10 Saddest TV Character Exits That Made You Cry

For a show so splattered with death in every episode, this one definitely hit fans the hardest. For weeks, you couldn't even ask one of them to 'hold the door' without them curling up on the floor in a blubbering mess of tears.

While not a star like Jon or Daenerys, most fans secretly thought Hodor had a considerable amount of plot armour on. George RR Martin was heartless, but not so heartless to kill this gentle giant, surely? Besides, it was glaringly obvious that Bran was somehow crucial to the plot and Hodor was his only protection.

What we didn't realise was that he'd been Bran's protection for longer than anyone knew. Hodor's mindless mantra was never just a buffoon raving. Rather, he knew he had one monumentally important thing to do in his life; Hold the door.

Like all noble deaths, Hodor's sacrifice saved the lives of others, with Bran and Meera escaping. The hardest thing to take was the knowledge that deep down, Hodor always knew it was going to end this way and carried on regardless, for the good of his friends.

Along with Hodor, Bran's dog Summer perished holding the door too, signifying that finally, winter was coming.