The quiet English village of Kings Langley is changing its name to King's Landing for a week as part of a stunt to promote Game of Thrones.
The Hertfordshire village will change its name on February 17. The change will mostly involve replacing a few road signs, rather than building fortifications and executing people on the high street.
The idea came about when an executive producer on the show misheard the name of the village being announced at London's Euston station. They're not the only person to have made that mistake:
Disappointed. I could have sworn she said the next station was King's Landing :(
Robin Edds
@robinedds
Disappointed. I could have sworn she said the next station was King's Landing :(
The local council hopes that the name change will attract fans of the popular TV series and George R. R. Martin's novels.
Parish councillor Alan Anderson told the Hemel Gazette: "You can't ignore the parallels between Kings Langley's own rich history and the themes in the show such as battling kings and warring families."
Let's explore some of those parallels:
King's Landing is a city in the fantasy land of Westeros.
Kings Langley is a leafy suburban village near Watford, in the commuter belt northwest of London.
King's Landing has vast walls, soaring towers and high turrets.
Kings Langley has this house with fancy windows.
King's Landing has a really big palace.
Kings Langley had a palace hundreds of years ago which would be somewhere behind these houses if it was still there but it isn't.
King's Landing has riots in which enraged citizens literally tear people limb from limb.
Kings Langley sometimes has a bloke on a motorbike riding through it.
King's Landing has enormous green explosions of terrifying destructive force.
Kings Langley has a street called "The Nap".
King's Landing is the seat of great power and riches, a hive of intrigue and villainy in which desperate people will stop at nothing to achieve dominion.
Kings Langley is... still a leafy suburban village near Watford.
