House of the Dragon star says he ate ‘over 30 quails’ in Dragonstone feast scene

Tom Bennett plays one of Rhaenyra’s reluctant dragon riders, Ulf the White, in ‘House of the Dragon’

House of the Dragon star Tom Bennett has revealed he ate “over 30” quails during the filming of a scene that aired in the season two finale this week.

*Warning – Spoilers ahead for ‘House of the Dragon’ season two*

Bennett plays Ulf the White in the Game of Thrones prequel series, one of the characters who has been introduced in the latest season. After bragging about his Targaryen heritage, Ulf is one of the lay people selected by Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) to attempt to tame a dragon and join her forces against her half-brother, Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney).

Out of dozens of unfortunate citizens of King’s Landing who attempt the feat, Ulf is one of two survivors who successfully manages to bond with a dragon.

During a dinner scene in episode eight, Rhaenyra tells her new dragon riders that she will make them knights if they are successful in their fight against Aegon and his allies.

Throughout the meal, Ulf shows his lowborn status by being blatantly rude to the queen-in-waiting and repeatedly shouting for “more of these little birds” that he’s eating.

“When you’re the bloke saying, ‘More little birds,’ when those birds arrive, you have to f***king eat them,” Bennett says in a behind-the-scenes featurette.

“Tom ate two birds per take,” Bennett’s co-star Kieran Bew (who plays Hugh Hammer) says.

“There comes a point in the day when you say to yourself, okay, I’m being paid to eat birds today and I’m gonna keep doing it until I’m sick,” Bennett adds.

“It was over 30. 30 quails,” the actor says he ended up eating.

The finale of House of the Dragon has been met with mixed reviews. Writing for The Independent, television critic Nick Hilton delivered a two-star verdict: “A problem the show has had from its outset is that it is moving inexorably towards the deaths of its main and favoured characters.

“This second season has been a desperate attempt to pump the brakes, to delay the onset of a war that will leave only a few, thinly written, survivors. It is why the leftover plot feels so desiccated; the juicy meat of literal fire and blood is being withheld.”

Despite the episode featuring notable character reunions, viewers complained that it didn’t feel climactic – and instead focused on setting up what looks to be a more action-packed third season.

The third season of House of the Dragon will begin production in 2025.