Who is Larys Strong in House of the Dragon? Meet actor Matthew Needham
Meet a new schemer in King's Landing and House of the Dragon.
Fresh conflict threatens to emerge for the House of the Dragon.
The HBO fantasy drama continues in earnest as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Milly Alcock) continues to grapple with the weight of being named heir to the Iron Throne by her father, King Viserys I Targaryen (Paddy Considine) as her marriage approaches.
However, the Princess must now deal with complications involving her best friend and stepmother, Queen Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey).
Will the two be able to mend bridges? Or will they be ripped apart by outside forces?
One character that we may need to keep an eye on is the new arrival Larys Strong, who made a quiet debut in the third episode of House of the Dragon.
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Who is Larys Strong in House of the Dragon?
Larys Strong is the second son of Lord Lyonel Strong.
Lord Lyonel (Gavin Spokes) is the brutally honest Master of Laws on the Small Council of King Viserys I Targaryen and is the Lord of Harrenhal. He later serves as the Hand of the King.
Larys is the younger brother of the knight Ser Harwin Strong (Ryan Corr) and is not a typically masculine and physically strong character - despite his surname - and has a club foot that sees him cruelly nicknamed 'Larys Clubfoot' by other characters in the book Fire and Blood.
In the series, the shrewd character is often seen lurking at court and ingratiates himself with the circle of Queen Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey, Olivia Cooke).
The character made his debut in the third episode of the season at the Kingswood camp to celebrate Prince Aegon Targaryen's second name day.
In the fifth episode, Larys informs Queen Alicent of Princess Rhaenyra being delivered tea by order of the King - exposing that Rhaenyra may have actually been sexually active enough for the King to send abortifacient to his daughter.
This rouses Alicent's suspicions further and prompts her to speak with Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel) to get the truth confirmed - instead with her learning that the Kingsguard knight had slept with her.
Larys feigned ignorance of the purpose of the tea and Alicent's ignorance of this, but it is clear he was very aware of what he was doing.
The character goes on to play a prominent role in court politics in King's Landing and also plays a powerful role in the upcoming Dance of the Dragons civil war.
If Larys is in keeping with his Fire and Blood book counterpart, fans of Game of Thrones may see some parallels between Larys and GoT villain Lord Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish (Aidan Gillen).
Who plays Larys Strong in House of the Dragon?
Larys Strong is portrayed by actor Matthew Needham in House of the Dragon.
Matthew Needham is a 38-year-old British actor who has performed as part of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
In 2016, Needham starred in the Oscar-winning short film Stutterer.
The actor has also appeared in the television series Endeavour and Sherlock in guest roles, as well as a role in the film The Ritual.
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House of the Dragon airs on Sky Atlantic and is available on NOW – find out more about how to sign up for Sky TV. Check out more of our Fantasy coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.
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