Emilia Clarke on almost dying from brain haemorrhage as she is awarded with MBE

The 37-year-old actor had her first brain heamorrhage in 2011, shortly after the first Game of Throne’s season

Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke has said that she felt “ill-equipped” to be “a normal person” again after she almost died from a brain haemorrhage aged 25.

The 37-year-old actor was awarded an MBE on Wednesday (21 February) alongside her mother Jenny as co-founders of SameYou, a brain injury recovery charity they established after the Clarke survived two brain haemorrhages.

Clarke had her first brain haemorrhage in 2011, shortly after the first Game of Throne’s season. Her charity focuses on the rehabilitation of patients after they leave hospital.

The honour recognises her services to people with brain injuries. 

She said the most difficult aspect of her illness was being discharged from hospital and realising she was on her own.

“You spend a month in hospital, every day they tell you you’re going to die,” Clarke said.

“And then you go home, and you have to live with that. I found that incredibly difficult, and my family found it incredibly difficult.

“You are so taken care of, and so supported, and then you are let out into the world. And it seems terrifying, and you feel like you are ill-equipped to be a normal person again because you have just been told that you are going to die every three seconds.”

Emilia Clarke and her mother Jennifer Clarke, Co-Founders and Trustees of SameYou (Andrew Matthews/PA Wire)

Clarke also reflected on the “magical nature” of the honours ceremony at Windsor Castle, and joked that she thought her mother was going to ask Prince William to be on the board of trustees.

The actor said that running a charity “is one of the hardest things I’ve had to do”.

“There are times when it feels like an uphill struggle that you don’t think you’re going to reach the top of at any point,” she said.

The Prince of Wales honoured Jennifer Clarke and Emilia Clarke (Yui Mok/PA Wire)

“There are lots of dark moments like that when you run a charity, and I speak for most people who run a charity who feel the same way.

“So to get something like this… it gives you such a boost of energy and momentum.”

Clarke also confirmed she is set to play the leading role in An Ideal Wife, a film about Oscar Wilde’s spouse, Constance Lloyd.

The Game Of Thrones star joined Wetherspoons founder Sir Tim Martin and former chancellor Sir Sajid Javid as they collected their honours from the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle.

Other people recognised at the investiture ceremony included Labour MP Dame Siobhain McDonagh, for political and public service; director Betsy Gregory, who was made an OBE for services to dance; and Lydia Otter, who becomes an MBE for services to people with autism and their families in Oxfordshire.

Additional reporting by PA.