The Last Week in Belfast

By Cat Taylor

It’s the last week of filming the second season of Game of Thrones in Belfast. Everyday, someone else from the cast and crew wraps for the year, and “goodbye” is probably one of the most spoken words of each day. For most people the last week is a combination of desperate tiredness and already looking forward to the possibility of Season 3.

The last scene shot of the whole series is one with Bran, Hodor, Rickon and Osha. Of course, the weather in Northern Ireland has chosen to bid us farewell in its usual schizophrenic way. When I arrive in the late afternoon, just in time for the final few shoots, we are at the top of a hill overlooking rolling green fields that could be right off of a postcard. Soon though, the sky darkens and clouds roll in on strong winds, and in minutes we are being battered by pounding, freezing rain.

The final cut is called and everyone claps and cheers. We start to hug when our first AD calls for one more shot and, giddy with the false high, we all stand back to clear the frame. This time it is a wrap and we all have a glass of champagne (or for those of us driving, just a sip). It’s completely surreal – six months have passed in an instant.

The production office is becoming deserted. Desks that were stacked with files and the latest script revisions are now pushed into corners and stacked high with boxes.  For those of us who will be staying on to go North of the Wall, we have a few manic days to close off things in Belfast before packing all the socks in the world and heading to Iceland.

For a super nerd like me, what happened to Jon Snow and his crew is some of the most exciting and intriguing occurrences in the series. That, and the scope for creating new yo’momma jokes is just endless. We’ll be filming in three locations on the island, in some remote locations.

Can anyone say quad bike to work?