SPOILERS: Game of Thrones set visit reveals details about several season 7 scenes

Game of Thrones season 7 is fast approaching, and it seems like the embargo on certain bits of information has lifted. Case in point: today the Toronto Sun posted a report of a visit they paid to the Game of Thrones set at Titanic Studios in Belfast (plus a stopover in Banbridge) last October, when filming on season 7 was getting underway. There’s some interesting incidental information in there about costumes and such, but the best bits involve actual scenes the reporters witnessed being shot.

Before we get to the scenes, know that they do contain SPOILERS. Nothing Earth-shattering, but still: let the wary beware.

The Sun describes a scene being filmed for the season 7 premiere. It’s set in Winterfell’s Great Hall, and involves Jon Snow (Kit Harington), Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner), Brienne of Tarth (Gwendoline Christie), Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham), Tormund Giantsbane (Kristofer Hivju) and Lyanna Mormont (Bella Ramsey). The lot of them are discussing how best to defend against the White Walkers. The Sun even recounts one of Jon Snow’s lines: “Dragonglass kills White Walkers, and it’s now more valuable than gold.”

He insists that they need to start mining the stuff, which is a solid idea. Just a note: interesting that there’s no mention of Littlefinger, Podrick, or anyone from the Vale. We’ll mull of that for a while.

The Sun also watched a scene filmed on the Dragonstone set. This one appears in the second episode of the season. It featured several characters gathered around the Painted Table — the same one Stannis was always leaning over when he was living there — discussing “the best way to pry King’s Landing from Cersei Lannister’s grip.” The characters included Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen), Yara Greyjoy (Gemma Whelan), Ellaria Sand (Indira Varma), Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel) and Olenna Tyrell (Diana Rigg).

That’s very interesting, since we’d assumed that several of those characters would never actually meet. Dany and Olenna in the same room should be interesting.

Notable absences from that scene include Grey Worm and Varys. Can we get a scene where those two share wisdom about being a eunuch with Theon?

Moving on, while discussing the props department, the Sun noted that it watched several workers sculpt a “massive” dragon skull…and that it was only one of 40 dragon skull props to be shipped to a location in Spain. Furthermore, the Sun notes that the team couldn’t use CGI to create the skulls because there would be action “taking place around – and possibly on” the props.

The Sun suggests this might be for some dragon graveyard, which would be awesome, but we can’t think of anything like that in Westeros. The closest the show gets is the multitude of dragon skulls stored beneath the Red Keep. Arya ran into one in season 1. Might a character return to that part of the castle?

They could also be found at the Dragonpit of King’s Landing. We know that an important scene takes place in that location, and it stands to reason that there could be a bunch of dragon skulls lying around there.

Other notables:

• The Sun got a load of several new sets, including Cersei’s bedchamber, Sam and Gilly’s bedchamber in Oldtown, a dungeon with a sturdy cell door, and the interior of an Ironborn ship of indeterminate ownership.
• During the scene at Dragonstone, director Mark Mylod told Whelan to read a line “flatter,” which she did. He also asked Varma to do a line reading “cold, but without anger,” which she did. Pros, these folk.
• They also saw the costume department giving realistic salt stains to Ironborn clothing. Fun.

Head to the Toronto Sun to read more.