Rory McCann - wikipedia Rory McCann For the Irish cricketer, see Rory McCann ( cricketer ). Rory McCann McCann, San Diego Comic Con International ( 2014 ) ( 1969 - 04 - 24 ) 24 April 1969 ( age 48 ) Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland Occupation Actor Years active 1999 -- present Height 6 ft 6 in ( 198 cm ) Relatives Sally - Gay McCann ( sister ) Rory McCann ( born 24 April 1969 ) is a Scottish actor, best known for portraying Sandor `` The Hound '' Clegane on the HBO series Game of Thrones and Lurch in Edgar Wright 's crime - comedy Hot Fuzz. Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Personal life 4 Filmography 4.1 Film 4.2 Television 5 References 6 External links Early life McCann was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He has a sister, Sally - Gay McCann, born in 1972. Before becoming an actor, McCann was a painter who studied at the Scottish School of Forestry near Inverness. He also worked as a bridge painter ( on the Forth Road Bridge ), landscape gardener and carpenter. Rory McCann was first trained as an actor by writer - artist Robert Parsifal Finch in The Actor 's Workshop, Glasgow. 1998. Career McCann 's first acting job was as an extra on the film Willow ( 1988 ). He was fired because he laughed during the takes. He appeared in an advertisement for Scott 's Porage Oats, dressed in a vest and kilt. As his first major acting role, McCann played a disabled personal trainer in the 2002 television comedy drama The Book Group, winning the Scottish BAFTA for the best television performance of 2002. Since then, he has taken television roles as Detective Inspector Stuart Brown in State of Play, Peter the Great in Peter in Paradise, and a priest in the award - winning British comedy drama series Shameless. He made his Hollywood debut in the 2004 film Alexander, which required the actors to go through a boot - camp in the African desert, and included shooting in Thailand, Morocco as well as a London studio. In 2007, he appeared as Michael `` Lurch '' Armstrong in Hot Fuzz. In 2008, he played Moby in The Crew and Atilla the Hun in the BBC docudrama Heroes and Villains. McCann portrays Sandor `` The Hound '' Clegane in the HBO series Game of Thrones. Other projects include a BBC TV Series by writer Jimmy McGovern called Banished, set in Australia in the 18th century. McCann plays a blacksmith named Marston. Personal life McCann 's younger sister, Sally - Gay McCann, works on costumes for film and television ; he worked alongside her on Alexander and Game of Thrones. McCann is a supporter of the Scottish Green Party, and appeared in its 2007 Scottish Parliament general election broadcast. In 1990, McCann broke multiple bones in a near - fatal rock climbing accident in Yorkshire. McCann is the former frontman of a defunct band called Thundersoup. He plays the piano, guitar, banjo and mandolin. McCann is known for living a solitary, transient lifestyle. He often lives on his boat or in places without modern conveniences. Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 2000 Pasty Faces Goon 2003 The Devil 's Tattoo Eric 2003 Young Adam Sam Alexander Craterus 2005 Beowulf & Grendel Breca 2006 Sixty Six Policeman 2007 Hot Fuzz Michael `` Lurch '' Armstrong 2008 The Crew Moby 2009 Solomon Kane McNess Clash of the Titans Belo 2011 Season of the Witch Soldier Commander Credited as Rory MacCann 2015 Slow West John Ross 2017 xXx : Return of Xander Cage Tennyson `` The Torch '' Television Year Title Role Notes 1999 Coming Soon Fergus Television film 2000 Randall & Hopkirk Bouncer Episode : `` Mental Apparition Disorder '' 2000 Monarch of the Glen Roger Episode No. 1.6 2002 London 's Burning Keith Episode No. 14.7 2002 -- 2003 The Book Group Kenny McLeod Main role ; 12 episodes 2003 State of Play Stuart Brown Episode No. 1.1 ; uncredited 2003 Rockface Adam Recurring role ; 6 episodes 2003 Peter in Paradise Peter the Great Television film 2006 Shameless Father Critchon 2 episodes 2008 Heroes and Villains Attila the Hun Episode : `` Attila the Hun '' 2011 The Jury Derek Hatch Main role ( season 2 ) ; 5 episodes 2011 -- present Game of Thrones Sandor `` The Hound '' Clegane Main role ( seasons 1 -- 4, 6 -- present ) ; 33 episodes 2015 Banished Marston Main role ; 4 episodes References Jump up ^ Collins, Sean ( 7 April 2014 ). `` ' Game of Thrones ' Q&A : Rory McCann on ' The Hound ' and Season Four ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved 10 August 2014. Jump up ^ Rosenberg, Scott ( 15 September 2006 ). `` Exclusive Interview : Rory McCann ( ' Shameless ', Beowulf & Grendel ', `` Alexander ' ) ''. Monsters and Critics. Retrieved 10 August 2014. ^ Jump up to : `` Rory McCann -- What I know about women ''. The Scotsman. 12 January 2009. Retrieved 10 June 2012. Jump up ^ McIver, Brian ( 31 March 2014 ). `` Games of Thrones star Rory McCann on his meteoric rise from carpenter to fantasy TV star ''. Daily Record. Glasgow : Trinity Mirror. ISSN 0956 - 8069. OCLC 500344244. Retrieved 14 July 2014. ^ Jump up to : Boyer, Jen ( 25 April 2013 ). `` ' Game of Thrones ' : Meet the Hound, Scottish actor Rory McCann ''. LA Times. Retrieved 10 August 2014. Jump up ^ MacLaren, Lorna ( 29 January 2003 ). `` Why he 's always up for it : From dubious tree surgeon and Forth bridge painter to giant of porridge commercials, Book Group star Rory McCann tells Lorna MacLaren of his next move ''. Herald Scotland. Retrieved 10 August 2014. ^ Jump up to : English, Paul ( 1 January 2005 ). `` Hulk Rory Leaves No Stone Unturned ; Scott 's Porage Oats Star Rory McCann Spills the Beans on how he won a part in Oliver Stone 's movie Alexander by Telling the Great Man to take a Hike ''. Scottish Daily Record & Sunday Mail Ltd. Retrieved 10 August 2014. Jump up ^ `` Game of Thrones : Cast ''. HBO. Retrieved 10 June 2012. Jump up ^ Towers, Andrea ( 4 April 2014 ). `` ' Game of Thrones ' : Rory McCann teases road trip of ' death and destruction ' in season 4 ''. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 10 August 2014. Jump up ^ `` Rory McCann Joue Les Petits Rigolos à L'avant - Première de `` Game of Thrones '' à New York, le Mardi 18... '' Pure / Trend. 18 March 2014. Retrieved 10 August 2014. Jump up ^ Davey, Cathie ( 18 March 2014 ). `` Cast announced for Jimmy McGovern 's epic new series, Banished, for BBC Two ''. BBC. Retrieved 10 August 2014. Jump up ^ Scottish Green Party ( 11 April 2007 ). `` First Vote Green on the 3rd of May 2007 ''. YouTube. Retrieved 14 July 2014. Jump up ^ Fulton, Rick ( 28 March 2002 ). `` I fell into acting says Oats hunk ; Scots actor and climber Rory McCann on the mountain plunge that changed his life ''. Daily Record ( Scotland ). Retrieved 10 August 2014. Jump up ^ Flett, Michael ( 19 March 2012 ). `` Rory McCann - Sandor `` The Hound '' Clegane, Game of Thrones ``. Geek Chocolate. Retrieved 10 August 2014. Jump up ^ Virtue, Graeme ( 19 March 2013 ). `` Game Of Thrones ' Hound on bumfluff, hugs and the magic of Wilko Johnson ''. The Guardian. Retrieved 10 August 2014. Jump up ^ Lash, Jolie ( 23 February 2013 ). `` Access Countdown To ' Game Of Thrones ' Season 2 : Q&A Rory McCann Talks Sandor Clegane ( The Hound ) ''. Access Hollywood. Retrieved 10 August 2014. External links Rory McCann on IMDb VIAF : 107576464 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rory_McCann&oldid=811895818 '' Categories : 1969 births Living people Scottish male television actors Scottish male film actors 20th - century Scottish male actors 21st - century Scottish male actors Male actors from Glasgow Hidden categories : EngvarB from April 2014 Use dmy dates from April 2014 Articles with hCards All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from September 2017 Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Български Català Dansk Deutsch Español Euskara فارسی Français Galego 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית Latina Magyar მარგალური Nederlands 日本 語 Polski Português Русский Suomi Svenska Українська 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 24 November 2017, at 19 : 06. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. 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Question: who plays the character dog in game of thrones
Answer: Rory McCann