Best known for her outstanding interpretation as Daenerys Targaryen in popular TV series Game of Thrones (in its fifth season), British actress Emilia Clarke has widely proven that behind that face-of-an-angel there is a talented an ambitious actress. She will star as Verena in new Eric D. Howell’s Voice from the Stone, a Hitchcockian fairy-tale taking place in 1950’s Tuscany. And more: she is in the cast of hotly anticipated Alan Taylor’s Terminator Genesis (she plays in the role of Sarah Connor, instead of Linda Hamilton), where she will star alongside Jai Courtney, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Matt Smith, out in cinemas from the 1st of July 2015.
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You will also have the chance to watch her in new Thea Sharrock film Me Before You alongside Sam Claflin, Charles Dance and Jenna Coleman. So, while waiting to watch her on the big screen, and if you can’t get enough of our favourite Mother of the Dragons, here are 15 curious things you definitely need to know about Emilia Clarke.
SHE DECIDED TO START ACTING AT ONLY 3
Emilia can be considered an infant prodigy if you think that it was at the age of three when she went with her mother to see Show Boat (the musical on which her father was working behind the scenes as a sound engineer) that she decided to become an actress.
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SHE WAS BULLIED ABOUT HER EYEBROWS AT SCHOOL
Crazy but true, interviewed by Allure, Emilia once admitted that she had been bullied at school about her eyebrows. She said: “My mom had rules when I was growing up: Don’t do drugs, don’t have sex, and don’t touch your eyebrows. So I got bullied as a kid for having ridiculous eyebrows. She said, ‘You’ll be thankful when you’re older,’ and I am. My mom used to tell me to brush them with Vaseline when I went to bed.”
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WHEN SHE TOLD HER PARENTS SHE WANTED TO BE AN ACTOR THEY SAID…
Emilia was born in London, but grew up in the Berkshire countryside. Her mother is a businesswoman and her father was a theatre sound engineer. She also has a brother, studying politics. Emilia once revealed, “I told my parents I wanted to be an actor and they were getting ready for a life of unemployment so they’re just happy I’m in work!” adding “When I told my dad I wanted to be an actress, he replied that there was only one line I needed to learn: ‘Do you want fries with that?’”
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SHE STUDIED DRAMA AT THE SAME SCHOOL OF COLIN FIRTH AND PIERCE BROSNAN
Emilia studied drama at the Drama Centre London, the very same school which was attended by Paul Bettany, Colin Firth and Pierce Brosnan. She eventually graduated in 2009.
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IF SHE WEREN’T AN ACTRESS SHE WOULD BE…
Did you know what she would be if she didn’t become an actress? She once revealed she would be an architect, a singer, or a graphic designer.
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HER FIRST TV APPEARANCE WAS IN DOCTORS
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In 2009 she made her TV series’ debut on British daytime television, playing the role of Saskia Mayer in an episode of BBC drama series, Doctors. Here is the proofs!
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SHE IS SKILLED AT PLAYING PIANO AND SINGING JAZZ
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As if being beautiful and talented in acting wasn’t enough, Emilia can also sing and play piano, flute and guitar. She is also skilled at ballads, blues, cabaret singing and jazz singing.
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SHE IS ADDICTED TO HBO TV SERIES GIRLS
HBO TV series Girls its Emilia Clarke’s absolute favorite TV show. Interviewed by GQ she said, “I’d give my right arm to be, like, a random extra on Girls, just to walk past one of the scenarios.”
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SHE WAS NOT THE FIRST CHOICE TO PLAY DAENERYS IN GAME OF THRONES
Did you know she was not the first choice to interpret Daenerys? Right, she replaced actress Tamzin Merchant as Daenerys in Game of Thrones, after the original pilot episode was filmed. Nobody actually knows the reasons of Tamzin’s departure.
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SHE IS A SPORT LOVER
Emilia Clarke is also a sport lover and her sport skills include horseback-riding, ice skating, rowing, running, sailing, skiing, swimming and tennis.
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SHE ONCE STARRED IN A SAMARITANS ADVERT
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During her time at school, Emilia starred in an advert for the Samaritans charity, appealing for donations to keep the helplines operational. This was actually her first on-screen appearance, even though she had already featured in various plays at St. Edwards College, Drama Centre London and for the Company of Angels.
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WHAT SHE LOVES THE MOST ABOUT DAENARYS?
When taking about her character Daenarys in Game of Thrones, she once said, “One of the many things I love about Daenerys is she’s given me an opportunity to fly the flag for young girls and women, to be more than just somebody’s wife and somebody’s girlfriend.”
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THERE ARE PLENTY OF RUMORS ABOUT HER LOVE LIFE
According to rumors, she is now dating Australian actor Jai Courtney (they costar in Alan Taylor’s Terminator Genesis), while in the past she was rumored to have dated not only James Franco in 2013, but also American actor Cory Michael Smith (in 2014) and American actor Seth MacFarlane (2012-2013).
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SHE IS RARELY RECOGNIZED AS DAENERYS TARGARYEN
Although her character in Game of Thrones is platinum blonde, in reality Emilia is dark haired, that’s why she is never recognized while walking through the streets. Emila revealed, “Because of my hair I rarely, rarely get recognized, but I was in America, in L.A., a couple of weeks ago and I was in a lift in a department store and the doors opened and this woman stood there, looked at me and just went, “Khaleesi!” and then the doors closed! So that was mental and bizarre and rarely happens but when it does it’s normally on that kind of crazy scale.”
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SHE TURNED DOWN THE ROLE OF ANASTASIA IN FIFTY SHADES OF GREY
Emilia turned down the role of Anastasia in movie Fifty Shades of Grey because it included too many nude scenes. Yet, in Game of Thrones,” she is not so stranger to onscreen nudity. She admitted, “”I’d done nudity before and was concerned with being labeled for doing it again,” adding “No regrets.”
Cover credits: Emila Clarke is wearing Dolce&Gabbana Alta Moda for Vogue UK May 2015 issue
Photographer: Paolo Roversi
Stylist: Francesca Burns