George RR Martin has thanked his childhood pet turtles for being the inspiration behind Game Of Thrones – because they kept dying on him.
Baby George RR did not have the best luck in the world when it came to looking after his pets, and revealed this became the basis of the world of Westeros in a new speech.
The author revealed the details behind fantasy series in a bizarre but cute side story during his speech to celebrate his induction into the New Jersey Hall Of Fame.
The 71-year-old writer revealed that he needed explanations to help him come to terms with his loss.
He told the crowd: ‘I had a toy castle that was big enough for [two]…in the courtyard, so I put two turtle bowls side by side in my castle.
‘The thing was, dime store turtles don’t live very long. I don’t think the food they give you—the little shakers of turtle food—were really very nutritious.
‘So my turtles were always dying, which broke my heart, and I had to come up with some explanation as to why they were dying.’
This is when his mind went a bit dark…just so you know.
He then laughed: ‘I decided they were murdering each other.
‘They lived in a castle, and obviously they were knights and kings, and princes, and they were competing for the turtle throne so they were murdering each other!’
‘Long before Game of Thrones, Turtle Castle was one of my first Fantasy epics,’ he added.
So basically, don’t let George look after your beloved pets.
Not going to lie, we would totally be up for a Turtle Castle franchise to be given the green light. HBO, we’re looking at you.
Game Of Thrones is available on Sky, Now TV and on DVD now.
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