Jennifer Aniston, Bryan Cranston and Christina Hendricks all changed their style as soon as they had left long-running TV roles. So Game of Thrones fans were surprised to see Harington in the Wimbledon crowd with a shaggy do just like Jon Snow’s – could this be a hair-raising spoiler?

WARNING: don’t read this if you aren’t completely up to date with Game of Thrones, because it deals with some pretty big season-five spoilers. And, for that matter, don’t read this if you are completely up to date with Game of Thrones either, because it’ll probably end up ruining season six for you.

Now, for the two remaining readers, here’s a potted history of Kit Harington’s hair. First, Kit Harington had short hair. Then, Kit Harington was cast as Jon Snow in Game of Thrones and found himself contractually obliged to grow his hair out. Then, Kit Harington spent several years complaining to everyone about how he wasn’t allowed to cut his hair. Then Jon Snow died, and Kit Harington showed up at Wimbledon with long hair.

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That last point shouldn’t have happened. If you’re the star of a long-running TV show, the done thing is to distance yourself from your character as cathartically as possible the instant your contract ends. Bryan Cranston, who shaved his head to play Walter White, couldn’t wait to grow his hair out after Breaking Bad ended. John Cryer, who appeared to spend years hiding his receding hairline with an embarrassingly conspicuous spray-job, shaved it all off and grew a beard when Two and a Half Men ended. Christina Hendricks went blond when Mad Men finished and, as far as anyone can tell, Vincent Kartheiser has so far resisted the urge to keep shaving Pete Campbell’s aggressive widow’s peak into his head every single morning. They had all been shackled to these characters for a number of years, so of course they wanted change.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest No shampoo north of the wall. Photograph: c.HBO/Everett/REX

By rights, Kit Harington should have done the same thing. He has made a point of telling people that he’s absolutely not returning to Game of Thrones, but his refusal to cut his hair is leaving room for speculation. If he isn’t, it’s not helping his career – Jennifer Aniston had to work for years post-Friends to prove that she was more than just a vehicle for a haircut, and she ditched the Rachel long before the show even ended.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Rachel, as worn by Jennifer Aniston. Photograph: NBCUPHOTOBANK / Rex Features

So right now Harington should be turning up to events with a mohawk, or cornrows, or anything else that will help stop the frothiest end of the internet from filling up with Game of Thrones theories about how Jon Snow actually survived his stabbing and is now palling around with that white walker from episode eight, or is a dog, or whatever.

The fact that he hasn’t could mean one of three things. One, that Snow really did survive his stabbing and Harington really will star in Game of Thrones season six. Two, that Harington needs longer hair for his role in Brimstone, the film he’s currently shooting. Three, that Harington just prefers to have his hair nice and long, because that way he can pretend he’s in a Timotei advert whenever he swishes it around.

If his hairdo is for a film, at least we’ll know before long. Movie actors have to change their looks on a month-by-month basis, so we’ll get our confirmation if Brimstone wraps and Harington cuts his hair short to play an accountant, or spikes it up to play a thug, or layers it into an elaborate grown-out bob to play Rachel from Friends. But what if he doesn’t? What if he always keeps his hair like that? Will it mean that Brimstone is just an elaborate front for Game of Thrones season six, and that he’s actually filming all his scenes as we speak? What if we never find out whether Jon Snow is dead or alive? Will we have to read even more stories like this obsessing about the hidden meaning of a man’s haircut? Probably. I did warn you not to read this.