A spectacular drone and fireworks show to promote the highly anticipated debut of Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon lit up Riyadh Boulevard on Thursday.
The show, held at the ongoing Gamers8 festival, was put together by OSN+, which owns the regional streaming rights to the HBO series. It has its premiere on Monday in the Middle East.
Gamers8, pegged as the world's largest esports event, is hosting international players for eight weeks. Besides gaming, the event has hosted a number of concerts, including a performance by Nancy Ajram and Marshmello last week.
Scroll through the gallery below for pictures of Nancy Ajram and Marshmello at Gamers8 Festival
Visitors watched as more than 1,000 drones filled the sky, forming characters and elements from House of the Dragon. The show was then followed by a fireworks display.
Based on George R R Martin's 2018 novel Fire & Blood, House of the Dragon takes place 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones. It tells the story of House Targaryen's rise and fall, following a civil war called the Dance of Dragons breaks out.
The story centres on Princess Rhaenyra, who is named the sole heir to the Iron Throne by her father King Viserys, despite major opposition from the councilmen of Westeros and her uncle Daemon Targaryen — who don’t believe a woman can, or should, rule. Princess Rhaenyra is also opposed by her childhood best friend, Alicent Hightower, who has married her father and conceived a son.
Speaking to The National earlier this month, showrunner Miguel Sapochnik said he understood the weight of comparison to the record-breaking Game of Thrones.
“I certainly think that we have felt the responsibility to make a good show but the important thing really is to focus on what we are doing and not what has been," he said.
“What we have to do is tell a good story, and what you hope is, in the telling of the story, that people will find it interesting or engaging.”
'House of the Dragon' is released on HBO on Sunday and simultaneously across the Middle East on OSN+ on Monday.
Scroll through the gallery below for more stills from 'House of the Dragon'
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Stars:Grace Kaufman, Pico Alexander, Jacques Colimon
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Managing the separation process
- Choose your nursery carefully in the first place
- Relax – and hopefully your child will follow suit
- Inform the staff in advance of your child’s likes and dislikes.
- If you need some extra time to talk to the teachers, make an appointment a few days in advance, rather than attempting to chat on your child’s first day
- The longer you stay, the more upset your child will become. As difficult as it is, walk away. Say a proper goodbye and reassure your child that you will be back
- Be patient. Your child might love it one day and hate it the next
- Stick at it. Don’t give up after the first day or week. It takes time for children to settle into a new routine.And, finally, don’t feel guilty.
MATCH INFO
Alaves 1 (Perez 65' pen)
Real Madrid 2 (Ramos 52', Carvajal 69')
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Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
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Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Pots for the Asian Qualifiers
Pot 1: Iran, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, China
Pot 2: Iraq, Uzbekistan, Syria, Oman, Lebanon, Kyrgyz Republic, Vietnam, Jordan
Pot 3: Palestine, India, Bahrain, Thailand, Tajikistan, North Korea, Chinese Taipei, Philippines
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Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier
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The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
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34 goals - Robert Lewandowski (68 points)
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*NOTE: Haaland's goals for Salzburg count for 1.5 points per goal. Goals for Dortmund count for two points per goal.
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Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
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The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
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T20 squad against Ireland and England: Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Raina, Pandey, Dhoni, Karthik, Chahal, Kuldeep, Sundar, Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah, Pandya, Kaul, Umesh.
ODI squad against England: Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Shreyas, Rayudu, Dhoni, Karthik, Chahal, Kuldeep, Sundar, Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah, Pandya, Kaul, Umesh
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Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
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The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
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