There's no such thing as a stupid question, or so I tell the journalism students. Often I add that the stupid question is the one you don't ask. I now know I am wrong. Very wrong. Drama Teen wanted to attend Oz Comic-com at the Convention Centre today. He was interested in the panel sessions with Game of Thrones actor Daniel Portman who plays Podrick Payne and Harry Potter actor Devon Murray who plays Seamus Finnigan. Seemed interesting enough so the camera and I tagged along. Even though I have never watched an episode of Game of Thrones I asked a question inquiring about his reaction to the controversy surrounding the rape in the most recent season. You don't need to be a fan girl to be up with the news. Portman said that while he would never condone sexual violence against women, the reaction seemed odd given all the outrageously violent and inappropriate things that happen the GoT universe. He listed many of them. The questions continued until one woman raised her hand. She said she didn't watch Game of Thrones and had no idea who he was or anything about the character he played. Her question? Can you tell me about your character? Eyes rolled everywhere in the room. That is why Google was invented. Portman said he played The King ... no John Snow ... no Daenerys ... no Cersei ... and while the audience watched awkwardly he confessed he played Podrick Payne. Of course, that meant nothing to her because she didn't watch the show. Pointless and embarrassing. That's the other rule of interviewing I talk to students about: find out as much as you can about the subject so you don't look like an idiot. At the Harry Potter panel I was in more familiar territory. This time I asked about Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Rather than just answering he asked me what I thought as well so we ended up having a bit of a chat about whether it would make a good 9th film. We agreed it would be an awesome stage production. Had I not actually read the script I would have looked like a bit of a goose. It was all a bit of fun. It's not that I've become an immediate convert to the fan convention but I found it to be an interesting experiment and an enjoyable way to fill in a few hours on a wet Sunday.
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| Devon Murray AKA Seamus Finnigan |
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| Daniel Portman AKA Podrick Payne |
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