A billion viewers worldwide for HBO's Game of Thrones seen on M-Net when the fantasy series restarts next week? Well, it could actually be more.

Could more than a billion viewers tune in next week to watch the beginning of the end of HBO's Game of Thrones seen on M-Net (DStv 101) when the 8th season starts? Well - more than a billion actually if it was somehow possible to count the millions of pirate viewers who will be watching illegally.

The final season of Game of Thrones is set to arrive at 03:00 on Monday morning 15 April in South Africa and Africa with M-Net that will broadcast it Express from the US at the same time as in the United States and thereafter at 22:00 on Mondays.

New episodes of Game of Thrones will also be available on MultiChoice's DStv Now Catch Up service for DStv subscribers, as well as on its subscription video-on-demand service (SVOD) Showmax, that also carries the previous 7 season back-catalogue of the fantasy drama series.

On Monday morning at 03:00 many South African viewers and fans will join in the global watch phenomenon when M-Net will have special VIP Experience big-screen celebration screenings at Nu Metro cinemas in Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg where Diageo's Johnnie Walker limited-edition White Walker whiskey will be poured.

Back after a break of over a year and a half before which it was constantly the most illegally downloaded and shared TV series in the world, Game of Thrones is likely to shatter both linear ratings, time-delayed viewing, and pirate download records as the epic series swoops back - special-effects dragons included - to enthral viewers in more than 170 countries from next week.

An expected one billion viewers worldwide are expected to tune in for the Game of Thrones return, although it will be impossible to immediately calculate how many millions more will be downloading, torrenting and sharing illegal copies across file-sharing sites from the moment the first of the final 6 episodes has been shown.

Although no new Game of Thrones episodes aired for close to two years, the Game of Thrones fanbase didn't diminish. In fact, ironically, it has grown massively thanks to the very video streaming services many say are killing linear TV and so-called, must-see "appointment television".

During the past two years, many more people globally have been able to start watching, following and catching up with the show, getting to the same "level" as original fans of the books, and existing viewers who watched from the beginning.

That brings added demand from an even bigger potential audience as Game of Thrones episodes - much more easily accessible nowadays in a digital form - allowed awareness and interest in the series to marinade and simmer even more in a slow-bubbling pop culture stew that just needs a quick reheat to reach boiling point.

The same effect can be seen and is causing the rabid interest and record-shattering box office sales for Disney and Marvel's Avengers: Endgame film releasing at the end of this month.

People buying tickets now are not just moviegoers who went to cinemas when the Marvel films started with Iron Man in 2008 but people who discovered them along the way after their theatre-run during the whole past decade and started following the story through the various interlocking films of the carefully nurtured franchise.

"Game of Thrones had a global reach like nothing before it on TV," writes Rolling Stone magazine, with its TV critic Alan Sepinwall saying "It does things you never expected TV to be able to do in terms of dragons flying and burning up entire armies, and zombies storming down a mountain".

"It's viscerally thrilling in a way that almost nothing on TV has ever been before. Game of Thrones is the only true phenomenon."

TV CRITIC's NOTEBOOK. More about that fascinating Johnnie Walker White Walker limited-edition whiskey bottle that is a brand tie-in with HBO's 8th and final Game of Thrones season.

Diageo is making its new, limited-edition Game of Thrones inspired Johnnie Walker White Walker whiskey available in Africa - but just in South Africa, Nigeria, and in duty-free shops inside the international departures section of airports.

First off, let me state that I'm not reporting on this or sharing this or covering this as part of any "influencer" deal or "sponsored post" or "partner content" - that secret cushion language meaning that you're actually reading native advertising that's a disguised advert - or anything like that.

I'm not getting any money, payment or anything in return. In fact, some of the questions I asked about this product were not answered.

This is genuine journalism simply because I'm personally fascinated by it, because I am a big Game of Thrones fan myself besides being a TV critic and a journalist, and because I am likewise fascinated by this smart brand tie-in idea.

I took the initiative and decided to reach out to find and make contact to get some answers to things I liked to know about this tie-in and think readers who are like-minded might therefore be interested in it too.

This past week TVwithThinus reported about Johnnie Walker getting ready to release its limited-edition White Walker whiskey in South Africa as well and in Africa just before the start of the 8th and final season of HBO's Game of Thrones fantasy drama series.

Game of Thrones will start on 15 April on M-Net (DStv 101) at 03:00 and again at 22:00, and episodes afterwards will be made available on MultiChoice's Showmax and DStv Now Catch Up too.

Well, even before I reported that this past week, I already sought out the South African PR agency repping Johnnie Walker on my own initiative and asked some questions about this fascinating brand-tie in. 

Yes, I do love and drink whiskey, but truth be told I'm just as fascinated by the actual bottle and how it looks, the creativity behind it, the ingenuity and technology, and the packaging to make a hidden message appear when the bottle is frozen.

So I thought, let me ask and find out whether Johnnie Walker White Walker - or "White Walker by Johnnie Walker" as it says on the bottle, will just be for international consumers or also be available for South Africans, and more around what this interesting collaboration entails (because also, HBO is notoriously protective over the Game of Thrones brand).

Diageo and Johnnie Walker obviously worked with HBO's HBO Licensing & Retail division to make this product possible, and it's a really clever officially licensed consumer product.

The Johnnie Walker White Walker limited-edition whiskey, created by whiskey specialist George Harper is inspired by the iconic characters and the creative world of Westeros and beyond. Of course the timing is just perfect for South Africa where it's autumn and where winter is really coming and will soon be here.

The White Walkers are those zombie-like, feared, icy blue-eyed white characters - an ancient magical army led by the Night King from beyond the now-demolished Wall, and set to invade Westeros.

I asked about what "limited-edition" means and this limited-edition Johnny Walker White Walker whiskey is so limited that ... it will only be on sale until the 15th of April. I kid you not. "Limited quantity available thereafter, " the PR agency tells me.

I asked how many actual bottles will be released into the market in South Africa and was told "we can't give out the actual number as that is forecast information which is confidential".

Johnnie Walker says that inside the stark white bottles "of this new blend are single malts from Cardhu and Clynelish, one of Scotland's most northern distilleries".

"Featuring notes of carmelised sugar and vanilla, fresh red berries with a touch of orchard fruit, this whiskey develops in complexity as it warms to room temperature".

Something completely hilarious hidden in small print in the product fact sheet that nobody will probably spot is at the "ABV" - the abbreviation meaning "alcohol by volume". 

Johnnie Walker White Walker lists next to the ABV: 41.7%  - "1 Throne and 7 Kingdoms".

And also look closely at the Johnnie Walker Striding Man - he's now fashioned in armour to fit in among the ranks of the Night King's forces.

Johnnie Walker also makes use of "temperature-sensitive ink technology" for a hidden message on the bottle that only appears on the side of the bottle when the bottle is frozen.

Zumi Njongwe, Diageo South Africa's marketing and innovation director, says that being able to partner with HBO and Game of Thrones "is an innovative and groundbreaking shift adding cultural relevance and a unique way in how South Africans consume whiskey".

"We are confident from a brand's perspective that our fans will love the delicious whiskey served frozen whilst watching their favourite show."

Jeff Peters, the vice-president of HBO licensing and retail, says "We knew there was fan appetite for a Game of Thrones whisky and, once we saw the vision from Johnnie Walker for a way to collaborate, we knew the idea was perfect and the time was now".

"From the beginning, they understood that we wanted to create something special, and they've accomplished that with White Walker by Johnnie Walker. We're confident fans will enjoy sipping this delicious whisky as they wait for season eight and beyond."

Nope, I haven't tasted it but would like to. Johnnie Walker is having a media launch event for Johnnie Walker White Walker on Wednesday evening 10 April but only in Johannesburg, so I won't be there.

Who knows, perhaps M-Net surprises and manages to have it at, and serve it at its 03:00 screening at Nu Metro cinemas in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town on 15 April when competition winners and the media will attend its simulcast screening on the big screen of the first Game of Thrones episode as part of M-Net's VIP experience and big cosplay celebration viewing party for old times' sake. 

Johnnie Walker White Walker really would just be the most hilariously perfect thing to drink in the middle of the night/morning as part of the "Night's Watch" to toast the final start of Game of Thrones.

Game of Thrones seen on M-Net becomes most sought-after show under viewers as HBO drops two more trailers and Johnnie Walker gets ready to unleash its limited-edition White Walker whiskey in South Africa and across Africa.

HBO's Game of Thrones has become one of the most in-demand and sought-after shows by viewers in the modern TV-era according to latest market research, as Johnnie Walker is ready to launch its limited edition "White Walker" whiskey inspired by the show in South Africa and across Africa, and the show dropping not just one but another two new trailers.

The demand under audiences for the upcoming 8th and final season of Game of Thrones set to debut on 15 April on M-Net (DStv 101) at 22:00 is at a record-high according to the American data science company, Parrot Analytics, that measures and predicts the global demand for content.

"Demand" is calculated as the desire and want for content and is a calculation of actual viewership including downloads and streaming, engagement and mentions on social media, as well as people actively seeking out information about, reading about TV shows and writing about it.

According to Parrot Analytics, Game of Thrones has risen to be 159 times more in demand by viewers in the United States than the average TV show.

That has propelled Game of Thrones into what Parrot calls the "exceptional" demand category - something that only a minuscule 0.01% of TV series are able to reach.

Even within this category, Game of Thrones totally dwarves other high-in-demand shows like The Walking Dead seen on FOX (DStv 125 / StarSat 131 / Cell C black 201) and Brooklyn Nine-Nine seen on 1Magic (DStv 103) neither of which come close to viewers' thirst for the fantasy drama series.

White Walker
Meanwhile, Diageo is cashing in on the thirst for Game of Thrones with the Johnnie Walker whiskey brand that is bringing its recently-launched, limited edition "White Walker"-themed bottles to Africa and South Africa, inspired by the enigmatic, feared and zombie-like antagonist that will be attacking Westeros this season.

Launched recently it wasn't certain whether the bottle in tribute to the seven kingdoms with an "icy message from beyond the wall when frozen" would come to South Africa and Africa, but on Friday last week Johnnie Walker had a launch event in Lagos, Nigeria to make it available in West Africa.

In conjunction with MultiChoice Africa at a winter-themed icy event, a live orchestra played the theme song of the HBO fantasy series as guests sipped on White Walker created by whisky specialist George Harper.

TVwithThinus has learnt that Diageo will also be launching the White Walker edition of its Scotch whiskey in South Africa on 10 April, making it available in Southern Africa as well.

No word yet on whether White Walker will be served at 03:00 in the morning when M-Net does a special cosplay celebration cinema screening at Nu Metro in Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town on the morning of 15 April where fans and the media will watch the 8th season premiere episode together at the same time as it's shown in America.


Two new trailers
HBO released a further two new trailers for Game of Thrones on Tuesday with the one entitled "Together" and Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) saying about the invading, supernatural army from beyond the wall: "We must fight now together - or die". The trailer is filled with flying dragon action.



In the second trailer entitled "Survival", a reflective Jon Snow solemnly says "Think back to where we started. Now it's just us". Then Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), the King Slayer of Casterly Rock, says "This goes beyond loyalty. This is about survival."



Besides the 03:00 simulcast broadcast of Game of Thrones that M-Net (DStv 101) will do at the same time as episodes are shown in the United States, M-Net will reshow Game of Thrones on Mondays at 22:00.

After its linear broadcast on M-Net episodes of the 8th season will become available on MultiChoice's subscription video-on-demand service (SVOD) Showmax, as well as on its DStv Now Catch Up service for DStv subscribers. Showmax also carries a library carousel of the previous 7 seasons' episodes.

The last episode of Game of Thrones' final 8th season will be broadcast on 20 May with the first part of a 2-part documentary "making of" film, Game of Thrones: The Last Watch, that will start on M-Net on 27 May in the same timeslot, going behind-the-scenes of how the final season was produced.