

With its Steinway grand piano, a valuable collection of flutes and rare collections of French and Italian wines, Castlehyde was the venue for many private parties but Flatley also opened it up for local charitable causes.

Flatley said his father loved to visit Castlehyde, adding that some of the happiest memories of his life were sitting shoulder to shoulder with his brother, Pat, and their dad at the bar in the house.

In 2006, Michael James said his son’s restoration of Castlehyde made him very proud.

He’s come a long way since the days labouring on construction sites in Chicago in sub-zero temperatures

But the dream began to turn sour in 2014 following the robbery of a rhino horn from the property while Flatley, his wife, and their son, Michael St James, were there.

Despite all the treasures in the home, the gang targeted the rhino horn only — which security sources believe could have netted them €200,000 on the black market.

Flatley’s friends believe this frightening breach of their security and privacy, coupled with the death of his father in early 2015, were factors in his decision to put the house and estate up for sale in 2016.

In his eulogy to his father, Flatley said: “It was such a wonderful time. I think Castlehyde will never be the same to me now.”

As he put it on the market, he said: “It took a long time to get here, but Castlehyde has become the place I’ll call home.

“Whatever happens in my life, this corner of the world is where my heart remains,” the Riverdance star added.

It went on the market at over €20m, but no buyers emerged. The price of the estate was dropped to €12m, but still, the property failed to sell. The listing was finally withdrawn from the market after almost two years.

Things were about to get worse. A fire in an electrical panel in June 2015, and the subsequent repairs, sparked a raft of litigation.

Flatley claimed that parties he had hired for electrical and other works between 2001 and 2006 were negligent, and had failed to implement proper fire safety measures.

He also alleged issues with the plumbing system were linked to basement flooding issues when the Blackwater rose. He launched legal proceedings against those he alleged were responsible.

The defendants all denied the allegations, contending that they had fulfilled their contractual obligations and arguing that Flatley’s claims were statute-barred due to the passage of time.

In July 2022, the High Court was told that the parties had reached a confidential settlement. 

But more legal cases followed.

In 2024, Flatley alleged that defective works to Castlehyde had caused significant damage to the property, with remediation costs estimated at €30m, and that toxic residue from the defective work had been discovered in the house, had severely impacted the property’s condition, and impacted upon his health and the health of his family, forcing them to vacate the property in October 2023.

His high-end insurer, Hiscox SA, sought to have the case referred to arbitration — a move opposed by Flatley, who asserted his status as a consumer rather than a commercial entity.

In early 2024, Hiscox cancelled the insurance policy for Castlehyde, citing discrepancies between its actual occupancy and the terms agreed upon at policy inception and renewal.

Flatley — who has multimillion homes in Monaco, Italy, and London — and who reportedly spent two to four months annually at Castlehyde, sought an injunction to prevent the cancellation.

However, in February 2024, the High Court ruled against him, leaving Castlehyde without insurance coverage from March 2024 unless alternative coverage was secured.

The court later heard he has managed to secure alternative insurance with other brokers.

That June, Flatley lost a High Court action aimed at preventing his multimillion-euro claim against Hiscox over the allegedly defective work done to Castlehyde being referred to out-of-court arbitration.

He is now pursuing a constitutional challenge to the Supreme Court on the arbitration issue

The legal case concluded this week dates from 2023, when a company linked to Flatley, Blackbird Film Productions Ltd, secured a €6.9m loan from Novellus Finance Ltd — with Castlehyde serving as collateral.

The loan was to help finance Flatley’s production company behind his Barbados-set spy thriller feature film, Blackbird, which he starred in, wrote, directed, and financed, and which was panned by critics as a vanity project.

The loan stipulated monthly repayments of €67,000 over two years, but Novellus Finance alleged a default on these repayments, leading to the appointment three months ago of a receiver over Castlehyde.

Flatley contested this claim in, denying any default.

As the case continued across several months, the High Court gave Flatley until March 11 to settle the outstanding loan amount with the parties involved.

The court heard earlier this week that construction magnates Maurice Regan and Luke Comer would provide the money to Flatley.

And so, the star flew into Dublin from Monaco with his close friend Prince Albert of Monaco on the royal’s private jet to attend the Six Nations Championship game between Ireland and England at the Aviva Stadium last Saturday.

He used his time in Dublin to sign the required documents to facilitate the transfer of the money, which was confirmed in court on Monday.

Despite all the legal difficulties linked to Castlehyde, Flatley’s connection to the property in which he invested so heavily — both financially and emotionally — remains strong.

His lawyer Ronnie Hudson BL told the Commercial Court on Friday that the entertainer regards the fact “that he kept his home away from the receiver as a win”.

Mr Hudson added: “Michael Flatley is very grateful to the court and he has specifically instructed us to communicate that to the court and his personal relief that his house is saved from the receiver.” What remains in dispute is a €1.4million costs bill which includes legal fees on the Novellus side of €793,000, the receiver’s legal fees of €186,000 and the receiver’s costs of €86,000 and a six-figure sum requested in relation to default interest.

Mr Justice Sanfey has given the parties time until the end of the month to sort it out.