Spoiler alert! How to avoid major plot reveals on the internet and social media

My flatmate and I had a special Monday morning ritual during the spring of 2019. We would set our alarms for 6am, draw the blinds in our little London flat and watch Game of Thrones. She was a subeditor charged with proofing episode recaps, I was running a social media team. Ingesting an hour of mud, blood and dragons before our first coffees was the safest way to avoid spoilers.

Now that I live in Australia, where big US shows tend to air in the middle of workdays, there are no worms to be caught by early birds.

So, like many – at least those of us who didn’t have Easter Monday off work – I knew about the massive plot development in last night’s episode hours before hearing the title score’s dissonant opening chords.