Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Winter is here!
Your essential guide to Game of Thrones
WITH back-stabbing, canoodling, fights to the death and fierce monsters, it is one of the most talked about shows on TV.
No, we don’t mean Love Island... but fantasy drama Game of Thrones.
Tonight the long-awaited seventh and penultimate series of the awardwinning programme hits our screens.
More than five million people in Britain are hooked on the US show.
But 13 months since the previous instalment, and with such a huge array of characters, it’s easy to forget exactly what everyone is up to.
In the past season alone, Cersei, played by Lena Headey, took out all her enemies, Jon Snow returned from the dead, Daenerys finally got her dragons to play nicely, and the Night King continued the slowest invasion in history with his army of the undead.
After six years of hearing that winter is coming, it has arrived. But don’t go into the new series completely cold.
Here we look at the main characters and say what we think they’ll be doing... Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) DANY was a prisoner of the khalasar, but after burning to death all the khals in their temple she became leader of all the Dothraki.
She finally became reunited with her dragon Drogon and flew back to Meereen to scare the living hell out of the slavers besieging her city. Last seen... ditching her lover Daario (he was getting boring anyway) and sailing to Westeros with a massive fleet of ships – and a few dragons, obviously.
We expect... her to cause devastation. She will probably be queen this time next year. Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) THE evil queen mum started the last series as a prisoner in her own castle. Things got worse when her son King Tommen discovered religion, and it looked like she would be found guilty of murder.
But on the day of the hearing, she stays at home and watches as most of her enemies get blown up by wildfire in the Sept of Baelor. What she doesn’t foresee is that this will push her son to commit suicide. Last seen... getting herself crowned queen on the famed Iron Throne. We expect… enemies all around her. She’s going to struggle to get out of this one. Plus, there’s that prophesy from Season 5: “Queen you shall be... until there comes another, younger and more beautiful, to cast you down.”
Back Daenerys to take her out. Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-waldau) AFTER getting fired from the Kingsguard for threatening the High Sparrow, Jaime is sent to Riverrun to take out the Blackfish Brynden Tully.
On his return to King’s Landing he is shocked to find the Sept in ruins.
Last seen… looking really awkward as Cersei has herself crowned queen.
We expect… him to have a proper falling out with his sister. Her power grab has definitely got him rattled. Jon Snow (Kit Harington) JON coming back to life was the shock opener at the start of last season.
He rallies an army and heads to Winterfell for a reckoning with Ramsay Bolton.
But the battle begins to go very badly for Jon. Luckily for him, the Knights of the Vale arrive and secure victory for the Starks.
Last seen… being declared King in the North by his men at Winterfell.
We expect… the real war against the army of the dead to begin. Jon is in trouble; if only he knew someone with a few dragons. Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) AFTER freeing the captive dragons, and a successful stint governing Meereen (if you ignore the massive siege), Tyrion was made Hand of the Queen.
He’s also there when Dany brokers a deal with Theon and Yara Greyjoy to use their ships to travel to Westeros, in return for trying to kill their uncle Euron Greyjoy.
Last seen… on one of those boats heading west.
We expect… him to be planning the invasion, and making sarcastic comments. We’d all like to see him ride a dragon too.
Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner)
AFTER finally fleeing sadistic Ramsay Bolton, Sansa makes her way to Jon at Castle Black with the help of Brienne of Tarth.
Sansa gets annoyed when she is frozen out of the war planning, and goes off to make a deal with Littlefinger for help from his Knights of the Vale – a wise move as it turns out.
When the battle is won,
Sansa gets her revenge by feeding Ramsay to his own hunting hounds.
Last seen… looking rather moody as Jon is given the title of King in the North.
We expect…
Sansa and Jon to have a falling out as
Littlefinger feeds her jealousy.
Arya Stark (Maisie Williams)
SHE starts the series blind and getting beaten up by the Waif.
When she regains her sight, Arya tries to flee the House of
Black and White, resulting in a showdown in the dark with the
Waif. After winning that fight, she heads back to
Westeros to take revenge on those who have wronged her family. Last seen… killing Walder Frey after giving him pie made of his sons. We expect… more awesome ninjaassassin work. There are still names on Arya’s list.
Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead Wright)
HE spent a lot of the previous season having visions of earlier events. He learnt Jon
Snow is probably not his half-brother, and instead the son of his aunt Lyanna and
Rhaegar Targaryen.
Eventually Bran got cornered in the present by the Night King’s army. Bran was unconscious as the best character in the show, Hodor, got stabbed to death while holding the door against hundreds of zombies.
Last seen… still north of the wall with pal Meera after being rescued by his zombie uncle Benjen.
We expect… more flashback coolness. Plus, he is the only one who knows the origins of the Night
King, which will probably come in handy.
Olenna Tyrell (Dame Diana Rigg)
EVERYONE’S favourite acidtongued gran began the last series with a place on the small council, and she is delighted when Margaery is freed from jail.
Alas, her good fortune wasn’t to last, and in episode 10, her son Mace, and grandchildren Margaery and Loras were blown up by Cersei in the Sept of Baelor. Last seen… plotting her revenge with Ellaria Sand when Dany’s pal Varys shows up. We expect… more brilliant one-liners and scene-stealing snipes. Also throwing her weight behind Daenerys – she’s got nothing left to lose now.