A Song of Ice & Fire
The epic TV series Game of Thrones begins its fifth season tonight (in the UK) and the internet is alive with frenetic anticipation. The story is fundamentally a swords and sorcery romp for adults based on a series of books by George R. R. Martin and called A Song of Ice & Fire . The books are in part inspired by the War of the Roses; Lancaster & Stark- Lannister & York. The bloody, dark, brutal nature of the books largely takes inspiration from Scottish History, which Martin describes as full of gore and blood. An example of this is The Black Dinner in Edinburgh and the Glenhill Massacre which combine to provide the genesis for the infamous Red Wedding in the books. In 1440 the 16-year-old Earl of Douglas and his brother were invited to dine with the ten-year-old King James II of Scotland, the occasion was organised by the Lord Chancellor, Sir William Crichton. While they ate, a black bull's head, the symbol of death, was brought in and placed before the Earl. ...