ENTER THE DRAGON

As the prequel to Game Of Thrones is released, we discover what it’s all about

-  KIRSTY NUTKINS 

It’s the most hotly anticipated show of the year and the wait is over as House Of The Dragon has finally arrived on our screens.

The Game Of Thrones prequel comes three years after the finale of the hit series aired and is based on Thrones author George RR Martin’s 2018 novel Fire & Blood, which focuses on the House of Targaryen.

Set centuries before GOT, the series chronicles the dramatic fall of the Targaryens – the dynasty that has ruled over the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros for nearly 300 years (and would later produce Emilia Clarke’s Mother of Dragons, Daenerys, in Thrones). It’s a time where dragons are abundant and the Targaryens are ruling the kingdom, unchallenged. But it’s not long before the incestuous clan turn on one another in a bid to succeed people-pleasing head of the family King Viserys to the Iron Throne.

A power clash ensues between his younger brother Prince Daemon and daughter Princess Rhaenyra, who has ambitions to become the Seven Kingdoms’ first queen — a rupture with tradition that culminates in an epic civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons, marking the beginning of the end for the ruling family.

None of the original characters will make an appearance in the new series, but there will be a number of big-name actors in the $200 million production.

The predominantly British cast includes Paddy Considine as King Viserys I, while Emma D’Arcy will play Princess Rhaenyra and Matt Smith joins as Prince Daemon.