Warning – This Article Contains Spoilers.

It was May 22nd, 2016, the long weekend in Canada. I’d spent the weekend in Edmonton and the friend I was staying with had friends over to watch the latest episode of Game of Thrones. The tone of the room changed over the course of the episode, and by the time it ended with Hodor "holding the door" to his death, you could hear a pin drop. The character, played by Irish actor Kristian Nairn, was a man of one word, and had become a beloved part of the series. Considering the shows habit of killing off characters left, right and center, Hodor’s death was remarkable in the profound grief that hit fans of the show.

"When I read the script I realized it was well written and a cool thing. I didn’t expect the effect that it had on everybody. I certainly never expected President Obama to mention it in an interview! I didn’t think it would be so far reaching. I am glad for the character. I loved Hodor and it’s nice to see the quiet guy getting recognized," Nairn told GayCalgary during an interview at the 2017 Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo. "With Game of Thrones everyone seems to be dying. With things like the Red Wedding we lost three principal cast members at once. Not only were we losing big characters we were losing friends as well. When the bell tolled for me it was around the time of my 40th birthday. It was a whole big emotional mess."

An accomplished DJ as well as an actor, Nairn made headlines in 2014 when he was asked in an interview about being popular in the bear community and replied "that’s my community." Nairn acknowledged the support of his gay fanbase and agreed that being a bearish man himself, representation outside of the Hollywood stereotype is important.

"The funny thing is to say I came out was a bit of a stretch, I was never actually in. I had the joy of two comings out. There was coming out to my friends and family and everyone who knew me in Belfast. All of a sudden, I was surprised to see that people didn’t know how to use google. I had definitely talked about it in interviews before so I was surprised by the big reaction. It is important for people to be visible and for people to see that we aren’t all 18-year-old twinks with a size 20 waist. Also for actors as well you have a Hollywood image and I think Game of Thrones has been very good to bring all different shapes and sizes of characters forward. I never really considered myself a bear because I only grew a beard for game of thrones. I have had a lot of support from the bear community and its meant a lot to me."

At 6’11 with a boatload of charm, it’s a surprise that Nairn is single. With Game of Thrones being so popular, undoubtedly some have tried some unique pickup lines.

"The obvious one is "was that your real dick?" They cut straight to the core. That’s obviously a very interesting conversation for over dinner to announce it’s a prosthetic. You should probably just go home if that’s what you’re after."

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Contributor Jason Clevett |

Locale Calgary |

Person Kristian Nairn |

Topic Calgary Expo | Celebrity Interview | Celebrity Video Interview | Comic Expo | Game of Thrones |