Years after a rebellion spurred by a stolen bride to be and the blind ambitions of a mad King, Robert of the house Baratheon (Mark Addy) sits on the much desired Iron Throne. In the mythical land of Westeros, nine noble families fight for every inch of control and every drop of power. The King's Hand, Jon Arryn (Sir John Standing), is dead. And Robert seeks out his only other ally in all of Westeros, his childhood friend Lord Eddard 'Ned' Stark. The solemn and honorable Warden of the North is tasked to depart his frozen sanctuary and join the King in the capital of King's Landing to help the now overweight and drunk Robert rule. However, a letter in the dead of night informs 'Ned' that the former Hand was murdered, and that Robert will be next. So noble Ned goes against his better desires in an attempt to save his friend and the kingdoms. But political intrigue, plots, murders, and sexual desires lead to a secret that could tear the Seven Kingdoms apart. And soon Eddard will find out what happens when you play the Game of Thrones.
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Drogon, Rhaegal and Viserion aren't just cool dragon names picked at random. Daenerys named each one after someone who mattered to her: Drogon after her late husband Khal Drogo, Rhaegal after her brother Rhaegar, and Viserion after her other brother Viserys, who treated her far worse than either of the two he was named alongside.
George R.R. Martin has admitted that his wife grew so fond of the Stark sisters while reading his drafts that she flat out told him she'd leave him if he killed either of them off. Given how many major characters don't make it to the end, Arya and Sansa surviving might owe more to marital diplomacy than plot necessity.
Lena Headey played one of the most hated characters on television so convincingly that some fans genuinely struggled to separate her from Cersei. She's talked about being shunned and called names at conventions, and even had people snatch books away before she could sign them, which says a lot about how believable her performance was.
That unforgettable season one moment where Daenerys eats a raw horse heart during her wedding to Khal Drogo wasn't actually gruesome to film, just sticky. The 'heart' was a big gummy candy soaked in corn syrup, and Emilia Clarke reportedly ended up so covered in the stuff afterwards that she got stuck to a toilet seat and needed a crew member to help free her.
Before he was known as Finnick Odair in The Hunger Games, Sam Claflin tried out for not one but two parts on Game of Thrones, reading for both Jon Snow and Viserys Targaryen. He didn't land either role, but he'd later end up starring alongside Emilia Clarke anyway in the film Me Before You.
During a royal visit to the set in Northern Ireland, Queen Elizabeth II was invited to take a seat on the actual Iron Throne prop. It's a strange bit of crossover between a real monarchy and a fictional one fighting over a chair made of swords.
Keep an eye on the furniture in Tommen's bedroom and the Small Council chamber and you'll spot chairs and decor carved with dragon motifs left over from Targaryen rule. The production team put them there on purpose, a subtle hint that the Baratheons and Lannisters never fully redecorated after seizing power and just kept using the old Targaryen furnishings.
When Olenna Tyrell meets Ellaria Sand in Dorne and jokes about a Tyrell being assassinated with 'a hundred red scorpions,' it's a wink to George R.R. Martin's novels. The line nods to the death of an ancestor, Lyonel Tyrell, who had a habit of storming Dornish castles and kicking the local lords out of their own bedrooms, until the Dornish decided to make an example of him.
The astrolabe device that appears in the season 8 opening titles isn't just decoration, it's basically a visual timeline of the whole show. Look closely and you can spot the birth of Daenerys's dragons, the red comet from season two, and even a tiny dragon breaking through the Wall, referencing Viserion's attack.
Watch the opening credits closely across the final seasons and you'll notice grey tiles on the map turning icy blue as the White Walkers push further south. Their advance is tracked past real locations like Last Hearth, so the intro is quietly giving you a status update on the invasion before the episode even starts.
