Game of Thrones: Why does it inspire such devotion among fans?

Emilia Clarke as Daenerys (centre), with fan Roxanna Meta in character and a Lego Daenerys The third series of American TV show Game of Thrones is hotly anticipated. But the behaviour of fans is almost as intriguing as the action on screen. A lot of British people may still not have heard of it, but Game of Thrones has quite a cult following. The lumbering giant of a show - which sees seven families competing for an iron throne in a world of wolves and dragons, sword fights and Shakespearian feuds - is in some ways an unconventional hit. It has hundreds of characters and a sprawling back story. Its heroes are an illegitimate son, a dwarf and a tomboy. Most of the cast is British- many speak with regional accents - and it is filmed mainly in Northern Ireland. Yet it has been a huge hit in the US. About four million Americans tuned in for the last series' opening on US network HBO but even more downloaded at least one episode last year, making it the most pirated TV show of 2012. The third series, which starts on 31 March in the US, and 1 April in the UK, is eagerly awaited on both sides of the Atlantic. But the size of the audience - legal or otherwise - does not tell the full story. Game of Thrones fans at a Spanish convention The passion and the extreme devotion of fans has created a phenomenon unlike anything attached to rivals such as 1960s advertising drama Mad Men, or even the hugely popular Sopranos and Lost, which both attracted more than 10 million viewers. A Song of Ice and Fire Game of Thrones is based on A Song of Ice and Fire, a planned seven-book sequence by former screenwriter George RR Martin (pictured), of which five have been published. The action centres on the mythical continent of Westeros, and the power struggle by rival dynasties such as the Starks, the Lannisters and the Targaryens to control the Iron Throne. The main characters also have to fend off threats from dragons, pirates, sorcerers and zombie-like creatures. More than 15 million books have been sold, reaching an audience who wouldn't normally read fantasy. In the words of a Guardian reviewer:"I read A Game Of Thrones with genuine pleasure... archaic absurdity aside, Martin's writing is excellent." The activism of fans is apparent on craft sites like Etsy and Folksy. Someone has collated the 10 weirdest "Game Of Thrones" objects, including a direwolf handpuppet and a Dothraki onesie, and elsewhere replica dragon eggs are on sale. "My name is Bryony, and I am addicted to Game of Thrones," wrote the Daily Telegraph's Bryony Gordon in a column last year. "The other day I downloaded a map of Westeros to my iPad. I have taken to calling my boyfriend my 'sun and stars'. Recently, I entered a competition to win a crown worn by Robert Baratheon (runner-up prize, the one worn by King Joffrey)." Game of Thrones events are a regular fixture at comic conventions around the world. Mark Zuckerberg reportedly held a Game of Thrones-themed barbecue serving goat and "obscure animal parts" last year. And there is a small but growing number of people travelling to the outdoor locations where the series - which is adapted from the books of American author George RR Martin - is filmed. Game of Thrones fan Alex Chen, a business school graduate in New York City, recreates scenes from the show on his website via the medium of Lego. "I wanted to go through the entire series - the most striking scenes, the different characters and the world it creates," he says. It's not an ironic undertaking but an attempt to convey the story's power. "I definitely think it's expressive. I'm trying to get the same feeling that you get through watching the show or reading the books." The attempted murder of Bran Stark by Jaime Lannister - in Lego Some go as far as choosing names from the show. The New Yorker related howa couple at one of Martin's book signing asked the writer to pose for a photograph with their daughter Daenerys, named after the dragon maiden Daenerys Targaryen. For others, it becomes a commercial enterprise, although not necessarily to make money. Ashley, a tattoo artist in Cleveland, sells scarves in the shape of the direwolf, symbol and protector of the House of Stark. It's a labour of love, taking her a week to make each one for a sale of $90 (£60). "It's a nerdier, geekier thing to do, like going to a Comic Con [comic convention]. People love them and that makes me happy," she says. The strong female characters and dramatic costumes are a pull for Toronto-based burlesque dancer Scarlett LaFlamme. "I won't give away what Daenerys does to one of her dragons in my act, but it definitely will never happen in the TV show," she says. Scarlet LaFlamme's "Game of Thrones" burlesque routine The news that HBO was to sell a replica iron throne for $30,000 (£19,764) prompted Brent Sheen, an elementary school teacher in Calgary, Canada, to come up with his own low budget alternative.