Politician opposed to kings gives King Felipe VI Game of Thrones DVDs

By most accounts, Game of Thrones is pretty well-known in Spain. The show used various locations from the country to stand in for Dorne, the southernmost of the Seven Kingdoms, when filming Season 5. When the production put out a call for extras, a staggering 86,000 Spanish citizens applied for roles, so the show definitely has a following in the area. That popularly was in evidence at a recent meeting between King Felipe VI, the reigning monarch of Spain, and 54 members of the European parliament. During the event, King Felipe was approached by Pablo Iglesias, the leader of a popular leftist political party, and presented with a boxset of the first four seasons of Game of Thrones.

Iglesias’ political party is called Podemos, which means, “We can.” It rose to popularity over the last few years while Spain suffered through crippling unemployment and other economic woes. Among other things, top members of Podemos have suggested having a referendum on abolishing the Spanish monarchy, so you can see why giving the King of Spain a show where noble families jockey for power while the smallfolk get caught in the crossfire might be interpreted as a less-than-friendly gesture.

Iglesias, of course, didn’t frame the gift as a threat. “I told him that he is sure to like the series and that it will give him some keys for understanding the political crisis in Spain,” Iglesias said. “I wouldn’t ask a question about monarchy or republic, but rather whether in a normal democracy the head of state should be chosen on the basis of his blood or at the ballot box.”

King Felipe, for his part, was pleased with the gift, and remarked that he hadn’t seen the show. Maybe he should, and then post a few more guards outside his door.

• Published on 04/15/2015 at 5:01 PM CDT
• Last updated on 10/21/2016 at 1:05 PM CDT