House of the Dragon star Milly Alcock talks about difficulty in speaking High Valyrian. Here's how she aced it

It is safe to say that when two of the key characters from House of the Dragon spoke in High Valyrian in the first episode, viewers were ecstatic. After all, the only memorable characters who could speak the old tongue in Game of Thrones were the two. Although it's simple to recall the lines, the Rhaenyra Targaryen actor nonetheless made blunders as soon as the cameras started rolling, according to Milly Alcock.

In House of the Dragon, the first character we hear speaking High Valyrian is Rhaenyra Targaryen, and she has the most dialogues thus far. Learning the lines was simple, as Milly Alcock revealed on the official Game of Thrones podcast.




She recalled studying the scene in English and then having it typed out on a page. She added that it was like learning another song in a different language, and it became muscle memory. Soon she didn't have to think about what she was saying; instead, everything was almost like her mouth was operating on autopilot.

She further added that they would have it written out phonetically and then have an audio recording, and she would utter it. Although it was simple to recall the phrases, Milly Alcock still made errors as a result of the memorising.

She mimicked her dialogue coach's frustrated yells while the latter tried to teach Alcock the High Valyrian language. Her mouth was used to the pattern. So, when two lines were similar, she often found herself speaking out the wrong lines.

Even when errors were made, Milly Alcock's ability to make Rhaenyra Targaryen sound entirely at home when speaking High Valyrian continues to surprise us.

We are eager to hear Rhaenyra use the language again soon.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is the fourth episode of House of the Dragon released?
The fourth episode of House of the Dragon will air on HBO on September 11 at 9:00 PM EST.