For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails
Game of Thrones fans fearing spoilers, we bring bad news, as the first four episodes of season five have been leaked ahead of tonight’s premiere.
The return of the hit HBO drama, based on George RR Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire novel series, has been hotly-awaited for months but now, the excitement of the big reveal seems to have been tainted.
Mashable reports that pirate versions of unseen episodes are appearing on Torrent sites, believed to have been ripped from press and editorial DVDS with their digital watermarks blurred out.
Game of Thrones producer Greg Spence recently said he was worried about the potential for leaks as the cast is “looping all over the world, sending files back and forth”.
“The files are watermarked and editors have to confirm in writing that they’ve deleted them,” he told the Denver Post just last week.
Game of Thrones season 5 in picturesShow all 25 1 /25Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Kit Harington is a Jon Snow on a mission in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Peter Dinklage as a fugitive Tyrion Lannister with Conleth Hill as Varys
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Maisie Williams prepares to enter the House of Black and White as Arya Stark in Game of Thrones season five
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Jon Snow meets with Stannis Baratheon and Davos Seaworth in Game of Thrones season five
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister meets her lover/brother Jaime Lannister, played by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Carice van Houten as Melisandre in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Natalie Dormer as Margaery Tyrell and Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Nathalie Emmanuel as Missandei and Jacob Anderson as Grey Worm in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark and Aidan Gillen as Littlefinger in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Game of Thrones newcomer Alexander Siddig as Doran Martell
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Maisie Williams toughens up as Arya Stark in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Indira Varma as Ellaria Sand and Deobia Opaeri as Areo Hotah in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Kristofer Hivju as Tormund Giantsbane in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Michael McElhatton as Roose Bolton, Iwan Rheon as Ramsay Bolton and Elizabeth Webster as Walda Frey
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Daniel Portman as Podrick Payne and Gwendoline Christie as Brienne of Tarth in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Dean-Charles Chapman as Tommen Baratheon and Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister and Ian Beattie as Meryn Trant in the fifth season of Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Maisie Williams takes a moment to herself as Arya Stark in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Sansa Stark and Ramsay Bolton dine together at Winterfell. By now let's assume she knows more about her betrothed and is feeling uneasy about being engaged to yet another monster.
HBO
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Shireen, the scarred daughter of Stannis Baratheon, mounts a horse. Does this mean she's leaving Castle Black?
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Winter is really, really coming, he says. Jon Snow's worried face looks set to be a feature of this week's episode.
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Aemon, the maester at Castle Black, looks as if he's pretty sure winter is coming, too.
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Lord Bolton and his newly legitimate son Ramsay couldn't look more suspicious if they tried. Plotting what to do with the newfound claim to the Iron Throne an alliance with the eldest living Stark offspring will bring? Undoubtedly.
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Brienne of Tarth appears to be still galloping around the country with Pod trying to rescue the Stark girls - who resolutely don't want to be rescued.
Game of Thrones season 5 in pictures Game of Thrones season 5 Lena Headey looks very serious as Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones
HBO
Game of Thrones , which continues to be the most pirated show in the world , was illegally downloaded more than 7 million times from February to April 2015, in comparison with 4.9 million downloads in the same period in 2014.
The fantasy series has been pirated almost 37,000 times during the first week of April in the US in the run up to the season five premiere.
The first episode of Game of Thrones season five airs in the UK on Sky Atlantic at 9pm tomorrow, Monday 13 April.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies