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Fans of Game of Thrones are bracing themselves for more heartache after the trailer for a new spin-off series dropped on Thursday.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will be based on the Tales of Dunk & Egg short novel series by George RR Martin, and is set to premiere in January 2026.
Its story takes place several decades after House of the Dragon and about 100 years before the events depicted in Game of Thrones, during a time of relative calm in the fictional content of Westeros.
The first season will contain six episodes and follow the journeys of knight Ser Duncan the Tall (known as ‘Dunk’) and his boy squire, who is initially known by his nickname ‘Egg’.
Leading the cast are Peter Claffey, who will play Dunk, and Dexter Sol Ansell, who will play ‘Egg’, with True Detective’s Finn Bennett and Australian actress Tanzyn Crawford also starring in key roles.
Upon its release, it will become the second spin-off show set in the A Song of Ice and Fire TV universe, following on from House of the Dragon, which premiered in 2022.
Fourteen years after the original show premiered, Game of Thrones fans are battle-hardened like no other fanbase when it comes to experiencing TV heartbreak like no other.
Not just because of how disappointed they were over the series’ divisive ending, but because of how much death, violence, and misery they had endured across its 73 episodes.
House of the Dragon also didn’t let up, with numerous characters already wiped off the face of the earth and even more surely lined up to be snuffed out in the upcoming third season.
Even with that in mind, though, they’re bracing themselves for more pain as A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms released a trailer and set its premiere datefor January 18.
Reddit user NeedsToShutUp put it simply, ‘I’m ready to get hurt again,’ while Nakiva approached with caution: ‘I wasn’t expecting much, but knowing the story and now watching this, I’m carefully excited.’
InfamousBoone looked forward to the show: ‘This is the exact type of story I want. Don’t focus on some broad story about taking over the world, zoom in and focus on a small story that gradually grows.’
MindlessDimension71 added: ‘Never thought I’d be so hyped for a Dunk and Egg show. And with the show being smaller scale we may actually get it every year.’
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms begins with the death of a knight that Dunk squires for, releasing him from his duties – he then sets off across Westeros to achieve his potential.
Along the way, he encounters a squire of his own, a young boy known only Egg – of course, it’s not long until Egg’s true identity is revealed, but we won’t spoil you on that.
One major difference between A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and the other two shows in the A Song of Ice and Fire TV world is that its episodes will only be ‘around 30 minutes’, according to reports.
Judging by the currently available footage, the series is also expected to be lighter in tone, with numerous jokes and punchlines being delivered in the two-minute trailer.
So far, Martin has written three stories in the Dunk & Egg Tales collection, each titled The Hedge Knight in 1998, The Sworn Sword in 2003, and The Mystery Knight in 2010.
The three novels were published as one illustrated collection in 2015, released under the title A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, from which the series derives its name.
Its title is not to be confused with the season eight episode of Game of Thrones – but fans will soon discover that some characters from the original series have direct links to faces in this new tale.
Watch A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms on Sky Atlantic and NowTV from January 18.
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