Walda Bolton


 * This article is about granddaughter of Walder Frey, for other uses see Walda Frey (disambiguation).

"Lord Walder let me choose any of his granddaughters and promised me the girl's weight in silver as a dowry, so I have a fat young bride."

- Roose Bolton

Walda Bolton, née Frey, better known as Fat Walda, is a recurring character in the fourth and fifth seasons. She is the new wife of Roose Bolton, the Lord of the Dreadfort. She is portrayed by Elizabeth Webster.

Background
Walda is a member of House Frey and a granddaughter of Lord Walder Frey.

Season 3
During the wedding feast of Edmure Tully and Roslin Frey, Lord Bolton recounts to Catelyn Stark and Ser Brynden "Blackfish" Tully how Lord Walder Frey proposed him to marry one of his granddaughters and offered her weight in silver as dowry. Lord Bolton then adds he chose the fattest bride available, which has made him very rich.

Season 4
"A pleasure, mother"

- Ramsay Snow to his new step-mother.

Walda travels north with her new husband to the Bolton's ancestral castle: The Dreadfort. She is clearly intimidated by her new surroundings and greets her step-son Ramsay with a meek "hello", even though Ramsay greets her politely, calls her "mother" and kisses her on the cheek.

Season 5
Walda travels to Winterfell with Roose, Ramsay, and others from the Bolton household. She is there to greet Ramsay's betrothed, Sansa Stark.

At a "family" dinner, Ramsay remains polite toward Walda, filling her cup with wine, to which Walda thanks him with suspicion. Walda tries to sympathize with Sansa, saying it must be difficult being in a strange place, which is somewhat what Walda is experiencing herself. Sansa firmly reminds her that Winterfell isn't a strange place; it's her home, and expresses that she thinks it is the people who are strange. When Roose senses that Ramsay is getting too smug for his own good, he prompts Walda to announce that she is pregnant and that signs are it's a boy, much to the distress of Ramsay and the satisfaction of Sansa.

Ramsay later confronts Roose about the news, expressing his concern of his inheritance to The North, in the event that the child is a boy. Ramsay also takes several jabs at Walda's weight, and ponders how Roose was able to consumate his marriage. However, Roose assures that Ramsay is and will remain his son and heir, and is to succeed him – although he maintains his implied threat that Ramsay had better behave himself if that is to remain the plan.

In the books
In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, Fat Walda is the second of three daughters of Merrett Frey and Mariya Darry. Merret is himself the ninth son of Lord Walder. She is known for her gluttony, hence her nickname, which her father considers shameful, though less shameful than her older sister Amerei, known as "Gatehouse Ami" for her blatant promiscuity.

Lord Walder taunted Merrett that Walda is "a sow in silk", her weight being the only reason Roose married her. He remarks that the Freys would have had the same alliance at half the price if "the little porkling" put down her spoon from time to time.

She is described as a round pink butterball of a girl, with watery eyes, a huge bosom and limp yellow hair. Her voice is thin and squeaky. She is fifteen years old when she marries Roose. Walda has a giggling, fun-loving, even charming personality, and is known for cracking bawdy jokes. It is loosely implied, however, that this is simply an outward persona that she affects to fool others into thinking she is harmless, when she is actually very intelligent - some of her bawdy jokes can actually be quite witty.

When Roose stays in Harrenhal, Walda writes him letters almost every day, all the letters are the same: "I pray for you morn, noon, and night, my sweet lord, and count the days until you share my bed again. Return to me soon, and I will give you many trueborn sons to take the place of your dear Domeric and rule the Dreadfort after you." Arya Stark is present when Roose receives one such letter, but he may have never responded to any of them. Roose tells Arya to burn Walda's love letters, though this is not particularly significant, as Roose burns all of his personal correspondence to prevent his enemies or rivals from reading it.

Fat Walda attends the Red Wedding and sits next to Catelyn Stark. It is Fat Walda who tells Ser Wendel Manderly, while Catelyn overhears, about her grandfather's dowry offer to Lord Bolton. She is one of the many Frey girls that King Robb Stark politely dances with during the festivities.

Walda is fully aware that Roose chose to marry her instead of another Frey girl - such as Fair Walda, granddaughter of Stevron Frey - simply so he could get her weight in silver, but nonetheless she is very grateful to him, as marrying the head of a powerful House drastically elevated her social standing. Roose initially thought Walda would be an annoying distraction, but later says that despite himself he has become oddly fond of her. His first two wives were silent and still when he had sex with them, but Walda makes a lot of noise and openly enjoys it, which Roose finds somewhat endearing.

On one occasion Ramsay, while talking to his father, refers to Walda as "your fat pig wife" - making it clear he does not care much for his stepmother.

Roose never announces that Walda is pregnant. The only reference to her pregnancy is in the last of Theon's chapters in the fifth book, when Theon sees Roose Bolton entering the Great Hall at Winterfell accompanied by his plump and pregnant wife.