Game of Thrones: fantasy television | Television & radio | guardian.co.uk

My new favourite TV series, after Mad Men.

This is the sort of show where gruff men in wolf cloaks mutter ominously that “winter is coming”, exiled princelings bitch about their lost birthright and there is much discussion of prophecies of old. Yet even if that kind of thing usually makes you run screaming to the nearest crime drama, Game of Thrones is worth sticking with.

Don’t be put off by the huge number of people in the cast, just sit back and enjoy the clever way in the tale unfolds. Essentially the story of Ned Stark (Bean) and his fateful decision to help his old friend Robert Baratheon rule, Game of Thrones is also about the evil that men do in the name of power, the lengths that people will go to hold on to a throne and the corruption that ultimately corrodes a kingdom.

Looking forward to reading the books as well. On the London Underground, they’ve become a new staple amongst the frazzled and harried commuter class.