Game of Thrones fans were left reeling following Eddard ‘Ned’ Stark’s (played by Sean Bean) death in season one. HBO viewers watched as Ned was executed under the orders of King Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson) and appeared to mutter a few words under his breath moments before his beheading. One fan theory suggests Ned revealed the truth about Jon Snow’s (Kit Harington) true family history to unburden himself of the secret. Here’s what we know about Ned’s last words.
Did Ned Stark reveal Jon Snow’s family secret in season 1?
WARNING: This article contains spoilers from Game of Thrones seasons 1-7.
Ned Stark left Game of Thrones viewers guessing with his final whispered words in the seconds before his beheading.
Game of Thrones fans suggested a number of potential theories as to what he may have said, including whether or not he revealed Jon Snow’s Targaryen family secret.
Jon Snow’s family connection was not the topic of Ned’s final words, however, as actor Sean Bean revealed what the character actually said.
Bean revealed Ned Stark was saying a prayer and was prepared to go to the grave with Jon Snow/Aegon Targaryen’s secret intact.
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In an interview with the Huffington Post, Bean said: “I couldn’t be too specific because I don’t know if religion [like that] was around in those days, whatever they were.
“I just thought: ‘What would you do if this were really gonna happen?’ – You probably would pray.
“You probably would murmur some words and you’d keep it quiet. You’d keep it to yourself.
“It’s quite subtle in that many people wouldn’t pick it up. It was an interesting thing to do for me at that point.
“There’s not much you can do really, you’ve got your head on a block. That’s about the only thing you can do is murmur.”
Bean also rubbished reports his character would be back to win the race for the Iron Throne in the final season of Game of Thrones.
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Ned was the only member of the Game of Thrones universe aware of Jon Snow’s true parentage until Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) discovered the truth in one of his visions as the Three-Eyed Raven.
Bran witnessed Jon’s real mother Lyanna Stark (Aisling Franciosi) give birth to him in the company of her brother.
Lyanna gave birth to Jon and told Ned to keep him safe from the onslaught of Robert Baratheon (Mark Addy).
King Robert had already killed Jon Snow’s real father Rhaegar Targaryen (Wilf Scolding) and was attempting to wipe out the Targaryen bloodline.
Ned knew the only way to protect his nephew was to conceal the fact he had Targaryen blood in him.
Lyanna named her son Aegon before handing him to Ned, telling her sibling: “You have to protect him.”
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The truth surrounding Aegon Targaryen’s family background look set to be exposed in season eight.
However, if the first look pictures from episode one are anything to go by, it looks likely this will be revealed later in the series.
Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) and Jon Snow are pictured together in a number of the first pictures from season eight.
It’s safe to say they wouldn’t be so amicable if that fact Daenerys is Jon’s actual aunt was exposed.
Game of Thrones season 8 premieres on HBO in the USA on Sunday, April, 14 and on Sky Atlantic in the UK on Monday, April 15.