Scribbler in Seville

Clapperboard from Game of Thrones, Series 5, episode 9. Being shot in the Alcazar, Seville. Photo: copyright Enrique Cidoncha/Canal+ España

Danish actor Nicolaj Coster-Waldau, who plays Jaime Lannister, has been setting hearts ablaze in Seville during the filming. Photo: copyright Enrique Cidoncha/Canal+ España

Deobia Oparei, who plays Areo Hotah, trusted servant of the House Martell. You can see the fabulous azulejos (ceramic tiles) on the wall. Photo: copyright Enrique Cidoncha/Canal+ España

Ellaria Arena, mistress of Prince Oberyn of House Martell, played by Indira Varma. She’s checking out the amazing gold ceiling of the Ambassadors Hall. Copyright Enrique Cidoncha/Canal+ España

Seville has been abuzz for the past week as Game of Thrones, HBO’s mega-hit, critically-acclaimed medieval fantasy drama series, is filmed in the Alcazar. In this fifth season, the exquisite palace is a central location – in the fictional city of Sunspear, seat of the House Martell and capital of Dorne, the southernmost of the famed Seven Kingdoms. Furniture and palm plants have been added to transform the magnificent rooms with their colourful tiled walls into a Dornish palace – the scenes above were shot in the Ambassador’s Hall, with its extraordinary gold ceiling.

Sevillanos have been tweeting photos of themselves with stars such as heartthrob Nicolaj Coster-Waldau, who plays incestuous Kingslayer Jaime Lannister, in tapas bars and around town. There have been plenty of jokes by excitable young Sevillanas about finding out which hotel he’s staying in, and how much they’d like to pay a visit to him in his room. The actor has received all this attention with good grace and a constant smile.

Here you can see Nicolaj in full costume (although many would prefer him without). The local press carried a story about the actor entering the Alcazar, which has still been partly open to the public during filming, where the staff at the ticket office failed to recognise him – clearly not GOT fans or Twitter users. Treating him as they would any normal visitor, they asked him to pay the entrance fee. Rather than kicking up a “Don’t you know who I am?”-type stink, instead he paid without a fuss and went inside to get on with his job. What a dude. Needless to say, many “The Lannisters always pay their debts” comments ensued.

Yesterday, some press were allowed onto the set (my invitation must have been lost in the post/spam folder, but I couldn’t have made it anyway, as I’m out of town) and the Canal+ España photographer took these photos which they kindly gave me permission to use. The channel also shot some video footage, a tantalising taster of what will be on our screens in a few months’ time (scheduled airing date is April 2015).

It’s hugely exciting to be able to see what’s been going on behind the high fortified walls of the palace-fortress built by King Pedro the Cruel in the 14th century using the finest Mudejar craftsmen, many of whom then went on to build the greatest Moorish palace of all: the Alhambra. I’ve lurked around by the entrance gate, and peered over the barriers, along with other curious onlookers. So this tasty morsel of visual delectation has been received with great enjoyment.

The series is using interiors of the Alcazar, as well as the gardens, including the Pool of Mercury and the Baths of Maria Padilla, hidden under one of the patios.

Mercury’s Pool, where some scenes were shot; the water was dyed blue.

The Baths of Maria Padilla, one of the rumoured settings in the Alcazar for Game of Thrones.

The two script writers, David Benioff and Damian Weiss, held an open interview session which makes for fascinating reading – they revealed that season five will feature flashbacks for the first time. For a full account of the session (in Spanish), which has some gems about the actors and their characters, click here.

Today the action moved to the Renaissance town of Osuna, 100km south-west of Seville, where they’re shooting in the bullring, built by the architect of Expo 29’s Plaza de España, Anibal Gonzalez. I’ll be posting on that soon – if you’re a fan, look out for pictures of the actors in the town – photos of Emilia Clake (Daenerys, or Khaleesi – Queen) and Iain Glen (her devoted retainer Jorah) have been tweeted. They’ll be there until the end of the month, so GOT fever is far from over.