Cooper: Okay, everybody. We have a special guest today, Steve, my friend. I met Steve because he worked with a very good friend of mine named Dave and another good friend of mine named Dan, who worked on the television show, . Actually, they were the ... what were they, Steve? What were they? How would you refer to them?

Steve: David and Dan are Game of Thrones.

Cooper: They are Game of Thrones.

Steve: They are Game of Thrones. In my eyes, they are Game of Thrones.

Cooper: If I said they're the bosses of Game of Thrones, not enough?

Steve: Not enough. They created it, they wrote it, they directed it. In my eyes, they are Game of Thrones.

Cooper: On the set, they are the ones who control everything that happens?

Steve: Well, on the set, we have a ... You've seen, Cooper, with being on the set lots of times. Give 500, give 600 people. David and Dan can stop that in a minutes notice because a word is wrong, or something they just don't like. That's what they do. That's why I call them game of Thrones. The two guys are so laid back as you know yourself. If you met these guys, you wouldn't believe, and I don't think they believe the machine they have made is so good. They're so well grounded.

Cooper: Yeah. Could you say that one more time, because cut we had a little bit of a cut. So, you said don't think they believe?

Steve: I don't think they believe how much they are Game of Thrones. They are very, very modest, and a lot of people who run a show that is less would be bouncing around saying, "This is my show." But with David and Dan, you know they just get on with it. It doesn't matter if you're the cleaner, or the director, or the leading actress, they treat you exactly the same way.

Cooper: Well that's one thing that, you know, I've know Dave more than the majority of my life. So, I would say that it doesn't surprise me, but it's still interesting that I don't think they talk to anybody that this show, and it's such a big show, and I don't think they talk to anybody differently. They don't.

Steve: No.

Cooper: Sometimes you're on the show, I don't know, you tell me, it seems to me that sometimes people on the show may be snobby, but not Dave and Dan. Maybe somebody who works in some other capacity, I don't know.

Steve Game of Thrones -- podcast (Completed 10/04/18) Page 1 of 7 Transcript by Rev.com Steve: David and Dan are just, they're two nice guys. As I said, it doesn't matter if you're the cleaner or the leading start. They speak to everybody the same way. They treat everybody with respect for what they're doing. They're just two nice guys.

Cooper: And first of all, what were your main duties on the show? Well, with Dave and Dan, actually. I think you worked most with them.

Steve: See, that's just the funny thing. I retired from a job I used to do in Belfast. A friend of mine-

Cooper: What was the job?

Steve: Nah, that's okay. I was a police officer in Belfast. I was a police officer in Belfast, and I retired. And a friend of mine who owns a company said, "Look, do two weeks work for me." And my two weeks work started off with picking Dan, Andrea, Leo, it was only them at that stage. Picking them up. They were the first ones in, and that was to do the pilot of Game of Thrones.

Steve: Then David, and Amanda, and at stage it was only Frankie. They came. And that was nine years ago. So, my job was looking after them, their families, driving. Basically doing what they needed or what they wanted. And over the nine years, we have become ... I would class them as very good friends, as part of my Ulster family who visits.

Cooper: Do you think that do you miss it now? I mean, because now it's coming around the time where you would be working. And do you miss it at all?

Steve: I would say there's part of me does, and part of me doesn't. I was supposed to retired nine years ago. Now, it was strange in August when everything finished. It was sort of another end of an era, you know another end of nine years. And you go, "Right. I am retired now." And then six weeks down the line, you're going, "Yeah, I do miss it." But I still keep in touch with David and Dan, and their families. And it's nice.

Cooper: Yeah. That's the thing, I think. He never forgets his friends. I was gonna ask what it was like at an end of filming. I know he came to my wedding, right?

Steve: Yeah.

Cooper: Right at the end. But what the emotion like?

Steve: They were very kind to me. They left me in little drips and drabs. David was the first to go on the Thursday, and it's hard. You stand there, and you have a lump in your throat, and you're saying to them, "You were a good friend." You know? You have a lump in your throat, and then it was okay the next day. The families went with all the kids who you had watched growing up. Little Hugo, who's dad's part part of Ulster, man. He was born in the Ulster hospital in Belfast. Yeah. You know, so you seen him being, well took Andrea to the hospital, I brought him out out of the hospital. So you seen him, I watched the families grow up. And they grew up as part of my family as well. Steve Game of Thrones -- podcast (Completed 10/04/18) Page 2 of 7 Transcript by Rev.com Steve: It's one of those friends, you have to Cooper, to see him as yourself. Once you have made an Ulster man as your friend, we might not speak for two or three years, but when we speak again, it's as if we haven't left each other for a week. You just go over all the things that you've done over the last three years, have a pint of Guinness, that's it. That's Hugo.

Cooper: I'm looking forward to going there and having a pint of Guinness. I want to go, really, as soon as possible. I remember you said that to me.

Steve: Yeah, the thing is we'll have to pay for ourselves. Who knows, there's no sponsors anymore, David and Dan are away. With that said, we'll have to pay for ourselves.

Cooper: Tell me a little bit about something else. So, you were with Dave and Dan and their families, and you saw them grow, and you also saw the show grow. What was it like? Like the surprise, and the different things that you might not have expected? What's it like to be on a show that at first is just a pilot, and then before you know it might be the most famous television show in the history of television?

Steve: It's not might any more, Cooper, it is.

Cooper: It is not might, it is.

Steve: It is. Again, I watched all the actors grow up. Children, and very young. At the start, the only recognized actors were Mark Gatiss, Sean Bean, Jason Mamoa, Peter Dinklage, Kit, Amelia, Maisie, Sophie, Art, Isaac, all those kits, they were children. They were 10, 11 years old. And to watch them grow up and become the stars that they are now, and still be able to chat, the catch them, you know. I would class Kit as friend, Amelia is a friend. All the cast is friends, because I've watched them with David and Dan go through the show.

Steve: And with myself, I was never ... I had already done my career. This was just a past-time. And to watch these people grow as actors, and again, as people. And to watch them being coached by David and Dan, don't be silly. Don't step on the small people. You know, you're gonna get there. Just treat everybody with respect. And that's something that all the actors are to Game of Thrones, little in part, and thank David and Dan for. Because they taught them a great lesson: respect everybody.

Cooper: So maybe they taught them to be humble, you think?

Steve: Not humble. I wouldn't say humble. You know, humble is a different sort of thing, Cooper. Humble is being kind. But they taught them to treat other people with respect. Treat other people the way you like to be treated yourself, and that's a great lesson that David and Dan and other people were able to give the actors and everybody coming up a great step.

Steve Game of Thrones -- podcast (Completed 10/04/18) Page 3 of 7 Transcript by Rev.com Cooper: Tell me about any surprise. For example, maybe going on to the different places in Europe, what was that like, you know? Because it wasn't just filmed in Northern Island, and [crosstalk 00:11:30].

Steve: No, it was filmed in Iceland, Spain, Dubrovnik, Morocco. Fortunately, I was able to go the last two seasons to Seville and Bilbao, watch and work on it being filmed in Spain, which was a great experience for me. And actually, when I got the call I thought it was David and Dan, thinking that, "Steve, we're going for a party." But one we arrive in Spain, yes it was a party, we all enjoyed ourselves, but the crowd, and the fans in Spain were just amazing. You know, we had two or 300 people camped outside the hotel.

Cooper: Oh really?

Steve: Oh yeah. Every night. Get two or 300 people. Not so much this year, but last year we were in Seville for four weeks. The full cast were in Seville. The hotel we stayed in was amazing, but every night, every morning, you had two or 300 fans who were just there to get a glimpse, get a photograph, get an autograph. And maybe it's a Belfast thing, and I just thought once I got the call, it was actually Bernie, who's a producer, David and Dan's great friend for one night. And I thought, "This is a windup. This is the guys are gonna laugh at me." But after two days of thinking about it, I liked the job that she was offering me, and David phoned me, says, "We do need you out here as a security role." And I thought, "You are winging me up." As we say in Belfast, "You're pulling my leg."

Steve: So no, I went over, and it was amazing to watch. Different. This show is just so professional. It's just everybody is ... It's just you watch it coming up through season one, season two, season three, season four, and you just watch it growing. You watch it growing, and the video effects, the extras that are there, you just watch the show growing. And it was amazing to be a part of it from the pilot and day one, the first time that David and Dan set foot in Belfast to do a film, I picked them up. And it was amazing to watch the progression through from that right through to being the best show in the world.

Cooper: Did it change Belfast at all? Do you think Game of Thrones has any effect on Belfast the city?

Steve: Yes. Belfast was getting so much better. You know, there was a lot of ... Belfast was always a brilliant city. It was always full of fun. Game of Thrones brought in so much money. Also, the world's spotlight was and Belfast. World's spotlight. Game of Thrones is filmed in Belfast, it's filmed here. And that is the world spotlight. And as you know yourself, Cooper, you've been here. It's probably the smallest city in the world, but I would say it's the best city in the world.

Cooper: I love it. I don't know where I'm gonna wind up, but if I wound up in Belfast I wouldn't be dissapointed. Every year, especially in the beginning ... Because I started here in England when Dave started in Ireland. And every year, when I went to Belfast, it was kind of a relief, relaxation, and because I think the city has so many friendly people. I think it's maybe the most friendly city, if not one of the most friendly cities I've ever Steve Game of Thrones -- podcast (Completed 10/04/18) Page 4 of 7 Transcript by Rev.com been to, and it's also relaxed. To me, that's my feeling about Belfast. I mean, I've been there about seven or eight times.

Steve: Yeah. No, Belfast is. A lot of people wouldn't have came to Belfast because of the vibe that Belfast got through the troubles and different things, but even through the troubles, Belfast was probably the most friendliest. Might have been the dangerous city in the world, but it was the most friendliest city in the world. And people coming now have realized this, and we don't have the idiots now trying to wreck everything that they used to do in the 70s, the 80s, and the early 90s. We don't have those idiots anymore.

Steve: Everybody is night involved and having fun, and that's what Belfast is about. Everybody, it's all about the crack, as you've heard. Everybody loves having fun.

Cooper: And so, the 70s, and 80s, and 90s were ... I didn't realize it was that long a period of time, and then in the early 90s is when it changed?

Steve: Yeah. Mid-90s it started to change. Early 2000s, you started noticing a big difference. And then the last 10 years with Game of Thrones coming over, infrastructure, and everybody realizing what a good city it is, I'm wanting to come to visit. Unfortunately now, it's tough to get a hotel room in Belfast.

Cooper: I heard, though, that ... Maybe it was you who told me they're building a lot of hotels in Belfast?

Steve: Yeah, we've built four new hotels, and they're completely filled. Everybody wants to come to Belfast.

Cooper: This is a completely different question, and probably my viewers won't care, but there's this very old movie I saw about Belfast. No, yeah, about Belfast. And it was called The Odd Man Out, and it was in the 1950s. Have you heard of this movie?

Steve: Cooper, I would be lying if I said I had. But you know me, I'm not a great film buff or anything. You mention a couple of the characters or anything, I would probably know the film, but-

Cooper: It's a black and white film.

Steve: Yeah.

Cooper: I just watched it and I remembered Belfast. But it showed that even in the 1940s there was some sort of gangs that wanted to start.

Steve: Oh god, yes. Because you used to have right through from when the partition came and you have the Republic of Ireland, and Northern Ireland, which was part of the United Kingdom. You still had a lot of bigotry between Catholics and Protestants, right from 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s. And a lot of it comes down to I believe the great thing that'll help the whole world is education. Education now, children are prepared to Steve Game of Thrones -- podcast (Completed 10/04/18) Page 5 of 7 Transcript by Rev.com question what their father, or their uncle, or their brothers will say. Whereas in older times, even right into the early 90s, they were just indoctrinated with Catholics are wrong, Protestants are wrong. Whatever you're side. If you're a unionist, you're bad. If you're a Republican, you're bad.

Steve: Whereas education now, has brought on, you know, all the children now question and go, "Well why is Republicanism bad? Let's read about it." Well they've got their views. "Why is loyalism bad?" That's the union side of things. "Let's have a look." And those kids, all they want to do is live a life, give and take, and have fun.

Cooper: So about having fun too, we'll wind up this very nice podcast. I'm wondering if you could talk a little bit about your gold these days. Have you been playing any golf?

Steve: Yes, from David left I don't think, I'd be playing three or four times a week. Some good, some very bad. But it's been enjoyable back right on the course. When the guys are here, they used to play once a week. Different things. I've actually played with David's dad at night course a couple of times.

Cooper: Is David's dad a good golfer? Sorry to put you on the spot.

Steve: David's dad is one of these guys. He only started playing gold when he was 72.

Cooper: Oh wow.

Steve: 72, and he took lessons. He's a very competitive man.

Cooper: Yeah, I know that.

Steve: He's a very competitive man, and I went out with him, and I'd been getting lessons in different things. And at 72 years of age, I would've been proud to play the way he played golf. And he has the right etiquette, he doesn't take it too seriously, but you can just see the competitiveness in him that he just wants to be, not matter what he does, he wants to be good at it.

Cooper: That's [crosstalk 00:21:57].

Steve: And [inaudible 00:22:01]. "That's a good shot." And he's going, "No, it's not. No, it's not. Here, come on." Flip. You know, you're a man of 72. You know, being happy with that. I met him again, I hadn't seen him for a few years, and he was over this year for Thanksgiving, which was nice to see him again, seeing it's a, as I classed it when I was chatting to him at the last supper, because the next time I'd be for Thanksgiving with that family. I don't know. But it was nice to chat with him again. And he still loves his golf.

Steve: I think I picked him up in Dublin. I took him up to Belfast which is might be an hour and a half, two hours drive. And I don't think there was a minute that we didn't discuss or figure out how we were gonna be so much better golfers in the new season. Steve Game of Thrones -- podcast (Completed 10/04/18) Page 6 of 7 Transcript by Rev.com Cooper: That's great. That's a great story. Okay, Steve, I'm gonna stop the recording now, but it was really nice talking to you, and I think that you're really gonna give our students a lot of good practice with English.

Steve: Hopefully, Cooper, if they can understand me.

Cooper: They won't. But that's why they're gonna be able to read what you write, and then practice.

Steve Game of Thrones -- podcast (Completed 10/04/18) Page 7 of 7 Transcript by Rev.com