How Fight Like Apes singer Jamie Fox turned a former squat into a Hollywood home

Asking price: €749,000

Agent: JP&M Doyle (045) 865 568

​For a glorious decade until they broke up in 2016, Dublin band Fight Like Apes were the darlings of the Irish and UK indie scenes.

Founded by Castleknock boy Jamie ‘Pockets’ Fox and Kildare native Mary Kate ‘MayKay’ Geraghty, FLA shook up music with their unique punk-pop sound. They toured with The Prodigy and played Glastonbury three times.

Following a slew of strangely named tunes like How Am I Supposed to Kill You If You Have All the Guns?, three albums and a string of EPs, FLA disbanded in December 2016.

Afterwards keyboard player and vocalist Fox would head to Hollywood with his wife, Rebekah, to take on the restoration of a former squat. Hollywood, Co Wicklow, that is.

Built circa 1890, Passedena House in Slievecorragh is now a four-bedroom home that comes with a recording studio. But it had become a squat in the 1970s and fell into disrepair. “The previous owners often had random backpackers turning up at the door,” says Jamie.

He and Sandycove native Rebekah Fox (a chief people officer for start-up companies) bought the now-2,130sq ft home in 2019. They adopted an Alaskan Malamute dog, which they called Wolfe, once they moved in.

“The fact that the house had a recording studio attached to it was one of the biggest draws,” he says.

Jamie has a business called Fox and Wolfe, restoring old pianos, and previously rented a premises in Dublin, so it made more sense to move in and work from there too. Having previously lived in a small terraced house in Pimlico in Dublin city centre, the couple also appreciated the peaceful location.

It meant I could stay up late at night, for example, and work with my chainsaw, or we could blast music and it wouldn’t register with anyone

“We were looking for a quieter pace of life,” says Jamie. “It meant I could stay up late at night, for example, and work with my chainsaw, or we could blast music and it wouldn’t register with anyone.”

The previous owners had restored much of the house, built a recording studio and extended it at the side, but it was in need of repair. “As two creatives, we also wanted to put our own stamp on the interior,” says Rebekah.

They set about insulating the walls and added triple-glazed windows throughout. It already had oil central heating, but they also installed an eco-friendly system that runs on eco-bricks.

“It required the installation of back boilers and a massive stove in the sitting room, which heats 20 radiators throughout the house,” she explains.

“We thought it would be a small job, but it was much bigger than expected.”

Rather than attempting to hide the pipes of the stove, which run along the wall of the sitting room, they made a feature out of them. This room has a distinctive vaulted wooden ceiling, painted cream, which gives it a church-like feel. “It provides it a strange off-kilter energy,” says Jamie.

“The views from the window in the sitting room are amazing,” adds Rebekah. “We’re on a hill, overlooking Glendalough Valley, and you can see Lugnaquilla and the Wicklow Gap in the distance. We’re on the Wicklow Way too.”

They sanded down the original floors and added an unusual mix-and-match of coloured tiles in the kitchen, which has a black Aga stove and island unit. Another reception room downstairs has an original fireplace and bookshelves, and has been painted various shades of blue.

There’s a double bedroom off the living room downstairs, and upstairs there are two double bedrooms, which have original fireplaces and are carpeted.

There’s also a single room, used as a nursery for their two-year-old daughter, Luna. The bathroom, which they renovated, has turquoise walls, a free-standing bathtub and brass fittings.

During the pandemic, Jamie built a split-level deck outside with a barbecue area, a pizza oven and a hot tub. The couple have held a number of parties, which typically spill out on to it.

The front door of the south-facing home has a stained-glass window, which they commissioned from artist Bianca Divito. “We wanted an Art Deco-style window that featured a sunrise,” says Jamie. “It contains crystals so when the sun hits at certain times of the day, it creates a prism.”

They applied for planning permission to build a 538sq ft extension to the recording studio beside the house, and Jamie then set up a piano studio alongside the recording studio. “We actually recorded an album together there during the pandemic,” adds Rebekah, who’s also musical.

It was called Integration by Love Command0, and inspired by a passion for 1980s Italo disco, New York mutant disco and 1980s electronic freestyle. “It was actually lovely living in the house during lockdown,” she says.

“We grew our own vegetables including spinach, cauliflower, broccoli and spring onions in the garden during that time.”

It comes with three acres, some of which they’ve purposely left wild. There’s also a walled garden at the back, which they call the ‘secret garden’, and a forest behind it. They frequently have visits from families of deer and other wildlife.

Passedena House is a three-minute drive to Hollywood village, where there are two pubs, a school and a coffee shop, among other amenities. It’s approximately an hour’s drive to Dublin.

Although the couple love it there, they’ve recently moved to Berlin after Rebekah was offered a job with a fintech company. “It was a really good opportunity so we just decided to go for it,” she says.

“It isn’t easy selling the house. It feels like going through a break-up. But we can’t be in two places at the same time.”

For those wanting a Hollywood address, JP&M Doyle seeks €749,000 for Passedena House.

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