Game Of Thrones breaks Guinness World Record for largest TV drama simulcast

Game Of Thrones hardly needed another accolade on top of its numerous Emmy, Bafta and Golden Globe awards to boast about. But that wasn't enough to stop the long-running fantasy show earning itself a spot in the this year's Guinness World Records for being the largest TV-drama simulcast. In an attempt to curb piracy earlier this year – and also stop desperate fans from opting to watch the show via online streaming sites – the popular HBO series aired the second episode of its fifth season, The House Of Black and White, in 173 countries, all at the same time, beginning at 2am on 20 April 2015.

This simultaneous broadcast earned it the title, but only narrowly, as it beat CSI, which had reached a figure just two countries short a few weeks previously. The show has been called the most pirated series of all time, so airing each episode at the same time eliminates impatient fans need to stream each episode. Another study earlier this year revealed that Game Of Thrones was found to have been illegally downloaded 116,000 times a day.

Maisie Williams, who has played Arya Stark on the show since it began, accepted the award on the cast and crew's behalf. The official photos and title will be given to the show when the 2016 edition of the records are released on 10 September 2015.

"I'm so pleased for Game of Thrones to be a part of Guinness World Records," Maisie told Entertainment Weekly. "I'm going to tell my stepbrother as he gets the book every year for Christmas. I can't wait to see the look on his face!"

The 18 year old made her own attempt at breaking a world record earlier this year, planning to skydive from 15,000ft. However, according to a Twitter post that the young actress shared around the time of the scheduled jump, her punt at claiming the record was thwarted "thanks to good old British weather", causing it to be postponed.