Cillian Murphy makes a rare red carpet appearance with artist wife Yvonne McGuinness at the BAFTAs after praising her for providing a 'safe place' away from the spotlight

Cillian Murphy made a rare red carpet appearance with his wife Yvonne McGuinness at the BAFTAs on Sunday night, after praising her for providing a 'safe place' away from the spotlight.

The Oscar winner, 49, and the visual artist, 53, arrived hand-in-hand at the star-studded ceremony at London's Royal Festival Hall, wearing coordinating all-black outfits.

Cillian looked as dapper as ever in a tailored double-breasted blazer, with a white collared shirt and tie and shiny dress shoes.

While Yvonne exuded elegance in a draped satin jumpsuit, boasting a stylish one-shouldered neckline and flowing front panel, which she teamed with chandelier earrings and a bold red lip.

Cillian, who hails from Cork, was in attendance at the ceremony to present the Best Actress award, that poignantly went to County Kerry-born star Jessie Buckley - which also made her the first Irish performer to win the coveted prize at the BAFTAs.

Despite his incredible success and stardom, Cillian has managed to maintain a low-key family life - thanks in part to the unwavering support of wife Yvonne.

The notoriously private couple have now been together for three decades and share two sons Malachy, 20, and Aran, 18. 

The pair have made efforts to shun the spotlight, with Cillian frequently admitting his discomfort with the global fame that comes with his career.

Speaking on Desert Island Discs in 2024, he explained how he found the 'ancillary aspect' of being an actor - such as walking red carpets - 'quite challenging'.

The 28 Days Later star branded Yvonne and their kids 'crucial' in helping him adapt to Hollywood, insisting that he wouldn't have been able to achieve all that he had without them.

'To have a really secure, solid base is important,' Cillian said. 'You have to have that safe place. I certainly do. It's just like an island of comfort and ease.

'It's been crucial, honestly. I don't think I could have done any of the things that we've talked about without having them. It's been the most important thing for me, having those kids and raising them.' 

The couple gave a very rare display of public affection at the 2024 Oscars, sharing a sweet celebratory kiss as Cillian won Best Actor for his performance in Oppenheimer.

Taking to the stage to accept the gong, the Peaky Blinders star shared a touching tribute to his proud wife and their sons in his speech. 

He gushed: 'Yvonne McGuiness, my partner in life and art. My two boys, Malachy and Aran who are sitting up there. I love you so much.'

They first met in the 1990s when Yvonne joined the touring cast of Disco Pigs, Enda Walsh's 1996 play that launched Cillian's career - in a role he later reprised in the 2001 film adaptation.

Speaking to The Guardian in 2016, the Inception star branded the time he spent making Disco Pigs as 'the most important period of my life'.

'The people I met there remain my closest friends,' he explained. 'They shaped me in terms of my tastes, in terms of what I wanted to do with my life. 

'And it was around the same time I met my wife. She came on tour with us. It was so exciting, 20 years ago or whatever it was – we were all just kids, trying to find our way – but such a special, special time.'

The couple married in 2004 and reportedly held the ceremony at Yvonne's father's vineyard in France, and the following year welcomed their first son Malachy - with  Aran then arriving in 2007.

One Battle After Another was the big winner of the night, as it scooped six gongs during the ceremony at London's Royal Festival Hall.

The hit film had already received a record 14 nominations, and came out on top as it won Best Film, Best Director, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Editing and Supporting Actor for Sean Penn.

Director and producer Paul Thomas Anderson said: 'Thank you for rewarding our film in the way that you have, its just a tremendous honour. 

'I'm well aware of the other films that share this. Anybody that says movies aren't any good any more they can piss off because this is just a great f*****g year.'

He added that he planned to go and find a 'bar somewhere to go celebrate'.

Jessie continued to sweep the board this awards season with her Best Actress win for Hamnet, adding even more momentum to expectations she will win the Oscar next month.

She dedicated the award to her six-month-old daughter in an emotional speech, saying: 'I'd like to share this with my daughter who has been with me since she was six weeks old on the road with this.

'It's the best role of my life being your mom and I promise to continue to be disobedient so you can belong to a world where all your mad, complex wildness as a young woman.'

While the biggest surprise of the night came when home-grown favourite Robert Aramayo landed the coveted Best Actor prize for I Swear, beating out Hollywood heavyweights Leonardo DiCaprio and Timothee Chalamet.

Upon learning of his son's honour, his father jumped to his feet and was shouting and jumping up and down when his son's name was read.

From the stage, Robert was overwhelmed with emotion as he said: 'I absolutely can't believe this. I can't believe I'm looking at people like you never mind that I'm stood here.'

While he also paid tribute to fellow nominee Ethan Hawke for giving an 'amazing speech' to his class at Juilliard, which he said had a 'great impact' on him.

His win stunned viewers and the audience, as Timothee had been widely-tipped as the favourite for the award for his titular role in Marty Supreme.

It was a bad night all round for the table tennis sports-drama however, with the Josh Safdie film not taking home a single awards, despite going in with a whopping 11 nominations. 

While Sinners star Wunmi Mosaku was among the early winners as she received the award for Supporting Actress for her role in the Ryan Coogler film.

Wunmi, who is pregnant with her second child, thanked her husband, family and daughter from the stage, and said that her mother had 'beamed' her love at her 'to give me the freedom to make my choices'.

She said that playing priestess Annie in Sinners she had connected with a part of herself which she had 'dimmed as an immigrant trying to fit in'.

With 28 gongs awarded on Sunday night, the main winners were One Battle After Another with six prizes. Sinners, Frankenstein and I Swear followed with three each whilst Hamnet won two gongs.