Game of Thrones to receive Special BAFTA Award

Awards bodies just can’t help handing out awards to Game of Thrones. For example, Variety reports that the British Academy For Television Arts — the people behind the prestigious BAFTA Awards — will bestow upon the show a Special BAFTA Award at the British Academy Television Craft Awards show on April 22. Stars John Bradley (Samwell Tarly) and Hannah Murray (Gilly) will be on hand to accept the award. No word on Little Sam.

The The British Academy Television Craft Awards “honors the very best behind-the-scenes talent working in television.” And the Special Award is, well, special. Per BAFTA:

"[The Special Award] is presented at the discretion of the Television Committee; therefore it may not be presented in any given year. Its purpose is to honor an individual or a team of craftspeople for outstanding creative contribution in the craft sector."

Getting more specific, chair of BAFTA’s Television Committee Krishnendu Majumdar called the craft on the show “nothing short of incredible, from the breathtaking location shots to the intricately designed costumes and set pieces, and not forgetting the level of detail from the makeup and prosthetics team to name a few.” Checks out.

Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss released a joint statement on behalf of the crew:

"This award makes us extremely happy on behalf of the people who actually earned it – all our brilliant, talented, hard-working department heads and crew. Many, many people work insanely hard to create any film or television show. They are creators every bit as much as actors, writers, producers or directors, and deserve to be recognized as such."

And if it wasn’t enough, Game of Thrones is up for two additional BAFTA awards this year — the ordinary kind, not the Special kind. Michelle Clapton, the show’s longtime costume designer, has been nominated for the Costume Design award, while Deborah Riley, Rob Cameron are up for the Production Design award.

The British Academy Television Craft Awards will be hosted by Stephen Mangan, and will air live from The Brewery in London on Sunday, April 22. You can watch the event via livestream via BAFTA’s YouTube and Twitter channels.

Next: Kit Harington discusses Gunpowder after “a grueling day” of shooting Game of Throne season 8

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h/t The Hollywood Reporter