Game of Thrones season 7: Expect no leaks as critics denied screeners

At least not the first few episodes

(Helen Sloan/HBO)

HBO will once again not be providing critics with advance previews of Game of Thrones episodes.

Screeners were also withheld for season 6 after the first four episodes of season 5 - originating from a screener DVD - wound up online days before the season premiered.

Game of Thrones is pretty much unique in this sense. Whether it's House of Cards or The Leftovers, critics are usually given a head start on new shows/seasons so they are able to prepare more detailed reviews in advance and/or assess how big a show is going to be.

For example, Netflix provided access to the entirety of HoC season 5 to us almost a month before it dropped.

HBO would presumably like to do this with Game of Thrones, but the leak factor is just too high, especially with a show where spoilers are all important.

Still, while we're gutted we won't get to the see the new episodes early, there isn't a huge wait until they arrive for everyone., with season 7 commencing on 16 July through HBO, Sky Atlantic and NOW TV.

The show will still face leaks of other origin, be it HBO Nordic accidentally setting episodes live early like last time, or potential theft like what happened with Netflix's Orange is the New Black recently.