Kingdom come
Ten things we know about Season 6 of Game Of Thrones...
1 Going solo
Game Of Thrones is entering uncharted territory… Season six marks the first time that the onscreen adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s novels will overtake its source material. “For years my readers have been ahead of the viewers,” says Martin, who’s still yet to finish writing the final two books. “This year, for some things, the reverse will be true.” Non-readers shouldn’t get too smug, though: two major storylines overlooked so far in the show – namely, the siege of Riverrun (which deals with the immediate fallout of the Red Wedding) and the campaign of House Greyjoy (see below) – have been reinstated for the new series.
2 Head start
Season five was criticised for being a bit of a slow burner, lacking the urgency of previous series. Luckily, it sounds like season six won’t be marred by the same pacing issues… “There’s very little expository stuff [ this time],” says Jeremy Podeswa, director of episodes one and two. “It starts off with a bang and you’re right into the excitement.”
3 Flame on
Lady in red Melisandre (Carice van Houten) has been banging on about the fiery deity R’hllor, aka the Red God, aka the Lord of Light, for ages now. But she’ll finally get some back-up this season: British actress Melanie Liburd ( CSI: Crime Scene Investigation) is playing Kinvara, another of R’hllor’s priestesses, while TV veteran Ian McShane is cameoing as a priest who, he teases, is “responsible for bringing somebody back that you think you’re never going to see again...”
4 Living dead
So, who is McShane reanimating? All bets are on all-around good guy Jon Snow (Kit Harington), last seen being brutally knifed in the gut by his own Night’s Watch brothers. Harington has already been spotted in Northern Ireland (i.e. GOT headquarters), which would seem to suggest he is back from the beyond. But spoilerific rumours persist that season six could be picking up a forgotten book plot thread: the resurrection of Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley) as the fearsome ‘Lady Stoneheart’.
5 Bran-dnew
The crippled but gifted Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) sat out season five after finally meeting the mysterious ‘three-eyed raven’ at the end of season four. Presumably he spent his time off-screen learning to harness his magical powers under the tutelage of his new, Yoda-like mentor (since recast as The
Exorcist’s Max Von Sydow). In season six we’ll get to see him unleash them – including what Hempstead-Wright calls “Inception- y” visions of the past and future.
6 Time warp
Based on the fact that Bran will be the show’s eyes into times gone by, speculation is rife on which glimpses of Westeros’ history we might be treated to – with fans poring over everything from new filming locations to cryptic casting calls for clues. The favourite theory is that season six will flashback into the world of a young Ned Stark – and finally divulge the crucial secret of Jon Snow’s parentage.
7 Play acting
Season six will introduce an acting troupe that performs a play called ‘The Bloody Hand’ – an on-the-nose satire of the political goings-on in Westeros. In a touch of casting genius, Richard E. Grant ( Withnail & I) stars as the troupe’s leader, while Essie Davis ( The Babadook) plays an actress with the brave task of portraying the scheming queen mother, Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey). Talking of Cersei…
8 Claws out
Perhaps the most anticipated showdown of season six is that between Cersei and the formidable ‘Queen of Thorns’, Lady Olenna Tyrell (Diana Rigg). After years of deliciously bitchy sniping and withering passive aggression, Rigg has promised that we’ll finally see the pair’s feud spill into all-out war. “I’ve got a head-on with Cersei coming up and it’s really good,” she teases.
9 Iron man
We haven’t seen Theon Greyjoy’s (Alfie Allen) extended family, rulers of the Iron islands, since way back in season four, when his sister Yara (Gemma Whelan) mounted an unsuccessful rescue of the iron-born prince from the sadistic Ramsay Bolton. But they’ll be back with a vengeance this year, as new character Euron Greyjoy ( Borgen’s Pilou Asbæk) – Theon’s bloodthirsty, eyepatch-wearing uncle – joins the fray. As Asbæk warns: “There’s no one like Euron Greyjoy…”
10 Fierce creatures
Arguably season five’s best episode, the thrilling ‘Hardhome’ saw the terrifying White Walkers finally launching a huge attack, laying waste to the eponymous village and adding hundreds more undead bodies to their ranks. Rumour has it, though, that it was merely a teaser for a massive Walker offensive in the forthcoming season. Seems the Starks weren’t kidding – winter really is coming… TF