Foxtel chief apologises for referring to Game of Thrones actor Emilia Clarke as dumpy

Foxtel's chief executive apologised for referring to Game of Thrones actor Emilia Clarke as a dumpy-looking girl when launching the prequel of the series on Tuesday.

Patrick Delany gave a speech at the Sydney premiere, telling the media he was initially bemused when he first started watching Game of Thrones. What is the show with the dumpy-looking girl who walks into the flames? He referred to Clarke's lead character, Daenerys.

A Foxtel spokesman apologised for Delany's comments, saying it was an attempt at self-deprecating humour.

The Foxtel Group apologises on behalf of Mr Delany if his remarks were misunderstood and caused any offence, the spokesperson told Crikey, who broke the story.

Delany's comments were meant to be self-deprecating and lightheartedly the apology continued, intended to convey the idea that Game of Thrones had taken a hitherto unknown actor and thrown her into the international spotlight.

Emilia Clarke went from relatively unknown to one of the most loved actors in television and film, the spokesperson said.

The 35-year-old British actor, who did not feature in the prequel and wasn't present at the Sydney premiere, is scheduled to appear in the Marvel television series Secret Invasion, which is now in post-production.

The comments were met by awkward laughter, according to the Guardian. One person at the premiere said he felt like he was expecting us to laugh along, but people in the room were shocked by it. Another said there was a bit of a gasp. Game of Thrones has gone down in history as the most watched television drama of all time. The final episode, although widely panned by critics and greeted with disappointment by many of its millions of fans, attracted 1.076 million simultaneous viewers, the largest overnight audience ever recorded.

On Foxtel, HBO's House of the Dragon will debut on 21 August.