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20th October 2025
04:16pm BST
Peter Claffey may only be known to some hardcore Ireland rugby fans, but he will soon be a household name, and not for his sporting exploits.
The big man from Connacht represented the Ireland in the 2016 U20s Six Nations, playing alongside the likes of Andrew Porter, James Ryan, Hugo Keenan, and Jacob Stockdale.
He failed to make an appearance for his province, and quit rugby in 2019 to train as actor.
The gamble paid off with roles in Apple Tv's Bad Sisters and BBC's Wrecked, before being cast in the lead role of HBO's latest Game of Thrones spinoff, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.
The show is set 100 years before the events of the main series and will follow Claffey as Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire, Egg.
Speaking on the role, Claffey said: “It was the first time in my career where there [was a production] revolving around me, and there’s 700 people on set.
“Discipline, work ethic and leadership all correlate massively back into the world that I’m in now.
“I’d love to go over to the West End. I have a dream of doing something on Broadway.
“I have a feeling, whether it be scientific or whether it be spiritual, that there is a set path and this was always meant to happen.”
But his talents don't stop there, with a video surfacing on X, shared by @DaireJWalsh, showing a younger Claffey performing a spot-on impression of Family Guy character Stewie Griffin.
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