New Game of Thrones spin off 'could only be filmed in NI'

Westeros has returned to its "home of Thrones" as the new series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is set to air on Monday.

A prequel to Game of Thrones, the series is based on George RR Martin's three novellas telling the story of Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire Egg, affectionately referred to as 'Dunk and Egg'.

It was announced in 2024 that the series would be filmed in Northern Ireland, unlike the other Game of Thrones spinoff House of the Dragon, which is shot in England.

Robert Dowling, who runs Game of Thrones tours and is also a fan, told BBC News NI this particular Westeros story "could only be filmed in Northern Ireland".

The series' filming locations include Glenarm Castle in County Antrim, Myra Castle in County Down, Tollymore Forest Park, Hen Mountain in the Mournes Cave Hill in Belfast and the Hidden Village of Galboly in the Glens of Antrim, as well as Titanic studios.

The story occurs approximately a century before the events of Game of Thrones, and 100 years after the beginning of House of The Dragon.

Unlike House of the Dragon, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms relies on outdoor locations and minimal CGI.

Dowling said that if he had to choose between the two shows, he would pick A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms due to its prime filming locations.

"The story is full of beautiful landscape, involving character development of two people going on a journey together and having interesting dialogue - much like the early seasons of Game of Thrones," he told BBC News NI.

"That kind of outdoor filming could only happen in Northern Ireland."

Dowling began the Game of Thrones Tours in 2014, focusing on the locations used in the original series such as Castle Ward (Winterfell), Ballintoy Harbour (the Iron Islands), the Dark Hedges (the King's Road), and Inch Abbey (the Riverlands).

He said they will now be combining the locations of both series in the tour itinerary.

"We believe that A Knight of Seven Kingdoms locations are going to grow over time because, although everybody knows there'll be three seasons of this new show, we have strong reason to believe there'll be more," Dowling said.

The stories are based on George RR Martin's three novellas - The Hedge Knight, The Sworn Sword and The Mystery Knight

HBO executive Francesca Orsi told Deadline in May 2023 that the network is hoping the show runs for three seasons – one for each of the books.

Season two has already been confirmed, with filming commencing in December 2025 - set to be released at some point in 2027.

Beyond the three novellas, Martin has hinted that the story of 'Dunk and Egg' has more in store.

"If I have the time, there's more stories to tell about Dunk and Egg and their education and what's going to befall them in future years," Martin told the Game of Thrones companion podcast.

In a 2014 blog post, Martin teased two more Dunk and Egg stories and expressed his intent to "write a whole series of novellas... chronicling their entire lives".

It will be welcome news to people of Northern Ireland, as the Game of Thrones series had a huge impact on the film industry here, as well as a boost to tourism.

Adrian Hanna was one of the many extras who took part in the original series and also found work as a private tour guide, serving as a lookalike for Ser Davos Seaworth.

Hanna also worked as an extra on the recent prequel.

He told BBC News NI he recognised many of the crew from "back in the day".

"You see the same faces, the sound people and the props people and makeup, they're all the same, they're all lovely," Hanna said.

"We were all saying: 'Good to see you again, what are you up to, you know? Do you think you're going to enjoy this one?'"

He joked that there was a camaraderie of "more days out standing in a field in the rain".

Hanna added that the people who worked on Game of Thrones here were "really disappointed" when they learned House of the Dragon was being filmed elsewhere.

"So it is nice that it's come back, and I would hope that it would bring a resurgence of travel back."

Richard Williams is the head of NI Screen and said they were "absolutely delighted" when they heard the spin off would return.

"We always knew that we had this ongoing relationship with HBO - our biggest ever customer – and the touchstone of quality global TV drama so we were absolutely ecstatic to have it back.

"This reaffirms, both from an industry perspective, and from an audience and tourism point of view that we are the home of Thrones," Williams told BBC News NI.

"If you go to the set on one of these large productions – whatever your notion of the scale is – is always wrong, the thing is always 10 times bigger. It'll be muddy I suspect, but it'll still look fabulous."

Williams said "time will tell" if the series grows, as others have suggested, but "would be absolutely delighted and ecstatic for [the series] to continue on".

"What we want is for our relationship with HBO to continue on, they've been here for 15 years we want them to be here for another 15 years.

"If that's an extension of A Knight of the Seven Kingdom – fabulous, if that's other strands and stories coming out of the never-endingly rich Westeros/Game of Thrones world – equally great."

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is available on Sky Atlantic and NOW TV from 19 January.