Game of Thrones series 7 episode 6 leaked online after HBO Spain ‘accidentally broadcasts’ show

HBO has been left red-faced after the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones series seven was leaked online, following a reportedly accidental airing of the show on the broadcaster's Spanish on-demand service.

The programme was only available to watch for an hour, but according to Pedestrian.tv, one viewer was even streaming the episode live on Instagram and before long links to a ripped version began circulating on Reddit and the dark web.

Users circulating the material claimed to have accessed it from HBO Nordic’s online streaming platform.

The mishap isn’t the first internal issue for HBO - episode four of the current series was leaked by the broadcaster’s distribution arm in India earlier this month, leading to the arrests of four people.

It could prove especially embarrassing for HBO if it turns out the Spanish service was the source of the latest leak, as the US broadcaster has stepped up its already uncompromising approach to tackling illegal downloading and streaming this year.

Series seven of Game of Thrones has seen the broadcaster send warning letters to internet service providers, disclosing the IP addresses of customers known to be watching and sharing illegal rips of the episodes.

Despite the leaks, and a major hack of HBOs servers which saw episode details shared online, series seven of the fantasy show has still been enjoying bumper ratings.

The most recent instalment Eastwatch broke GoT records, attracting 10.7 million viewers on the night of its broadcast.

Standard Online has contacted HBO for comment.

Game of Thrones series seven will air on Mondays at 2am and then again at 9pm on Sky Atlantic. You can also watch new episodes on Now TV