A University in UK just hosted the world's first Game of Thrones themed academic conference

Game of Thrones is not just a show, but a global phenomenon at this point. As such, it is no surprise that we have been seeing academic courses related to the show being offered by reputed universities. Recently, University of Hertfordshire, hosted a two day academic conference on Game of Thrones, with speakers from all over the globe. Read on!

The conference was held on 6th and 7th September. The conference was apparently two years in the works. Organizer Kim Akass talked to BBC News about the conference, and explained why they decided to have it :

“We decided that now – before it gets to the final season – it would be a good time to investigate why it’s such a huge phenomenon and what we can learn from it.”

Take a peek into the conference, in the video below :

Here are some of the sessions that were held at the conference :

Jon Snow vs Laura Roslin: The demise of democracy’s representation in “Game of Thrones”
Fan Theories and Aesthetic Consciousness: On Jon Snow’s death and resurrection
Legitimacy and being female: Character arcs and storyline convergence in Season 6 of “Game of Thrones”
“We’re going to need a bigger box of red crayons” — Adapting “Game of Thrones” for the adult colouring book market
From fantasy to reality: Representations of Northern Ireland and Ireland in media coverage of “Game of Thrones”
“Game of Thrones” and Journalism: The emergence of feminist collectives in Brazilian digital pop culture

Check out the full list of the events held, here. The conference discussed everything from death to fan theories, and had prominent speakers like Professor Martin Barker, from Aberystwyth University, Professor Anne Gjelsvik and Associate Professor Rikke Schubart. Tickets cost £75 for one day and £140 for the full event, and students had a discount. The conference also saw the launch of the George R.R. Martin Society.

We sure hope there’s another edition of this, because we know a few people who would love this take on Game of Thrones. What do you think? Talk to us in the comments, down below!

The month of April is a period of celebrations for Game of Thrones Fans. HBO is commemorating a decade of the show with the Iron Anniversary celebration. The streaming giant has scheduled various events and specials related to Game of Thrones all through the month. Various famous brands like Funko and Fabergé have joined in to make the event even more special. The celebrations don’t stop there, as two of the show’s artists share a birthday today. Veteran actors Aidan Gillen and Rory McCann turned 53 and 52 today, respectively. HBO wished them with a commemorative picture on account of the Iron anniversary.

Aidan was born on 24 April 1968 in Drumcondra, Dublin, Ireland as Aidan Murphy. He has appeared on various famous shows and movies like Blade Runner, Peaky Blinders, Queer as Folk and so on. He famously played the role of Lord Petyr Baelish on Game of Thrones. Petyr Baelish was one of the most cunning and pivotal characters on the show. However, his wits couldn’t save him from his grisly death.

Rory was born on 24 April 1969 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland. He has played important roles under famous banners such as the XXX franchise. McCann is set to make an appearance in the Sherlock Holmes spinoff The Irregulars. Rory played the role of the warrior Ser Sandor ‘The Hound’ Clegane. He is one of the most lovable characters in the entire franchise, who is a force to reckon with.

Send your best wishes to the highly talented actors in the comments below!

Video games and TV shows/movies have often worked hand-in-hand to help promote each other. They also provide the ultimate user experience, where players can live through their favourite films or series. A Game of Thrones: The Board Game has successfully incorporated the elements of the fantasy show into a video game. The game has now launched its mobile version. Check it out here!

A Game of Thrones: The Board Game from Fantasy Flight Games was adapted for PC and Mac last year. Asmodee Digital and Dire Wolf Digital were responsible for the adaptation of the popular game. They stated then that they had plans to add DLC based on the expansions of the board game. As well as bringing the game to mobile platforms. Earlier this month they succeeded at doing both, bringing the A Dance of Dragons expansion to the game. They also ported it to iOS and Android.

Asmodee Digital has sent a press release with a lot more details, including the pricing for the mobile editions and a sense of the chief features of the DLC. The description says :

“Deep Strategies, Cunning Tactics and Familiar Characters Collide in the Digital Editions of the Popular Board Game with the New A Dance With Dragons DLC, Available Now!”

A Game of Thrones: The Board Game – Digital Edition is available now on the App Store for $9.99/10,99€ and Google Play for $8.99/8,99€. A Dance with Dragons DLC is also available now as a separate download for $3.99/4,49€ on the App Store, $3.49/2,99€ on Google Play and $4.99/4,99€ on Steam for Mac and PC.

Recently, a video of George R. R. Martin’s game Elden Ring was leaked. Play the game and let us know how you feel about it in the comments below!

A person’s character can be deduced by the kind of books he reads. Books have been a great source of knowledge and entertainment since ancient times. Even with the advent of the digital era, they’ve not lost their importance. Next month, Weldon Owen will publish The Curious Reader: A Literary Miscellany of Novels & Novelists. A work of Mental Floss editor Erin McCarthy, the book is full of surprising and interesting facts about the world’s most beloved novels and novelists. Of course, Game of Thrones’ source novel A Song of Ice and Fire had to be on the book’s list.

The official synopsis reads:

“The Curious Reader will delight bookworms everywhere. This illustrated literary compendium from Mental Floss reveals fascinating facts about the world’s most famous authors and their literary works. Readers will learn about George Orwell’s near-death experience during the writing of 1984; meet the real man who may have inspired Pride and Prejudice’s Mr Darcy; discover which famous author kept her husband’s heart after he passed away; and learn about the influence of psychedelics on Dune.

In addition to tons of brand-new essays, The Curious Reader also contains the most-loved book-related articles from 20 years of Mental Floss, including Cat-Loving Writers, Famous Authors’ Unfinished Manuscripts, Literary Characters Based on Real People, and Books You Didn’t Know Were Self-Published.”

Check out a few of the pages on the section about George R. R. Martin and his novel from The Curious Reader right below:

The Curious Reader: A Literary Miscellany of Novels & Novelists comes out on May 25. Would you like to get a copy of the book? Tell us in the comments below!