The lyrics are provided by George R. R. Martin in the original novel; Ramin Djawadi composed the tune's music in 2012, at the request of the series creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and the recording, by The Hold Steady, was arranged by Tad Kubler.

The US indie rock band The Hold Steady recorded "The Bear and the Maiden Fair" for season 3.

Brienne and Jaime's captors (who include musician Gary Lightbody from Snow Patrol, in a cameo appearance) sing the song in episode 3 of that season ("Walk of Punishment"), and The Hold Steady's recording is played over the end credits.

The three most prominent examples in the text are the duos of Daenerys Targaryen and Ser Jorah Mormont, Sansa Stark and Sandor Clegane, and Jaime Lannister and Brienne of Tarth.

However, the cliche is slightly subverted in the narrative, since Daenerys does not desire Jorah Mormont romantically, and she even banishes him at one point in the story after she discovers his secret espionage.