- Home >
- News >
- Irish News
Funeral hears Dublin boy Anthony Iannucci (14) was a 'hero' and 'a true king'

Anthony Iannucci
Anthony Iannucci was “an amazing character” who “never complained” despite spending most of his life in hospital, his funeral heard today.
The 14-year-old, from Sallynoggin in Dublin, died on Thursday, January 6th in Temple Street Hospital surrounded by his family and hospital staff.
He was born with Hallermann-Streiff Syndrome - a rare disorder that affects skull, hair, and facial growth, dental development, and causes eye abnormalities and skin atrophy.
He is the only person in Ireland to be diagnosed with the disorder.
The young TikTok star was celebrated during a funeral mass in Our Lady of Victories Church on Monday.
Paying tribute to her younger brother, Anthony’s sister Leann said: “I’m going to try to keep this short and sweet, just like our little man. I want to start off by thanking everyone for coming today. Looking at all the people here today just shows how much he was loved.
“Anthony was an amazing character. He was always happy, laughing, and smiling. He taught us all that life is precious and we need to live it to the fullest.
“He never complained. All he wanted to do was make people happy.
“In his 14 years of life, he accomplished so much and that’s thanks to my mam – the strongest person I know who Anthony got his strength from. I just want to say thank you, Mam, for giving him the best life. Every chance you got, you had him all over the world living his dreams."
Leanne then thanked her sister Sandrina, who sang a song for her brother during the ceremony, and Anthony's nephew Aaron.
“I also want to thank Sandrina. She didn’t leave his side the last few weeks. She looked after him, sang to him all the time, and did everything that she could to make him happy. Sandrina, you’re amazing.
“Aaron, I want to thank you for being an amazing nephew to Anthony. He was so proud to be your uncle and I know he’s up there playing the PlayStation.
“Finally, I want to thank all the staff at Temple Street Hospital and the Little Blue Heroes team. Words will never explain how much you meant to Anthony and our family. Anthony was treated like a true king.
“Anthony, you are our hero. We love you so much and I know you’re in the safe hands of Daddy now. Rest in peace, my beautiful angel.”
Tributes have been pouring in for the teenager over the past few days, with staff at Temple Street remarking that Anthony will “never be forgotten."
We need your consent to load this Social Media content. We use a number of different Social Media outlets to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity.
In a tweet, a hospital spokesperson said: “On this sad day we would like to pay tribute to our wonderful, funny, sweet friend Anthony Iannucci, who passed away in CHI at Temple Street this week.
"As you will all know, Anthony spent much of his life in and out of the hospital, making friends everywhere he went.
“He was known for his loving, outgoing personality and his sense of humour. He will be missed and will never be forgotten. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis. Sending our condolences to his mam Janet, sisters Leann and Sandrina and all of his family and friends.”
Today's Headlines
'not sustainable' | Boris Johnson finally agrees to resign as UK Conservative Party leader
young victims | Cheer star Jerry Harris says ‘I am not an evil person’ as he's jailed for child porn crimes
Writing on the wall | Loyalists turn on ex-British soldier Philip McLernon after child porn conviction
solidarity | Taoiseach tells Zelensky Ireland will increase funds to bring ‘war criminals’ to justice
detention | Nicki Minaj’s husband under house arrest for failing to register as sex offender
'personalised' | Leo Varadkar hits out at ‘political opponents’ who alleged he broke the law
verbally abusive | Dublin man who called gardaí ‘rat ba*****s' and threatened to smash patrol car avoids jail
fowl play | Kinahan cartel gangster Barry Fowler jailed for six years after being caught with €134k drugs
court ruling | Man who killed pal in crash refused license after victim's sisters saw him driving while banned
Water way to go | Prehistoric frogs likely died in a swamp sex trap – Irish scientists solve ancient mystery