From Enniskillen to the Emmys: Northern Ireland's Creative Talent Shines in Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Nominations
Northern Ireland's creative industries are celebrating a significant moment at the 78th Emmy Awards, with several professionals from the region nominated for their craft work on HBO's A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms — the Game of Thrones prequel series that has returned the franchise to awards-season prominence and demonstrated once again that Northern Ireland's screen production sector is operating at the very highest level of international television.
Background
Northern Ireland's relationship with the Game of Thrones franchise is one of the most significant stories in the history of the region's creative economy. From 2011 to 2019, the original series used locations across the province — from the Dark Hedges in County Antrim to Castle Ward in County Down, from the Mourne Mountains to the Titanic Studios in Belfast — as the backdrop for what became the most watched television drama in history. The production employed thousands of local crew members, craftspeople, and extras, and generated hundreds of millions of pounds in economic activity for the region.
The franchise's return, in the form of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, has brought many of those same professionals back to work on a production that, while smaller in scale than the original series, has been widely praised for its quality and its fidelity to the source material — George R.R. Martin's Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas. The series, which follows the adventures of hedge knight Ser Duncan the Tall and his young squire Egg in the decades before the events of Game of Thrones, has been filmed extensively in Northern Ireland, with Titanic Studios once again serving as the primary production base.
The 78th Emmy Awards, with the Creative Arts ceremony taking place on 5 and 6 September 2026 and the main ceremony scheduled for 14 September, have recognised the series with nine nominations — a return to form for the franchise after a period of reduced awards attention following the second season of House of the Dragon in 2025.
Key Developments
Among the Northern Ireland professionals nominated at the Creative Arts Emmys is Lorna Ó Ríordáin, a costume designer from Enniskillen in County Fermanagh, who has received a nomination in the Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes category. Ó Ríordáin's work on the series has been praised for its historical authenticity and its ability to convey character through clothing — a particular challenge in a fantasy setting where the visual language of costume must do significant narrative work.
Anna Knight, a makeup artist and hairstylist from Holywood in County Down, has received a nomination for Outstanding Period Or Fantasy/Sci-Fi Hairstyling, alongside Belfast-based colleague Cat Coogan. The pair's work on the series has been central to its visual identity, creating looks that feel rooted in a specific historical moment while remaining distinctly fantastical. Knight has spoken about the particular challenges of working on a prequel series, where the visual language must feel connected to the original while establishing its own distinct aesthetic.
The series' nine nominations include a nomination for Outstanding Drama Series — a recognition that places it among the most acclaimed television productions of the current awards season and confirms that the Game of Thrones franchise retains its capacity to produce work of the highest quality when given the right creative conditions.
Why It Matters
The Emmy nominations matter for Northern Ireland's creative economy in ways that extend well beyond the individual recognition of the professionals involved. The screen production sector has become one of the most significant growth areas in the Northern Ireland economy over the past fifteen years, generating employment not just for actors and directors but for the vast ecosystem of craft workers — costume designers, makeup artists, set builders, lighting technicians, caterers, and transport coordinators — whose skills are transferable across productions and whose presence in the region makes Northern Ireland an attractive location for international productions.
The Game of Thrones franchise has been particularly important in this regard, not just because of the direct employment it generates but because of the profile it gives Northern Ireland as a production location. Productions follow talent and infrastructure, and the Emmy nominations for Ó Ríordáin, Knight, and Coogan are a signal to the international industry that Northern Ireland's craft talent is operating at the highest level. That signal has commercial value that is difficult to quantify but very real.
Local Impact
In Belfast, the production of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has brought significant activity to Titanic Studios and the surrounding area of the Titanic Quarter. The studio complex, which has been expanded and upgraded since the original Game of Thrones production, now ranks among the largest studio facilities in Europe and has attracted productions from across the English-speaking world. The Belfast Harbour estate, which hosts the studios, has seen substantial investment in supporting infrastructure, including accommodation, catering, and transport links. In Fermanagh, Ó Ríordáin's nomination has been celebrated as a source of local pride, with the county's creative community noting that the region's talent is increasingly recognised at the highest levels of the international industry.
What's Next
The main Emmy Awards ceremony takes place on 14 September 2026, at which point the Outstanding Drama Series nomination for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will be decided. A second season of the series has already been commissioned by HBO, with production expected to begin in Northern Ireland in early 2027. The Northern Ireland Screen agency has indicated that it is in discussions with several other major international productions about using the province's locations and studio facilities, with announcements expected before the end of the year.
