“Game of Thrones” may be keeping the fate of Jon Snow (Kit Harington) tightly under wraps, but new clips from the hit HBO fantasy show’s Season 6 has revealed the fates of a few other characters.


For one thing, Sansa (Sophie Turner) and Theon (Alfie Allen) survived that long jump they took in the Season 5 finale, and are now on the run from the bloodthirsty hounds of Ramsey (Iwen Rheon).

Cersei (Lena Headey), now with the knowledge that her daughter Myrcella (Nell Tiger Free) died on the way back from Dorne, confides that she has an obsession with death.


Meanwhile, after meeting with a Dathroki horde in the last finale, Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) finds herself being welcomed home, but somewhere entirely new.

Game of Thrones is basically only hours away and we couldn’t be more excited, right? Wherever I look, everyone’s talking about it - what’s going to happen when it finally arrives?! MADNESS.

And now Spotify decided to ease our pain and help us pass the remaining hours - because what could be a better way than filling out numerous Buzzfeed quizzes somehow related to our favourite TV show? Finding out what character are you really, based on your music preferences!


Spofity created an app that shows you who has the same taste in music as you do - isn’t it wonderful? You don’t even have to have an account, but if you do, you just log in and boom, magic! If you don’t have one, Spotify gives you options of artists and you have to select 5 to identify your character. The app even tells you the top 3 genres you guys listen to - including rock, pop, acoustic, shimmer pop (whatever that is) and many more. And then you get to listen to your character’s playlists!

I’m no other, than… drumroll…

I didn’t know how to feel about this at first - I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love Sam but still, we all hope to be Tyrion, Arya or Daenerys. Or maybe not, I don’t really know who would I really love to be, but I have to admit, Sam did not cross my mind. Anyway, now that I saw his/our playlist, I’m quite happy with it, especially with his presonal motto being “I am not nothing anymore.” And I guess that’s true, since I’m a TV Blogger for the Yahoo Blogger Network!


Find out who you REALLY are at http://www.spotify-gameofthrones.com/ and let me know! Samwell Tarlys out there, let’s join our forces! 

And make sure to check out all the playlists because some of the songs are quite hilarious. Cersei for example listens to Material Girl, You’re Still My Man and Oh Father, while Jon Snow’s favourites are Do I Wanna Know?, Feels Like We Only Go Backwards and No One Knows.

Ever since the season 5 finale of Game of Thrones broadcast last June the question on everyone’s lips was this: Is Jon Snow REALLY dead? And more importantly, how significant of a character is he to the series? Scroll down to find out…

Actor Kit Harington has done nothing but insist the life from his character was well and truly gone, even going so far as to gloat he did a good job of playing a corpse in the new season and STILL fans dared to hope. 


The answer we’ve all been waiting for was revealed in the early hours of this morning on Sky Atlantic with hardcore fans of the epic fantasy series no doubt tuning in to see just what the deal is. Are you ready? Because here it is…

Jon Snow is dead - for NOW. Sure, this doesn’t really say much since that’s exactly where we last left off but progress has been made: his corpse is currently under guard by Davos and thanks to the Wall’s icy climate, he’s looking real good for when/if he comes back. 


Characters were being introduced left, right and centre even in the inaugural episode of GoT and from the very beginning it was clear that Jon Snow was one of the MAIN main characters. Handsome and brooding, it seemed his only hope of finding out more about his mother was dashed when Ned Stark got the chop in King’s Landing. 

Throughout the the series, he developed the qualities of a leader but didn’t seem as fallible as many of the other characters who were driven by greed, thirst for blood and even perversion. 

Bored at times when he - and others - constantly brought up the “bastard” thing, I personally didn’t really start enjoying his story until he hooked up with Ygritte which made him all the more endearing. 


Ruled by loyalty to the Night’s Watch, he never wavered in his support of his brothers - but not in place of doing “the right thing.” Such was the burn when the death blows came from none other than members of the Night’s Watch. 

Ultimately, his most admirable quality may in fact be his worst - being too honorable in a dishonorable world. And for that… I love AND hate him. Thanks for carving your own gravestone Jon snow. 

Because of Mr. Martin’s writer’s block busy schedule* this is the critical period in which the show has outpaced the books, making this season more significant than the previous ones. 


Aside from the ageing up of the younger characters for obvious reasons, so far the series has been faithful to the books. No-one but George R. R. Martin, HBO execs, President Obama and the First Lady (surely we can assume the President viewed those advance episodes he received with Mrs. Obama?) knows what will unfold next…

*Just to be clear, it’s not my intention to diss Mr. Martin. I am not an author and have not written a novel let alone published a bestselling series. He’s a storytelling genius who’s created an incredibly detailed fantasy world which millions of people worldwide enjoy for entertainment and escapism. My only real beef with Mr. Martin is that as a fan of the TV series, GoT has sent me on a roller coaster ride of emotions which I claim to handle well but in reality…

SPOILER alert for the May 8 episode of “Game of Thrones.”

On Sunday night, we got two new big discussion points, one from a  flashback and another from a single line. If you just watch the show and know nothing about lore from the novels, you may not realize they have a connection — or at least a lot of fans think so. So we’re going to connect those dots for you real quick.

The most obvious revelatory hint came when Bran and the Three-Eyed Raven took another trip to the past, this time to a huge moment in the backstory of the series.

We saw a young adult Ned Stark, at the end of Robert’s Rebellion to take the crown of the Seven Kingdoms from the Mad King, confronting Ser Arthur Dayne outside a tower. “Where’s my sister?” Ned demands to know before the confrontation devolves into violence.


This tower, readers of the “Song of Ice and Fire” novels on which the show is based know this tower as the Tower of Joy, where Ned’s sister Lyanna was kept by Rhaegar Targeryen during the war. The flashback ends when Ned enters the tower, which drove both Bran and viewers alike crazy. We all want to know what’s in the tower.

There’s another old story that wasn’t referenced on Sunday, but which fans have long suspected to be directly related to that of Lyanna and the Tower of Joy. That story is that of Jon Snow, who has always been known as Ned Stark’s bastard son. When Ned returned to Winterfell after the war, he brought with him a baby, Jon Snow, who he claimed as his own bastard son.

Nobody knows who Jon Snow’s mother is — in season 1 in their last conversation, Ned promised to tell Jon about her the next time they met, but of course Ned was killed before that ever happened, taking the secret to his grave.

Meanwhile, some characters have cast doubts on the idea that Ned would be the sort of man who would have a bastard in the first place — Stannis said in season 5 that Ned was too honorable to have done something like that.

Of late, Laura Whitmore has been linked with some of TV and cinema's popular faces. A few weeks after rumours of her dating Leonardo DiCaprio surfaced, the I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! host is now being linked to Game of Thrones actor Richard Madden.


She was reportedly introduced to the actor, who played Robb Stark on the popular fantasy drama, by his co-actor and common friend Kit Harrington. A source told The Sun: "Laura knows the Game of Thrones cast well, especially Kit, and got to know Richard through those connections.... She has been telling friends she is excited by the new romance."


The source added: "It's still early days but it is clear they really like each other. Richard immediately felt a connection and thinks this could go somewhere. There's real chemistry between them. He has done much of the wooing but they're both very keen."

In a show like this, where some characters dying off is probably more satisfying than it should be, the final season has been somewhat of a mixed bag. Scroll through to get a look at the most upsetting or downright unjustified deaths - from "Wow, he totally deserved that!" to "Eeek, why on earth did they do that?!" - to see if you agree. Who the hell knows how many more people we'll have to add to this list after the finale, right?

Ser Jorah Mormont
Whether you're Team Daenarys or Team Kill the Mad Queen, it was hard for us not to turn on the waterworks when Ser Jorah Mormont gives his life to protect the Mother of Dragons during the Battle of Winterfell. We've been well aware she is the love of his life since early on in the series, so when he does everything in his power to protect her from a throng of wights, the emotions certainly started flowing.

We knew from the second we saw him interact with Daenarys that he was going to die some way or another saving her hide. It was inevitable. While we wish we could've seen him go out during a stronger episode (or at least one that was bright enough for us to see what was happening), in the end, Jorah's death is a fair send-off for the longtime character.

Edd Tollett
As hard as it is not to absolutely adore Samwell Tarly, he's the sole reason Edd Tollett meets his untimely demise during the Battle of Winterfell. As a fellow member of the Night's Watch, he initially questions Samwell's presence on the battlefield, and for good reason. After saving Sam from a wight and encouraging him to get up and fight, Edd is stabbed in the back by another member of the undead army right before Sam's eyes. If not for Samwell, Edd would probably still be alive. As an experienced fighter, there's no way he would go down that easily in any other circumstance, which is why his exit left us with a bad taste in our mouths.

Euron Greyjoy
We've never been big fans of Euron Greyjoy. He could pass as a poorly dressed member of an early '00s boy band or an extra in Pirates of the Caribbean, and even the actor who plays him thinks he is "a f*cking idiot." So, do we really need to see him duel with Jaime while Dany's army is absolutely destroying King's Landing? Hell no. They really should've just killed him off while he was on one of the Iron Fleet's ships earlier in the episode and been done with it. The bottom line? Euron is impossible to like and doesn't add much to the story other than being a sleazy perv, so I'm not sure his death deserves that much screen time.

Melisandre
Say what you want about the Red Woman, but she has a destiny at the Battle of Winterfell, and she sure as hell fulfills it. After all, she's the one who inspires Arya to kill the Night King (hell yeah!) and uses her powers to spark a firewall that temporarily keeps the undead at bay. She definitely pulls her weight, despite her sketchy past! But when her destiny is seemingly fulfilled, she walks off into the early morning light, shedding her cloak and her magic necklace - thereby shedding her youth - then she collapses and dies in front of Davos.

As a witch who has been alive for, um, ever and who also has been responsible for some seriously brutal moments throughout the series (RIP Shireen), this is a pretty sudden and anticlimactic way for her to go. Also, remember her whole obsession with Jon being the reincarnation of Azor Ahai? Did the writers just forget about that whole storyline before killing her off, or . . . ?

Related: Game of Thrones: What to Remember About Davos and Melisandre's Tragic History

Varys
In the end, all of the Spider's whispers finally catch up with him. Although it's clear that Varys is 100 percent correct in saying Jon Snow should probably take a stab at ruling the seven kingdoms over Dany (see the most recent episode for proof), he does commit treason against a short-tempered woman with a dragon. That being said, why would a character as smart as Varys ever do such a thing? Like Tyrion, he's always been an integral part of maintaining the balance of power in Westeros, so we find it incredibly hard to believe that he decides to just strut up to Jon and make his intentions clear (risking being executed for treason in the process, which he had to have known was a consequence).

For a character who's stirred up so much sh*t over the years, we don't buy it. He would've used his words to work behind the scenes like he always has, influencing others to do the dirty work for him. It's a shame that a complex and interesting character like Varys seems to lose all sense, gets ratted out by Tyrion, and is promptly killed by Dany's dragon all within the first 15 minutes of the penultimate episode. What a waste.

Rhaegal
Oh, where to begin with the death of Rhaegal? As hard as Euron and the Lannister army are working to perfect those terrifying Scorpion weapons, Rhaegal is simply done dirty, especially when you factor in the unbelievable fiery hellscape Drogon turns King's Landing into during "The Bells." Seriously, Rhaegal survives being mounted and stabbed by dozens of wights during the Battle of Winterfell, and this is how he goes down? While there's no doubt Rhaegal is flying after being critically injured from the battle - just look at the holes in his wings! - his death is a little too convenient for our liking and doesn't do him justice. RIP.

Missandei
After she is captured by Cersei's army in "The Last of the Starks" (which happens entirely off screen, mind you), I can honestly say I wasn't exactly holding out for a happy ending for Missandei. Daenerys's attempts to have Missandei freed at the gates of King's Landing fail, and her loyal adviser is beheaded by The Mountain after saying "dracarys" as her last words. Missandei's death isn't necessarily a surprise - we admit that there was no shot of Cersei forking her over to her biggest enemy - but to see one of the few women on the series (and the only woman of color) die in the chains she escaped in season three is such a slap in the face.

Overall, it seems Missandei's demise happens only to move Dany's plot forward, giving the ruler yet another reason to morph into the Mad Queen down the line. Yes, Missandei had always been a supporting character, but we've gotten to know her well enough that she deserved a far more fulfilling and honorable death. Not to mention, her death happens so quickly that we barely have enough time to process Grey Worm's tragic reaction to watching the love of his life beheaded. The entire sequence is a very unjust end to a strong character.

Jaime Lannister
What in the fresh hell is up with this? Had we come around to Jaime in recent episodes, especially since he and Brienne had gotten together? Yes! He's had one of the best redemptive arcs of any character on the entire series, next to Theon. We've seen him go from a selfish, emotionless, Cersei-obsessed shell of a human to an honorable warrior who worked hard to change people's perceptions of him and earn their respect. So, running back to King's Landing to save Cersei, and dying tearfully in her arms as they're buried alive, is not the way for him to go. Moreover, they didn't give a ton of backstory as to why he went back in the first place. Because he's "hateful" just like her? Gimme a break!

Cersei Lannister
As someone who has been expecting a Joffrey-level murder of Cersei since season two, I have one question: what gives? On one hand, I totally get how Jaime and Cersei dying with their unborn child is poetic justice in many ways. But on the other, I feel that we've been robbed of the deliciously just ending we all - and Cersei - deserved. She is so bad to so many people along they way and has steadily built a reputation as one of TV's greatest, most complicated, most ruthless, and somehow still sympathetic villains.

Remember the Wildfire incident at the Sept of Baelor? Or how she uses her influence to have Ned killed back in season one? Or even when she orders Jaime and Tyrion killed in season eight? Let's be clear: she's the best villain Game of Thrones ever had, and she certainly deserved a more memorable death. Frankly, for a strong, badass, cunning woman like Cersei, dying via a crumbling building is flat-out wimpy. Period.

As one of Game of Thrones' key characters, Sansa Stark has truly been through it all. In seven seasons, the teenage Northerner has been orphaned, held (and wedded) as a prisoner, raped, and generally tortured by rule of the Seven Kingdoms' 'game'.

Thankfully, last season reunited the resilient Stark with her presumed "half-brother" (actual Targaryen, Jon Snow) and offered a glimmer of hope for the family's White Walker-warring future. Even if she had to give up Winterfell as fast as she claimed it. 

As season eight gets exciting, here's a quick need-to-know guide to Sansa Stark - the new Lady of Winterfell:

Who is Sansa Stark?
Sansa Stark (played by Sophie Turner) is the eldest daughter and second child of Lady Catelyn (Michelle Fairley) and Lord Eddard Stark (Sean Bean).  She has an older brother, Robb, two younger brothers, Bran and Rickon, a younger sister, Arya and a "bastard half-brother" Jon Snow. 

At the series' inception, Eddard was the head of House Stark (one of the Great Houses of the realm) and Lord Paramount of the North (the Seven Kingdoms' most-referenced constituent region). House Stark rules the North from their seat of Winterfell and Eddard holds the titles of Lord of Winterfell and the Warden of the North to King Robert Baratheon (Mark Addy).

At the time, a pre-teen Sansa hoped for little more than a future as a "proper lady" with "feminine virtues" but her childlike and romantic infatuations made her a prime  target for Lannister manipulation.

By idealising a life with royal-in-waiting Joffrey Baratheon, these sentimental aspirations were entirely short-lived.

In fact, few characters endure such consistent brutality as Sansa. Her direwolf is the first to be killed by order of Joffrey, her future betrothed, who goes on to execute her father and claim the Iron Throne.

Sansa is treated sadistically by the child king, gaslighted by Cersei, nearly killed and raped in the streets of King's Landing, passed around like a play-thing for those vying for power, married off to Tyrion (never consummated), then actually raped by new hubby Ramsay Bolton. In front of childhood friend Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen). Blimey.

Thankfully, as the series progresses, her ability to endure the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune gradually turns in her favour.

Who is Sophie Turner?

Sophie Turner made her professional acting debut, as Sansa Stark, in 2011 and has appeared in all seven seasons. She has received six nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series, as well as a Young Artist Award nomination for Best Supporting Young Actress in a TV Series.

Turner has also starred in the television film The Thirteenth Tale (2013) and she made her feature film debut in Another Me (2013). She has also starred in the action comedy Barely Lethal (2015) and portrays Jean Grey/Phoenix in newer releases in the X-Men series.

Turner began dating Joe Jonas in November 2016 and she announced their engagement on Instagram just under one year later.

According to series author George R. R. Martin's blog, Turner actually adopted the dog who played her direwolf - Lady - after the Northern Inuit (named Zunni) was executed on screen.

What's happened to Sansa so far in Game of Thrones?

Season 1
Idealistic and naive Sansa arrives at King's Landing and is betrothed to Joffrey Baratheon, heir to the Iron Throne. She then witnesses the execution of her father and becomes a prisoner in King's Landing and a plaything for her abusive, psychotic monster of a fiancé. 

Season 2
Sansa is 'tutored' by Joffrey's mother Cersei who refers to her as a 'brood mare', married off to whoever they tell her to. At the end of the season the Tyrells march into King's Landing and Joffrey promptly drops his engagement to Sansa and plumps for the beguiling Margaery Tyrell instead.

Season 3
Sansa believes she is free after warning Margaery about how barmy Joffrey is, but her naivety trips her up again. A safe marriage to Loras Tyrell is scuppered and she is married off to the 'Imp' Tyrion Lannister in order to curb the ambitions of House Tyrell and to bind two of the great houses of the Seven Kingdoms closer to the Lannisters.

Season 4
Petyr 'Littlefinger' Baelish (AidanGillen) and Olenna (Diana Rigg) conspire to kill Joffrey just after his marriage to Margaery. In return, Littlefinger is allowed to take Sansa, and Tyrion is blamed for his nephew's death. Sansa escapes to the Eyrie where her mother's sister resides. Aunt Lysa tries to kill her out of jealousy, however.

Season 5
Sansa is taken to Winterfell and married off to new resident Ramsey Bolton (IwanRheon) at the behest of Littlefinger who (wrongly) thinks Bolton can be won over and controlled by Sansa's feminine charms. Ramsay (who makes Joffrey look cuddly and likeable) takes punishes his new wife in their bedroom - in perhaps one of the most controversial scenes in the show. Sansa eventually manages to escape from Winterfell and is reunited with Jon Snow.

Season 6
In the North, the armies of Jon Snow and Ramsay Bolton face off in a battle for control of Winterfell - the Battle of the Bastards. The Bolton army defeats most of Jon's forces but thanks to a letter sent by Sansa, Littlefinger and the Knights of the Vale arrive late to save the day. Bolton's army is routed and he is left to be eaten alive by his own dogs after being taken prisoner. Snow is proclaimed 'King of the North' (even though technically Sansa outranks him).

Season 7
Sansa starts season 7 as Jon Snow's right hand man, offering a newfound sense of steely cool over the impending war with the Night King while her "half-brother" goes off to hunt for Daenerys. Bran (as the Three Eyed Raven) and Arya return to Winterfell soon after and Littlefinger seizes the opportunity to play the estranged sisters against each other. His plan backfires as the Stark children unite to sentence the traitor to death, once and for all.

Season 8
After begrudgingly handing Winterfell over to Daenerys, the two begin a long run of civil but tense exchanges. Questioning the resources available for the Targaryen's armies and dragons, Sansa shows a growing sense of care and duty to the people of Winterfell (which the new Queen seems to lack). Her annoyance later moves towards Jon, asking him if  if he bent the knee to save the North or because he loves Daenerys.

The next day, in a moment of hopeful understanding with the new Queen, Sansa questions her motives and plans for the North once the dead are defeated. The moment is interrupted with the arrival of Theon – who Sansa rushes to embrace – in the Great Hall. 

Chances of making it through Season 8
While anyone surviving season 8's surefire death toll is up in the air, it wouldn't be entirely unlikely for Sansa to rise above the rest.

Against all odds, the seemingly weak and disinterested teenager has sustained a strength many others die trying to attain. Both mentally and literally. As the race to the Iron Throne heats up, Sansa's unconventional 'army' includes Brienne (sworn to protect her), super-assassin Arya, insight from the Three Eyed Raven, the eyrie, the North, and the rightful heir to the Throne - Jon Snow.

Without a target on her back (at least not the biggest target), her chance of survival is far higher than the rest. 

Calling all Westeros fans -- this is not a drill!

The brand-new trailer for Game of Thrones' highly-anticipated sixth season has officially been released and everyone is completely freaking out -- ourselves included!

Set to the hauntingly beautiful cover of "Wicked Game" by James Vincent McMorrow, the first extended look is one minute and 41 seconds of pure adrenaline-pumping drama and never-before-seen footage featuring all of our favorite characters in various stages of chaos and peril.


Jon Snow continues to look very much dead while lying lifeless in the snow at The Wall, Bran comes face-to-face with a White Walker, and Dany is being held captive by a sea of Dothraki soldiers.

As for the Lannisters in Kings Landing? It's clear that Cersei's walk of shame in the season five finale has forever cemented her bloodthirsty desire for revenge and respect. "I choose violence," she snarls when Lancel Lannister demands she step aside.

Press play on the trailer above over and over again to catch all the jaw-dropping moments for yourself!

The series that has gripped viewers for five seasons already has just released the trailer for its sixth season.

So get ready Game Of Thrones fans, because it looks like it’s going to be fairly spectacular.

The addictive American drama series that first aired back in 2011 tweeted out the video and fans went into meltdown.


Very valid question. We don’t know.

Artist Simon Beck walked for 13 hours in the French Alps to create the largest tribute in snow to HBO’s hit TV series Game Of Thrones.

Inspired by Game Of Thrones character Jon Snow, the House Stark sigil (a house crest or emblem) of a direwolf ended up measuring the size of two-and-a-half football pitches.


The Briton, renowned for using land as the canvas for his drawings, trudged a total of 64,800 footsteps on snowshoes to make his work of art.

Somerset-born Simon, who studied engineering at Oxford University, uses a set of sketches to measure how many steps will be needed for each part of the drawings he undertakes.

With just a compass as his guide, the man with a background in orienteering map-making undertook the challenge in freshly fallen snow at the Les Arcs ski resort.

As played by British actor Kit Harington, Snow is the illegitimate son of Eddard Stark (portrayed by Sean Bean) of House Stark in the fantasy epic.


A fan favourite, Snow’s apparent death left viewers around the world reeling.

As if fans of Game of Thrones are not eager enough for the upcoming Season 6, Lena Headey decided to tease her followers on Twitter with a series of messages to get them even more excited. The actress, who plays Cersei Lannister, decided to share her enthusiasm about the show's new episodes. Once fans started begging her to tell them more, she posted some downright mean teases and revealed... absolutely nothing!

The latest season of the fantasy drama is slotted to start on 24 April and looks like HBO wants to keep the whole project under wraps till then. Even the teasers they have released give viewers little idea of what "might" be expected in the next season.

The last time we saw Cersei Lannister, she was making the naked walk of shame/penance through King's Landing after being imprisoned by the High Sparrow (Jonathan Pryce). Doubt she's going to let this insult slide in the coming season.

"Cersei moves on quickly," Headey told Variety. "Her thoughts of vengeance are already forming. In fact what kept her spirits up in the cell were thoughts of how she can hurt those who hurt her."

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal last July, she explained: "I don't think she likes very many people, even less than before, if that's even possible. She's made more enemies. ... I think she's in a state of pure vengeance, but I don't think it's going to be straightforward because it's her. It is exciting if I don't die."

As if fans of Game of Thrones are not eager enough for the upcoming Season 6, Lena Heady decided to tease her followers on Twitter with a series of messages to get them even more excited.

The actress, who plays Cersei Lannister onthe hit HBO TV series,saw a bit of the Season 6 video (a lot more than the rest of us) and decided to share her enthusiasm for the show's new episodes.

It was inevitable that any new costume drama to would be influenced by Game of Thrones. Despite the fact that George R.R. Martin’s universe exists in his own imagination rather than any place on a map, American TV shows set in exotic locales want to get a piece of GoT’s immense popularity. Thus, in mounting a Bible-based epic, ABC’s Of Kings and Prophets frequently exhibits the pacing and look of HBO’s mega-hit, with the supposedly added advantage of familiar storylines.


I say “supposedly” because I’m not sure a re-telling of the Old Testament tales of Saul and David is much of a draw to a prime-time network audience, and, indeed, actually imposes some limitations on the storytelling, since it can’t stray too far from Biblical scripture (lest it be accused of inaccuracy) or delve too deeply into GoT-style sex-’n’-violence (lest it be accused of impiety). 

And so, like many perhaps-doomed projects, Of Kings and Prophets splits the difference between sweeping narrative and polite constraint. Ray Winstone, so good in so many tough-guy roles (Ripley’s Game, Nil By Mouth), bristles with authority as Saul, embattled king of Israel constantly plotting and battling the Philistines. Olly Rix, working a Peter Dinklage vibe of dashing frowniness, is the shepherd David, as good at throwing rocks as he is at plucking a harp in the king’s court. Some viewers will know he’s destined to be a future king of Israel in addition to slaying Goliath — who makes a special, foreboding guest cameo in the second episode — and as if that’s not enough to do, David is required here to flirt with Saul’s daughter (Maisie Richardson-Sellers) and try to elude the come-ons from Saul’s wife (Simone Kessell). Busy, busy boy. 

The new series of Game Of Thrones is landing next month, and, for once, not even the bookworms know what is going to happen.

A trailer for series six was released to much fanfare, particularly as it is the first series which departs from the novels written by George RR Martin.

With nothing but the trailer to go on, we decided to have a look at what we can gleam from the exclusive 101-second insight into the new episodes.

1. It is not looking any cheerier.

If one thing has defined the Game Of Thrones series so far, it has been relentless misery.

At some stage, something unspeakably dreadful has happened to nearly every character.

So why change a winning formula? The series six preview, scored by a gloomy cover of Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game, has the anticipated mixture of violence, anger and upset.

By now, GoT viewers are thick-skinned, battle-hardened creatures, so this is all to be expected.

Netflix and Marvel's The Defenders complete line-up is finally shaping up now that the studios have cast Game Of Thrones actor Finn Jones as superhero Iron Fist. The 27-year-old English actor, who portrays Ser Loras Tyrell in the HBO fantasy hit, will take on the role of the martial arts master in the upcoming Netflix series.

Iron Fist will mark the streaming service's fourth series focused on a Marvel character, following hits Daredevil and Jessica Jones, and the upcoming Luke Cage.

In the comics, Iron Fist is Danny Rand, who as a young boy, travels with his family from New York to a lost mystical city called K'un-L'un. After some tragic twists of fate, Rand is adopted by the city's ruler and taught advanced martial arts and the mystical power of the Iron Fist. As an adult, Rand returns to his native New York and adopts the guise of Iron Fist, dishing out justice to multiple bad guys.

Some fans had hoped that Marvel would cast an Asian actor in the lead role despite the character being blonde-haired and white in the comics. However, others countered that picking an Asian actor simply because the hero's ability is martial arts would be pandering to a stereotype, particularly as Daredevil is also well versed in martial arts-type fighting.

HBO's popular fantasy drama, Game Of Thrones, has often faced criticism regarding its treatment of women. Now being a fantasy show, GoT can get away with pretty much anything — be it the controversial rape scene of Sansa Stark or the young Shireen Baratheon being burnt alive by Melisandre — and that's exactly what actress Natalie Dormer, who plays Margaery Tyrell on the series, feels as she defends the show from critics who call it sexist or misogynistic.

"I choose fantasy to vent, to process complex political, sexual and social politics at the safe distance of fiction," Dormer told Sunday Times' Culture magazine. "For me, that's what art should be."

"The horror of human nature is prevalent in our world, and I appreciate that some people want to turn on the telly for escapism — but if that's what you want, don't watch Game of Thrones," added the actress.

In an earlier interview, Dormer's co-star and fellow female star Maisie Williams, also weighed in on the controversies surrounding the treatment of women on the show, comparing it to what the situation really was in the time period parallel to when the fantastical world of Game Of Thrones is set.

Fans of Game Of Thrones may think being married to the show co-creator means you would know every upcoming twist and turn in the series, but they may be surprised to learn that is not the case. Amanda Peet and David Benioff have been wed for ten years but the actress revealed her husband keeps her in the dark when it comes to important plot lines, such as Jon Snow's possible death.

Speaking to NBC Today on Thursday, the 44-year-old said she was unsure whether Lord Commander Jon Snow, played by Kit Harington, would be making a come back. The character was supposedly stabbed to death at the end of season five, causing fans to become upset with the lack of updates on the character's wellbeing.

"They shouldn't be and I'm not happy either," Amanda said, referring to how fans have been reacting. "It's ridiculous and not good."

Kit's character was stabbed repeatedly by Lord Steward of the Night's Watch Bowen Marsh and other "black brothers."

The mother-of-three, who's been married to co-creator David since 2006, joked that she would divorce her husband over the controversial TV death. "Yeah, and I hope that I'll stay married to him after this season begins," she joked. "Because if I don't see Jon Snow living and breathing and talking - "

Vikings creator Michael Hirst slammed Game Of Thrones for its “gratuitous” sex as he defended a graphic sado-masochistic scene in his own show.

Vikings, which features much less nudity than Game Of Thrones because of US network TV regulations, shocked fans at the end of the third series when Count Odo, played by Irish actor Owen Roe, was seen whipping a naked French noblewoman (The Fall’s Karen Hassan) in his dungeon.

But Michael, who also penned bodice-ripper The Tudors, promised there would be a “pay-off” for viewers from the storyline when the show returns for a fourth series on Friday.

He said: “I feel like a lot of other people that sex in Game Of Thrones and other shows is completely gratuitous and unnecessary and a lot of the violence is gratuitous… It’s largely to shock.”

He argued that the use of BDSM in Vikings was part of “a big storyline, a big pay-off. It’s part of (Odo’s) character so it’s not gratuitous.”

Annaleigh Ashford is set to master another sexy character (if you’ll pardon the pun).

The Masters of Sex star has been cast as Columbia, the castle’s feisty live-in groupie, in Fox’s upcoming remake of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.


Ashford won a Tony award last year for her role in You Can’t Take It With You.

She joins previously announced cast members Laverne Cox (Orange is the New Black) as Dr. Frank-N-Furter, Victoria Justice (Victorious) as Janet, Ryan McCartan (Heathers: the Musical) as Brad, Adam Lambert (Glee, American Idol) as Eddie, Reeve Carney (Penny Dreadful) as Riff Raff, Staz Nair (Game of Thrones) as Rocky; and Tim Curry (the original Rocky Horror) as the Criminologist Narrator.

We may be in the thick of winter now, but spring is coming … and with it, the highly anticipated return of Game of Thrones. Even though this will be the show’s sixth season, it’ll be the first year where the series is parting ways with George R.R. Martin’s companion book series, which remains stalled on the fifth novel, A Dance With Dragons. That also means that, for the first time in the show’s history, both readers and nonreaders are on the same, um, page headed into a fresh round of episodes. So for now, the only people who truly know whether, say, the temporarily dethroned queen, Daenerys, gets back to Meereen or how Jon Snow comes back from his hopefully short-lived death are showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, and for now they’re not telling. What we do know about the new season is that all the characters you love (Tyrion, Arya and Brienne) are back, along with the ones you love to hate (Ramsay!!!), as well as a few folks we haven’t seen in a while (welcome back, Bran!) Click through this gallery of recently released Season 6 photos and feel all warm inside as Winter approaches.

(Credit: Helen Sloan/HBO)

Game of Thrones has just released a treasure trove of teaser photos for the forthcoming sixth season.

There’s no sign of Jon Snow (Kit Harington), despite rumours that he could (spoiler alert!) somehow survive his brutal stabbing at the end of the last season.

As for Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) and Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen), they seem to have survived their latest ordeal to live another day.

Unfortunately for Arya Stark (Maisie Williams), she has not been quite so lucky – with a shot of her milky eyes showing her blindness.