TORONTO—A replica of the Iron Throne, from the popular HBO series Game of Thrones, came to CTV Agincourt this week and half the building lost its shit.
Promo producer Jeff Penn made the initial discovery. “I was walking through the Annex and happened to look in on the set of Off the Record. There it was! Just sitting in the dark! I ran back to the office and sent an email to fellow GOT enthusiasts.”
Penn’s message started a firestorm. “We work in television,” said usually reserved producer Jigar Talati, “which means we can be pretty jaded when it comes to actors and props and such. I mean, I’ve had my picture taken with the Grey Cup, an Oscar and the Vince Lombardi Trophy. But when I heard about the throne, I’ll admit that I immediately began thinking of poses I could tweet.”
Talati wasn’t alone in his thinking. For the rest of the afternoon, studio 2B saw a steady stream of fans and curious on-lookers. Photo ops ranged from sheepish to shirtless as Bell Media employees lined up to perch atop one of pop culture’s most recognizable chairs. The social media accounts of CTV employees were flooded with pics of would-be kings and queens.
Production Assistant Alex Young was surprised at the throne’s lack of substance. “I expected it to be heavy…solid but it’s more like a giant molded plastic lawn chair. Albeit, one that makes you feel very powerful.” Lifting the edge of the chair, Young asked, “Can somebody help me load this into my Smart Car?”
Overall, it was a quite extraordinary day at work. “Not only did we get new laptops,” enthused Talati, “but we also got to sit on the Iron Throne! It’s like Christmas and Loyalist Day rolled into one! I can’t wait to upload my photo to my laptop. This is no ordinary Thursday.”
When the crew arrived to shoot Off the Record, hosted by Michael Landsberg, they put an end to the photo session. Cameraman Joseph Culler lamented that it was a real shame. “This is the biggest audience we’ve ever had.”