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Ned Stark was not the first person to die onGame of Thrones.
(That wasSer Waymar Royce, who got killed by a White Walker.)
And he was not the first major character to die onGame of Thrones.
(That wasViserys Targaryen, who got molten gold poured all over him by his own brother-in-law.)
Neds passing crystallized something that readers of George R.R.
I wasnt aware of the books and theyd just sent me the treatment for the first pilot.
So they were very candid and I appreciated that.
There was always a bit of a [dark] side to the characters I played.
Like Boromir inThe Lord of the Rings.
Theyre interesting characters, but Ned was just out-and-out a good man.
And Id never played a character with such a big family.
Im always interested in hearing about the originalGame of Thronespilot, because its somethingthe public will probably never see.
We shot inShanes Castlefor my castle [Winterfell], and then we worked in Scotland for the banquet.
So we got around a little bit.
It was more of a showcase, I think, than anything else.
For the second version theyrecast Catelyn, your wife.Yes, they did.
We got Michelle Fairley, and I think they recastsomeone else as well.
Jennifer Ehle had just had a baby, so it was quite difficult for her.
Im assuming that the prospect of being involved for quite a few years may not have worked for her.
Or maybe it was something else.
I dont know very much about that.
I think we knew it was good.
We didnt expect it to be the phenomenon that it is now.
Nobody really knew whether it was going to go ahead or not.
And then when we got the nod, we were over the moon because there was so much potential.
And I like the scene where I said, Winter is coming, of course!
I never knew that would become such a worldwide phrase.
Why do you think those house words became such a thing?It epitomizes George R.R.
Its not like youre saying, Its going to be getting a bit cold before spring comes back.
Its very loaded with danger and dread.
Its an omen it means more than it actually says.
It was good to be the one to say it!
How did it feel knowing you were only going to last one season?It was fine.
At least I knew where I stood.
You cant really change it when a good author has wrote it that way.
You cant say, I want to stay on!
But he hada good innings, the buildup to his death was good, and it was shocking.
You cant really ask for more than that in a character.
They all had to learn to talk like me!
You read the first book, but none of the others.
It was just to get a flavor, really.
And I wanted to bring some of my ideas to the part.
What sort of ideas were those?Theres only so much you might get from a book.
I brought parts of me and my father, and parts of people who are father figures.
I tried to bring an honesty and a sympathy to Ned.
Kind of quiet, really.
But we respected him very much and we loved him very much, of course.
He had a quiet authority.
I looked up to my dad.
Ned Stark has a culture shock when he comes from the North to Kings Landing.
Coming down to London was quite a shock.
It was so fast and kind of alien to me.
I didnt know if I would be able to adapt.
I missed my friends and my family, but I stuck it out.
Going to Hollywood was very different.
And then nothing happens at all!
But its certainly not somewhere I would feel comfortable living for any long period of time.
You have to take everyone with a pinch of salt because everyones in it.
Theyre all very ambitious people, thats why they go there, and I understand that.
I guess you could say thats similar to Ned, somewhat.
At least no one has chopped your head off in Hollywood yet.No!
But youre swirling around, trying to figure out whats what and whos who.
I just dont take it too literally, you know?
But Im okay now.
Theyre aware of me.
Youve been offGame of Thronesfor eight years now.
Has the throw in of part youve been offered changed?I was offered lots of parts on horses.
Hairy men on horses with fur capes and swords and beards!
Im very proud to have been Ned Stark, and it certainly helped us all with other work.
We were given a showcase, and we took the opportunity to show what we could do.
It takes no prisoners.
It touches upon all those very deep emotions anger and jealousy and love and hate.
People can see themselves in it.
The characters might seem out of this world, but theyre very much like all of us.
And anything can happen.
Its just as well you dont know whats going to happen.
But you always know when youre doing something good.
Thats very reassuring and it gives you a boost.
Both of them you left pretty early.
What was it like looking at those experiences as they continued, from afar?I dont mind!
I just did my bit and then I had to go!
I dont get to argue about that, right?
And the talk about, Will this happen?
But now that theres this quite exciting element, who knows whats going to happen?
Do you get caught up in that guessing game too?A little.
Im just like everyone else.
I think that HBO and Dan and David and everyone, they know that and they love that.
They love the secrecy of it.
I dont get any updates, no information at all!
Thats good, because I want to enjoy it like everybody else.
Did you know Jon Snows true parentage?No, I didnt.
I thought he was my son.
When did you find out he wasnt?When it came out.
Really?I found out like everybody else did, yeah.
But, you know, I knew more than other people.
Ive heard you dont watch every episode of the show, but you sort of keep up with it.
Is that true?I go in and out, yeah.
With working and traveling and stuff like that, its difficult to keep in touch.
But Ive meant to just sit down and watch them all over one weekend.
I like to binge-watch, especially for something like this.
Did anyone ever come to you for advice?No.
I think everyone likes to do it their own way, you know?
And I wouldnt ask anyone, How did he die in that scene?
Its very personal and only you should really know what youre going to do.
Dying is a very personal thing.
You have to learn how to emulate that for yourself.
Its quite a weird thing.
Its just something youve got to do.
I dont particularly enjoy it.
Im sorry youve had to do itso many times.Oh yeah!
But now Im doing it less.
I get to survive a little bit more now.
I think hed look on and say, They have to make their own way.
He probably feels he should have done more.
I just think hes interesting.
As a character, hes very full-throttle, you know?
[Conleth Hill] has made a lot out of that character, and hes really gone for it.
I think hes quiteuniquein the show.
If you could bring any character back to life, who would it be?Me.
No, maybe King Robert.
Id bring him back.
He had his head screwed on proper.
Do you think he was a good king?Well, not really.
But he was better than what came after.Yeah!
I remember playing as you in theGoldeneyevideo game.
Now there are Boromir and Ned Stark toys out there.
Does a person ever get used to that kind of thing?Kind of, yeah!
Ive got quite a few of them at home.
Theyve always gotten me pretty good.
I heard a rumor you used to get Rowan Atkinsons mail.
Is that true?Once or twice, yeah.
It just said Mr. Bean, London, and I think they just thought it was me.
