Season seven of Game of Thrones was everything fans had hoped for - as the epic saga nears its conclusion.
Now that it's over, all anybody wants to know is when the eighth – and final – series will be on our screens. Be warned – season seven spoilers lie below...
Unfortunately for fans desperate to find out who takes the Iron Throne, we don't yet know the start date of Game of Thrones' final season. However, it's been revealed that filming for season eight is set to begin in October 2017.
Given that the last two seasons took between nine and 11 months to go from the beginning of production to broadcast date, season eight could premiere as early as July 2018. But given the way that the scale and ambition of the show have increased, don't be surprised if the show's finale takes a little longer to make it to our screens – maybe even spring 2019.
We do know the final season will be the shortest in Game of Thrones' history with just six episodes, following on from the seven in season seven.
While the final cast for the series has not been revealed, all of the characters who survived season seven will be reprising their roles for the finale. So you will see Kit Harrington continuing as Jon Snow, Emilia Clarke as Daenerys and Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister.
Tyrion's siblings Cersei and Jamie will once more be portrayed by Lena Headey and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau in the final season.
Perhaps surprisingly, the three remaining Starks survived season seven – so you'll get another chance to see Maisie Williams as Arya, Sophie Turner as Sansa and Isaac Hempstead Wright as Bran.
Similarly, Alfie Allen's character Theon Greyjoy is somehow still going strong, and his vicious uncle Euron will again be played by Pilou Asbæk. However, Aidan Gillen's time on the show is over, after Petyr Baelish's dramatic demise in the season seven finale.
The show has featured a host of guest actors and cameos, so don't be surprised if another high-profile star repeats Ed Sheeran's brief (and not entirely popular) season seven exploits. One recurring guest star who should play a prominent part is Mark Gatiss – his character Tycho Nestoris has increased in importance as the show nears its conclusion.
This was reported by David Chen on Twitter, after a Con of Thrones panel featuring sound designer Paula Fairfield:
"Fairfield just said the Season 7 finale of GAME OF THRONES will be 82 mins. Final season they're considering making each ep feature length!"
So the lengthy production time would make sense.
HBO’s Casey Bloys told Entertainment Weekly earlier this summer that while they’re deep into developing “Thrones” prequels, the priority is making “Thrones” as good as possible. “You’re not going to see a situation where the next show in the ‘Thrones’ universe launches off the back of this one. The show that Dan and David have created will get its proper send off first. We wouldn’t want to take away from that in any way,” he said. Thus, don’t expect there to be any direct connection between the events of Season 8 and whichever of the prequels and spin-offs comes first.
Plot-wise, it’s clear that much of Season 8 will focus on the oncoming battle between the White Walkers and humanity. But as we saw in the Season 7 finale, Jon and Daenerys are now an item (despite the show officially, simultaneously confirming that they are aunt and nephew). But Vanity Fair’s Joanna Robinson also has a theory that the eighth season could revolve around a Jon/Dany/Tyrion love triangle, based on George R.R. Martin’s original 1993 pitch for the series.
It’s an idea definitely supported by the final minutes of the episode, as well as Tyrion’s actions over the course of the season. But it’s only one of the many complicated interpersonal dynamics that we can expect to share the screen with the dragons and ice zombies.
The TV series overtook George RR Martin's novels long ago – so how the Game of Thrones will eventually pan out remains a secret. Of course, this hasn't stopped fans speculating feverishly over who will eventually take the Iron Throne, along with just about everything else to do with the show.
What seems certain is that Jon Snow (or is that Aegon Targaryen?) will finally learn the truth of his parentage – which might make things awkward now that he's romped with Daenerys, his aunt.
We'll also presumably find out who the Night King really is (one popular theory is that it's none other than plucky child turned creepy sage Bran Stark).
Following their tense goodbye at the end of season seven, it seems likely that the incestuous Lannister twins' fates will be entwined, despite Jamie seemingly leaving Cersei to join the war against the dead.
And now that the White Walkers and their undead hordes have breached the wall, and have an ice dragon at their disposal, Jon, Daenerys, and co will need all the help they can get.
It seems certain that only when that's done and dusted will we finally learn who take the Iron Throne – and wins the Game of Thrones.
