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19 Mar 2026

REVEALED: The house in Tipperary where Ryanair's name began

The surprising Tipperary roots of a global airline.

REVEALED: The house in Tipperary where Ryanair's name began

Photo Credit: Silvermines Historical Society and Ryanair.

A new two-part documentary that aired on RTÉ this week titled ‘Turbulence – The Story of Ryanair’, gave viewers an in-depth look at the origins of one of Ireland’s most well-known and sometimes controversial airlines.

The first part of the series followed the beginnings of famous Irish airline Ryanair and its founders. 

One surprising fact about the series is that the airline has links to Tipperary as its two founders were both from the county.

READ NEXT: REVEALED: How Tipperary played a key role in the birth of Ryanair

It was not only this fact that linked the airline to the Premier County however, it's name was also created at a meeting in a historical house owned by Tony Ryan (one of the founders of Ryanair), located in Dolla, Tipperary.

The documentary explains that the name for the airline was decided thanks to this meeting in Tipperary.

Kilboy House in Dolla, Tipperary, is a renowned Palladian-style mansion originally designed by William Leeson in around 1771 and was purchased in the 1980's by co-founder of Ryanair Tony Ryan. 

READ NEXT: Tipperary drama group provides night of laughter with performance of exciting play

The house burned down in 1922 during the Irish Civil War and was later reduced to a single-story.

However, the mansion was later reconstructed in the 2000s by businessman Tony Ryan to its original three-story Georgian design.

The home still remains a private residence managed by his family to this day.

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