
Arguably one of the biggest reasons why HBO TV series Game of Throne rose to the top was for its accurate portrayal of politics. It tells the tale of two ambitious and rivalling houses ? Lannisters and Starks ? which upon further reflection can be recognised as the Lancasters and the Yorks. After all, Game of Thrones author Geroge R.R. Martin has admitted to being inspired by the War of the Roses.
But its political link seems to have shifted to a more modern setting, with sites having famously likened each of the great houses to Britain’s current political parties. One of the most famous comparisons surfaced ahead of the 2015 general election, when Chanel 4 TV presenter Jon Snow created a video that would explain who the candidates were to Americans. Of course, he did so using Game of Thrones as a reference. The Conservatives were likened to the Lannisters, while the Labour party was suggested to be the house of Stark. At the same time, Natalie Bennett was portrayed as the Khaleesi of the Dorthraki, Daenerys Targaryen, and UKIP’s Nigel Farage as Walder Frey. The image seems to have stuck, with Tim Collins, chairman of Bell Pottinger Political having written that it was most fitting that the global premier of Games of Thrones’ fifth season was held at the Tower of London???just down the river of Westminster, where George Osborne delivered his sixth Budget at the same time. He said: ?Osborne knows that the Conservatives are seen by many as Lannisters ? using the veneer of charm provided by a privileged Southern childhood to mask an essentially devious, ruthless, self-interested, and dangerous nature. It is no coincidence that the actor Charles Dance, now globally renowned as the head of the Lannister family, has played many a Conservative politician in his time.? Osborne would actually really like to be a Stark though, Collins claimed, suggesting that the chancellor wanted to be seen as honest, straight-talking, tough but always fair, and ultimately dedicated to the cause of the North. So there was much in the Budget on 18 March about the pursuit of fairness ? something Collins suggested to voters would mean making someone else pay more so that they personally can pay less. Pensions relief for top earners was cut back, so that allowances for the low paid could be increased. The so-called Google tax would stop ?abuses?, and a further jump in the bank levy will be used to pay for additional air ambulances and greater tax relief for charities. These are but a few things he unveiled. Read more about the 2015 Budget:- UK Business leaders divided on contents of George Osborne’s speech
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