Why Queen Elizabeth didn’t take the Iron Throne, and plus GoT interview and casting details 

Executive producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss appeared on

this week, mostly answering questions we’ve all heard dozens of times. But there was one interesting tidbit- the showrunners explain why the queen of England declined to claim the Iron Throne during her well-publicized visit to the set in Northern Ireland last summer.

“Apparently the Queen of England is not allowed to sit on a foreign throne,” says Benioff. “This is an esoteric rule we didn’t know about until that moment.”

“That’s the thing about the queen, she’s a stickler,” jokes Meyers.

More news and light spoilers below the cut:

The secret’s out- there’s a familiar face returning to

, one many viewers thought they’d never see again.

Tom Wlaschiha‘s return to the show for the fifth season was revealed last summer when the news turned up on his German agency website. He was never sighted during filming, however, and nothing was official until a couple weeks ago when him name was included as a cast member on the HBO schedule listing for

“That’s really tricky. I thought, ‘Maybe I will be back, but not with my face,\'” he says. “I was totally surprised. I’d always hoped to be back at some point, but with

you can never be sure. […] I think at some point in the season, [Jaqen and Arya] will meet.”

George R.R. Martin addresses the issues of the show’s endgame versus his own, in the same

I think their endgame will be the same in broad strokes, but it will be very different in an enormous amount of detail,” he says. “We’ve discussed the ultimate ending of the book and the fate of many of the major characters. But as you know, there are many, many secondary characters, tertiary characters. I haven’t sat down with David and Dan and done a list of the top 150 characters and what’s going to happen to them in [the] books, so in some cases, the fates are going to be quite different.

Last year, it was reported by unconfirmed sources that Welsh actress Gwyneth Keyworth would be playing the role of Clea in season 5. According to the casting breakdown we saw, Clea is a pretty young courtesan with nimble wit who shares a scene with Tyrion Lannister this season.

Keyworth’s agency CV has been updated to include her role on

in a Mark Mylod-directed episode, and so we can now consider this casting officially confirmed.

Spoiler buttons are functional using shortcode [spoiler] Insert spoiler here [/spoiler] to blur comments. If you do NOT want to be spoiled, click the "Hide" Button before proceeding!

Gwyneth Keyworth will be in a Mylod-directed episode —that is, episode three or four. So, Clea

the Volantene prostitute Tyrion will be with before being taken by Jorah, if there was ever any doubt. Probably episode three, too, right?

I’m not surprised that there are rules regarding where monarchs sit. Once upon a time, this was the gesture that signified conquest. Obviously it does not mean that anymore: but the rule probably was put into place centuries ago.

I have a dream that someday David Benioff will do an interview about Game of Thrones and he won’t tell that story about GRRM asking him who Jon Snow’s mother is.

I have a dream that he one day won’t be asked that. Not his fault.

Do D&D ever do interviews or attend events solo?

I liked the anecdote about thronesitting rules for the monarchy.

Might I politely request that Americans stop saying “Queen of England”? Ticks the Scots off, and we have to share a nation with them, for the time being.

Definitely.. There’s enough to build from, there’s the bridge.. and.. uh.. what else aren’t they skipping in the show?

.. Perhaps a statue of an elephant and tiger? Would make sense in signifying the free cities: – Braavos: The Titan

I’m glad the Queen didn’t sit on the Iron Throne ~ for sure it would have snagged her pretty coat. Anyway, on to my favorite topic ~ the return of Tom Wlaschiha. I hope he keeps the same reddish/silver wig but wears less armour ~ a lot less armour. I’ve watched so many of his German interviews/movies, I can actually understand some German now.

I have a dream that someday David Benioff will do an interview about Game of Thrones and he won’t tell that story about GRRM asking him who Jon Snow’s mother is.

Might I politely request that Americans stop saying “Queen of England”? Ticks the Scots off, and we have to share a nation with them, for the time being.

Request denied. We won the war, so we don’t have to do what you want.

Indeed. We can then talk about President Obama of the District of Columbia.

@ThroneDrone “Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith” might do if you want to be really formal.

Volantis will probably have the bridge, since they’re making a big set piece out of it in the show.

What’s wonderfully awkward about that is Jerome/Bronn and Lena/Cersei used to date, gossip mags claim they don’t talk, hence his immediately shutting down when they ask him about Cersei.

New \'Invitation to the Set\' video; plus the producers talk Bran\'s return in season 6 ( 364 )

A Scientific Guess at George R.R. Martin’s Progress on The Winds of Winter ( 236 )

HBO Asia version of Game of Thrones trailer offers new footage ( 223 )

Why Queen Elizabeth didn\'t take the Iron Throne, and more Game of Thrones interview and casting details

More stuff. Some wonderful, some weird.

Telltale’s Game of Thrones Episode 3: The Sword in the Darkness – A Review

Benioff and Weiss address their silence on cut Game of Thrones characters

Why Queen Elizabeth didn’t take the Iron Throne, and more Game of Thrones interview and casting details

Felt Pelt on Why Queen Elizabeth didn’t take the Iron Throne, and more Game of Thrones interview and casting details

jentario on Why Queen Elizabeth didn’t take the Iron Throne, and more Game of Thrones interview and casting details

Bashful82 on Why Queen Elizabeth didn’t take the Iron Throne, and more Game of Thrones interview and casting details

ThroneDrone on Why Queen Elizabeth didn’t take the Iron Throne, and more Game of Thrones interview and casting details