Biography

Born and raised in Cork

Cork (city)

Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...

, Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

, Walsh was raised in a Catholic

Catholic

The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 household, and had no intention of becoming an actress, until she followed in the footsteps of her elder sister, who was also an actress, and young Eileen began to attend theatre workshops. Her first break came when, as a student, she landed the role of Runt in the stage version of Disco Pigs

Disco Pigs

Disco Pigs is a 2001 Irish film directed by Kirsten Sheridan and written by Enda Walsh, who adapted it from his 1996 play of the same name. Cillian Murphy and Elaine Cassidy star as Cork teenagers who have a lifelong, but unhealthy, friendship that is imploding as they approach adulthood.-Plot:The...

, which received rave reviews. Subsequent movies have included When Brendan Met Trudy

When Brendan Met Trudy

When Brendan Met Trudy is a 2001 motion picture directed by Kieron J. Walsh which tells a story of a teacher who falls in love with a mysterious young woman. Set in Dublin, it is Walsh's first feature film, written by Roddy Doyle.-Plot:...

, The Magdalene Sisters

The Magdalene Sisters

The Magdalene Sisters is a 2002 film written and directed by Peter Mullan about teenage girls who were sent to Magdalene Asylums, otherwise known as the 'Magdalene Laundries': homes for women who were labeled as "fallen" by their families or society...

, and The End.

In 2008, Walsh won an award for Best Actress at the Tribeca Film Festival

Tribeca Film Festival

The Tribeca Film Festival is a film festival founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the TriBeCa neighborhood in Lower Manhattan.The mission of the festival...

 for her portrayal of Breda, a lonely housewife whose willpower is put to the test in the film Eden.

Personal life

Now residing in Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

, Walsh is married to sculptor Stuart McCaffer; the couple have a child.

Filmography

Film and Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1996		Crushed Girl
1997	Messaggi quasi segreti	2nd Kid
1997		Carole
1999	Miss Julie	Servant
1999	Janice Beard	Janice Beard
2000	When Brendan Met Trudy When Brendan Met Trudy When Brendan Met Trudy is a 2001 motion picture directed by Kieron J. Walsh which tells a story of a teacher who falls in love with a mysterious young woman. Set in Dublin, it is Walsh's first feature film, written by Roddy Doyle.-Plot:...	Siobhan
2001	Look	Trish	Short film
2002		Crispina
2002	Nicholas Nickleby Nicholas Nickleby (2002 film) Nicholas Nickleby is a 2002 comedy-drama film written and directed by Douglas McGrath. The screenplay is based on The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens, which originally was published in serial form between March 1838 and September 1839.-Plot:In a prologue we are...	The Infant Phenomenon
2003	Lula Fantastic	(voice)	TV short
2005	Pure Mule Pure Mule Pure Mule was an Irish six-part drama mini-series aimed at a young audience and broadcast on RTÉ Two as part of RTÉ's autumn schedule in 2005, shot and screened in 2004–2005 in County Offaly....	Therese Farrell	5 episodes
2005	33X Around the Sun	Ruth
2008	Eden	Breda Farrell
2008		Jessica	Short film
2009	Triage Triage (film) Triage is a 2009 drama film starring Colin Farrell, Paz Vega and Christopher Lee. The film’s plot is described as a dark tale of a photojournalist who comes home after a dangerous assignment in Kurdistan during the Anfal Genocide against the Kurdish people. The film focuses on the psychological...	Dr. Christopher
2009		Mona	Short film
2010	Snap