Game of Thrones fever is well and truly upon us – with the final season of the fantasy series underway.
Fans in Belfast will be starting to notice a special commemoration to the HBO show – much of which was filmed in Northern Ireland.
To celebrate Northern Ireland as Game of Thrones Territory, six beautifully crafted, freestanding stained-glass windows will be appearing across the city of Belfast as the eighth and final season unfolds.
Tourism Ireland’s ‘Glass of Thrones’ campaign has been inspired by online fan search data. Each window will highlight a key House from the show, with a series of panels depicting the most exciting and talked-about moments from the entire saga. Each window will be large enough for fans to pose in front of, for photos and selfies.
The first window, revealed in Belfast, depicts the most searched scenes and storylines of House Stark – whose spiritual home Winterfell is set at Castle Ward in Co Down, Northern Ireland. The window overlooks Belfast City Hall – home to the city’s more traditional stained-glass artworks.
An interactive digital version of the Stark window has also been ‘unlocked’ on Ireland.com/glassofthrones, where fans can explore the intricate panels and scenes, upload a photo to create a digital, stained-glass selfie – and then share that photo with friends and fellow fans on their social channels.
As season eight unfolds, six giant windows will appear around Belfast, immortalising the show’s epic battles, fire-breathing dragons, ice-blue white walkers and blood-red weddings in stained glass, giving fans from all over the world a brand-new Game of Thrones pilgrimage to visit and follow in the city where much of the hit show was filmed.
One window down, five more to go!
Visit www.Ireland.com/glassofthrones to discover the windows week by week.
Written by Michael Kehoe @michaelcalling