Sarah van der Kley: 'Thrones' claims another follower

Sarah van der Kley

Until very recently, I was able to put my hand up and say I was one of the perhaps 1 per cent of the population with access to the internet and television who had never seen Game Of Thrones.

And I was not at all bothered.

Yes, I'd heard people hark on about how the show was gripping, amazing, the best thing they'd seen.

I'd even seen friends on Facebook claim they openly wept when a certain character died, and changed their profile pictures and names to reflect whose side they were on.

But I wasn't even mildly curious about it because it didn't seem like a show that I could get into.

I'm not a fan of fantasy or shows based in medieval times so why on earth would I want to watch a show that features knights and dragons, even if it has become one of the most popular of our time?

But after coming down with a nasty cold on the weekend I wasn't good for much other than lying on the couch.

Bored out of my mind, I decided to give this Game of Thrones a go.

Three episodes in, I was hooked.

Turns out everyone was right; it's darn good. I'm not sure what it is about the show that is so compelling.

Usually a show with that much violence, blood and nasty language would have me switching off but I can't stop watching.

I'm ashamed to admit I have spent more than 20 hours of the past week watching the show; it's practically a part-time job.

And it is making life difficult because there are spoilers everywhere.

I swear I didn't see so much Game of Thrones-related content when I didn't watch but now I see revealing things every time I log on to Facebook.

Every time I open my emails or have a conversation someone is trying to sabotage my viewing pleasure.

Like most TV shows, this is one where you don't want to know what happens before you see it and people are quite passionate about being kept in the dark.

In fact, Canterbury Police issued a warning on their Facebook page after the premiere of season seven, saying "Just remember folks, it is NOT an offence to publish Game of Thrones spoilers. It's not cool. Not cool at all, but not an offence."

I guess there's nothing for it but to spend another 20 hours this week trying to catch up.

• Don't miss Adam Green and Sarah van der Kley on The Hits Hawke's Bay from 6am to 9am, Monday to Friday.