Musician Pauly Fuemana, frontman for the band OMC, died this morning at North Shore Hospital following a short period of illness.

His family was expected to issue a statement later today.

In 1995 OMC (Otara Millionaires Club) shot to fame with the single How Bizarre which reached number one in New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and parts of Europe.

OMC moved between three and four million copies of their album, also titled How Bizarre, making it New Zealand's biggest-selling record.

The band broke up in 2000. They reformed in 2007 and released a single 4 All of Us, featuring actor Lucy Lawless.

Source.

From TVShowsOnDVD: [...] Today Universal has announced a new repackaged re-issue of Battlestar Galactica - The Complete Series. Studio material about the new releases say that this version of "The Complete Series also includes the unrated, extended feature-length movie, Battlestar Galactica: The Plan." Pictures of the new "unlimited" packaging aren't available just yet, but the studio descriptions say the DVD will be in "Slim Snap Cases with an Outer Box" and the high-def Blu-ray version will be "Digipaks with an Outer Box".

A note for German speaking fans: for the first time the complete seasons of "Xena" will be available in German translation on DVD. The DVD's are distributed by www.dvdtainment.de.

Click here to see the new box set.


News submitted by Jürgen.

My farewell blog
Submitted by Gareth Hughes on Fri, 29/01/2010 - 09:55

[...]
 
Much of my early work for the campaign was planning, researching and meeting various people to get their ideas on how we could run the most effective campaign possible. Approaching high-profile New Zealanders to become Sign On ambassadors and the face of the campaign was interesting, exciting, and a little daunting too. I was pleasantly surprised by the level of enthusiasm immediately demonstrated by the budding faces of Sign On, and we ended up with a great, large team of trusted, high profile Kiwis from really diverse backgrounds. Actors, business people, mums, sports stars, a scientist... they all contributed hugely, from writing opinion pieces in newspapers, to dressing up as nurses at climate emergency stalls, to school visits, to meeting climate impact victims, to giving speeches, lobbying politicians, using their voice to speak up in the media and of course appear in a TV ad that brought the urgency of the issue direct into people's homes. They all stuck their necks out. Some even very nearly got them chopped off. Lest we forget John Key's politically dense comments about how Keisha Castle-Hughes should stick to acting.

I was pretty anxious when we officially launched the campaign at Lucy Lawless' house - what reception would we get in the media? Would people get the campaign? Would people actually Sign On? And would we be able to actually get that beautiful, antique and heavy-as-hell boat into Lucy's pool for a photo shoot? It all went well: got the boat in (despite Rhys Darby trying to tip it over) and the reaction from both the public and media was overwhelming.

[...]

A simple, clear message was a mantra of the campaign team. However Lucy Lawless said it best: there is no Planet B.

[...]

If there is one image that for me sums up the campaign, it's the photo of thousands of people marching in Auckland on the Planet A march just days before the start of the Copenhagen talks. It was incredible to see up to 5,000 marching in Auckland and 2000 marching in Wellington making the day the single biggest climate event ever in NZ's history. It's so empowering to be walking shoulder to shoulder with other people calling for a positive solution - C'mon John the climate needs us. The Planet A march was followed by a concert in Myers Park with Opshop, Midnight Youth, Don McGlashan, Lucy Lawless and Band, the Sami Sisters, and the irrepressible Rhys Darby as MC. For me, it truly was a moving experience when everyone got on stage and sang John Lennon's Instant Karma, with reworked lyrics, "...and we all Signed On, like the moon, and the stars and the sun." There was little more we could do to influence the talks in New Zealand, now it was up to the delegates at Copenhagen.

[...]

Source.


News submitted by Barbara Davies.

In the new Starz' series Spartacus: Blood and Sand Lucy Lawless portrays the deceptive Lucretia and John Hannah plays her power-hungry husband Batiatus, the owners of a gladiator school. Financially falling on hard times, Batiatus buys a new slave named Spartacus hoping he will turn into a star gladiator, but Lucetia fears that he can not be tamed and will bring misfortune to both of them.

With Xena: Warrior Princess in Lucy Lawless' resume and The Mummy in John Hannah's, both actors are used to the extensive green screen that is used for the TV series. I spoke with them at the TV Critics Association about their new venture into ancient Rome.

Does this, in any way feel thematically like a homecoming, or does it feel completely different to what you were doing on Xena?

Lucy Lawless: Tonally completely different, the fighting, the technology, everything has changed so much. I don't recognize the fights at all, the way they do them is foreign to me.

This show is appealing very strongly to two very extreme sensibilities with the sex and violence.

Lucy Lawless: Do you think? I think maybe that's really fundamental to human life. Maybe we're just in denial about that, but I think it's visceral.

You and John have a scene where you are using slaves as foreplay, for lack of a better description. How do you shoot a scene like that? Do you giggle through it?

Lucy Lawless: John doesn't do anything with a straight face. The minute the camera is stopped, he's laughing. You laughed through 13 episodes, didn't you? He's a very serious actor.

John Hannah: All that stuff is really difficult, but it's as choreographed and as physically composed as the fight scenes. From an individual human level, it's kind of embarrassing and a bit strange, but to create a world which is so visceral, so real, so basic and so different from our society, our civilization, and then to get coy abut that kind of thing [seems silly]. It would just be a tragedy for the whole production to not embrace that.

Click here to read the full interview.

FRAZIER MOORE, AP Television Writer

Published: 12:02 p.m., Thursday, January 21, 2010

NEW YORK (AP) -- "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" isn't exactly put-your-feet-up-and-relax television.

Premiering on cable's Starz network at 10 p.m. EST Friday, this new action-adventure series grabs you with its raciness, derring-do and visual pizazz.

It's based on the real-life Thracian slave-turned-rabblerouser from the first century B.C. (and, a couple of millenniums later, on the Stanley Kubrick film starring Kirk Douglas). But more, this TV reimagining teems with the sort of fabulousness that thrilled, inspired and grossed out fans of Zack Snyder's digitized masterpiece, "300."

Like that 2006 film, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" is a blend of hyper-realism and epic fantasy where, during battle, ragged streams of a victim's spilled blood pause lazily in mid-air before soaking the ground.

It's a world where brawny gym rats clad themselves in circa-B.C. thongs, or less; where steamy trysts and orgies are the rage; where even leading lady Lucy Lawless ("Xena: Warrior Princess") has her moments in the buff.

One spicy scene finds her, as Lucretia, about to get romantic with husband Batiatus (John Hannah), a Roman sports impresario whose "ludus" -- an extreme training camp for gladiators -- is where Spartacus is enslaved. Lucretia and Batiatus are hot for each other, that's clear. But to get things started with maximum ease, each spouse calls upon an attendant to supply the needed foreplay.

In short, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" is a series guaranteed to make you sit up and take notice.

Click here to read the interview with Lucy & Andy

News submitted by Adi.

Starz has posted Lucy's responses fans submitted earlier this month...

1. What you think the best and worst qualities or characteristics are in Lucretia? (Czarina) Lucretia's worst characteristic is that she is a liar... the ultimate liar. She's also very venal. Her best quality -- well, her best qualities ARE her worst qualities, because she's so good at them. She's the most talented liar and no one is more persuaded by money.

Click here to read Lucy's responses to all 10 questions.


News submitted by Lori Boyles.

Red carpet premiere of the new Starz series "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" January 14, 2010 - Billy Wilder Theater In attendance: Lucy Lawless, Andy Whitfield, John Hannah, Peter Mensah, Manu Bennett & Erin Cummings.

Click here to watch the video.






News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Actress LUCY LAWLESS is calling on movie bosses to adapt XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS for the big screen - because she fears fans will lose interest in the fantasy series if it's revived for TV.

The New Zealand-born star is best known for playing the warrior pin-up in the cult programme, which she is desperate to see brought back to life as a feature film. She tells Out.com, "I love that character. I would do it if it was a movie. I doubt I would do it as a TV series. I can't see how you would make it fresh.

"By the time somebody does come up with that I'm just going to be too old. And I'm really sad about that. I feel like it's a completely wasted franchise."

Source.



News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Starz has released the second episode of Season 1

Sacramentum Gladiatorum

Enslaved in gladiatorial school, the newly christened Spartacus must try to suppress his desire for vengeance when his new master promises to reunite him with his wife.

Credits | Official Page | Promo Pics | Promo Video | MaryD's Episode Review

Lucy appeared on The Wendy Williams Show on 26 January 2010 to promote Spartacus Blood and Sand.
Screencaptures and Video created by Roger.

Click here for video and screencaptures

Lucy appeared on The Wendy Williams Show to promote Spartacus Blood and Sand - 26 January 2010.

Click here to watch the video.

Folks in US and in Canada can enjoy Spartacus podcasts for free on iTunes, as well as the documentaries Starz aired on their YouTube Channel as well as during promoting the show. Altogether there are 11 files you can download at the moment, including trailers, interviews, San Diego Comic Con highlights and the first episode, "The Red Serpent". Pull up iTunes, type in Spartacus and select the results to take to the podcast. News submitted by Jane.


Netflix features Spartacus for their instant queue to stream on your desktop available free if you have a subscription. 

News Release Issued: January 26, 2010 4:47 PM EST

Record Audience of 3.3 Million Powers Weekend Debut of New Starz Original Series, 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand'

ENGLEWOOD, Colo., Jan. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Updated figures for the series premiere of "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" indicate that more than 3.3 million total viewers* tuned in for episode one of the new Starz Original, a record performance for a series debut on the premium pay TV network.

Based on live plus same-day DVR viewing, the Friday night 10PM ET/PT airing on Starz drew a 2.1 HH rating (661,000 viewers) and Encore a 1.2 rating (580,000 viewers), or more than 1.2 million viewers combined. An additional 430,000 viewers (1.6 HH rating) watched at 11PM ET/PT on Starz.

The 3.3 million viewership figure includes three additional weekend airings on Starz and Encore with same-day DVR usage. Figures from other Starz channels, additional DVR usage, starz.com viewership and on-demand/online previews with affiliates are expected to grow that figure well past 4 million total viewers.

With a gross average viewing audience of more than 2.5 million for the six Starz/Encore airings, Stephan Shelanski, executive vice president, programming for Starz Entertainment commented, "This is the most successful premiere in the company's history. We are very gratified to see that our excitement and faith in the series - already renewed for a second season - has been matched by initial demand. This show is unlike anything ever seen on television, and we are confident that passion for the series will grow as the character development and incredible story arcs unfold."

Post-premiere episodes of "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" debut on Starz on Fridays at 10PM ET/PT with an additional airing on Sunday nights at 10PM ET/PT.

About "Spartacus: Blood and Sand"

Produced by Rob Tapert, Sam Raimi, Joshua Donen and Steven S. DeKnight, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" is the most highly anticipated original series in the history of Starz. The 13-episode hour-long drama was renewed for an epic second season prior to the series premiere on January 22, 2010.

FM1021 in Milwaukee, WI is advertising Lucy as a guest on their Kramp & Adler morning show this Thursday.

The interview will most likely be posted on their website.

Click here to visit their site.




News submitted by Colleen.

Disclaimer: The show has already been renewed for a second season, so no hand wringing over the ratings is necessary!

I don't really have enough historical data for shows on Starz to handicap the premiere of Spartacus: Blood and Sand on Starz that averaged .659 million viewers and a 0.3 adults 18-49 rating.  A simulcast on Encore drew an additional .578 million so that's a total of 1.237 million.  If that was all on Starz I'd say that was pretty good.

Even just the .659 million might look good after a Crash season two finale that scored a 0.0 adults 18-49 rating and 94,000 viewers!

We'll have to see what the numbers look like when its not simulcast on Encore.

numbers via @TravisYanan

Source.

News submitted by Lori Boyles.

A TV programme described as the most sexually explicit ever made is expected to hit UK screens this summer.

Spartacus: Blood And Sand debuted in the US last week and features full-frontal nudity and sex scenes, as well as graphic violence.

The series focuses on the Roman gladiator Spartacus, who led a major slave uprising against the Roman Republic.

The cast includes Four Weddings And A Funeral star John Hannah, as well as Lucy Lawless, who is best known for her role as Xena: Warrior Princess.

Speaking about the series, Lucy said: "I think a lot of people are going to be shocked and they are going to shut off their televisions.

"And I absolutely encourage that because if they're shocked by the first few episodes, it ain't going to let up. But for the people who have the stomach for it, this is a bloody good yarn."

A second series of the show was commissioned before it even premiered on cable channel Starz in the US. It hasn't been confirmed yet which UK channel will be daring enough to screen the drama.

Click here to read the article.

Lucy called in to the Phillips and Company show disguising her voice initially, then giving an interview about a variety of issues. The hosts have loved Lucy since Herc, they discuss her comedic roles, then talk about Lucretia.

Click here to listen to the podcast of the show.



News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Rochester, NY's 13WHAM added it's morning show segment of the Lucy & Andy interview from last week's PR blitz.

Click the following link and scroll to the bottom to find the video Lucy Lawless & "Spartacus" (8:50).

According to their website, Lucy will be on the WJBQ Morning Radio Show sometime next week. "Lucy Lawless, yes, Zena Princess Warrior has a new show on STARZ, "Spartacus!" We will chat with her next week about that! "

It's been a while since I've seen Xena spelled like this. :D

Watch the show's website for the exact date to be announced.

Starz' new series Spartacus: Blood and Sand is a Xena reunion wet dream. Sam Raimi and Robert Tapert are producing the series with Lucy Lawless as Lucretia, the wife of the owner of a gladiator camp. The show promises pay cable level blood and sex, and yes, nudity all around. We joined a cluster of reporters clamoring for the scoop from Lucy Lawless over the summer. 

Q: What is Lucretia doing in relation to Spartacus' eventual rebellion? 

Lucy Lawless: She takes up with one of the gladiators, and he's in love with a slave and the stakes are so high because if Lucretia finds out that her lover has a genuine love for her slave, it's going to be curtains and she's going to have a new wig. I'm always wearing these wigs, kind of a Roman power thing. She's red and then you see she's blonde. 

Q: Was that fun or a pain? 

Lucy Lawless: Look, if it's good for the show then I don't even question it. It's whatever the role needs. It's kind of a pain actually. If I really thought about it, it would be a pain but there's nothing I can do.

Click here to read the full interview.

News submitted by Barbara Davies.

People.Com's I [heart] celebs segment posted a video of Lucy admitting to a dirty little secret.

This one's too funny!

Click here to watch the video.





News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Lucy Lawless is attracting a lot of attention for her latest character -- not that the New Zealand actress isn't used to recognition.

Lucky for the cast, Spartacus is a thrilling mix of gritty violence and graphic imagery to distract viewers from any blemished bodies.

In fact, with the world of gladiators largely produced in post-production, one might assume it a challenge for actors.

"We don't think about it at all; your imagination kind of fills in the blanks but its just gorgeous to see the finished product," said Lawless.  "It's not like Avatar, where the whole world is CGI.

"We have really big, practical sets that you can climb up and balconies -- it's really solidly constructed -- so it's not all imagined; not playing everything to a tennis ball on a stick like we used to in the old days."

No matter how it's put together, Spartacus seems destined to be Lawless' third sci-fi success. Starz, the series' U.S. distributor has already ordered a second season.

It seems that in 2010, audiences are as fascinated by gladiators as ever.

"It satisfies some sort of blood lust we have," said Lawless of the series' timeliness.

"(Even) if you took away all the boobs and all the blood and all the special effects, it's just a thrill ride from start to finish."

Click here to read the full article.

News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Added scans of a Lucy interview that was published on the Canberra Times of 9th of January (Canberra, Australia).  They used an older picture of Lucy, the interview itself is the same as the "Tribune News" one of 4th of January.

Click here to see the scans.


Scans submitted by Leila.

Ep 102 'Sacramentum Gladiatorium' - Enslaved in gladitorial school, the newly christened Spartacus must try to suppress his desire for vengeance when his new master promises to reunite him with his wife. USA - 2010 - TVMA

Click here to watch the preview.

Chicago Tribune - 24 January 2010

Celebrity Traveler - Lucy Lawless

TV star loves to travel with true crime novels and her iPod, and has been stuck at O'Hare

Though Lucy Lawless is best known for playing the title character in "Xena: Warrior Princess," she once made a living as the host of a travel show for Air New Zealand. The program was shown on the airline, as well as on television in Asia, Australia and her native New Zealand. "I got to cover some amazing places," said Lawless, 41. "I am so thankful I got to see New Orleans at its most wonderful. I went back the Thanksgiving after Hurricane Katrina hit, and it was heartbreaking. It's such a great city." Lawless can be seen in the new Starz series "Spartacus: Blood and Sand."

Q: What is your favorite vacation destination?

A: Istanbul was really quite a place. We chartered a yacht many years ago and sailed up from the southwestern coast. That was probably my favorite holiday of all time. But I also really love going back to New Zealand. Queenstown is great. Marlborough is the gourmet breadbasket of the country, which makes it pretty appealing to me. It's full of artisans, goldsmiths -- just a really nice lifestyle in general. They have great wine there, and the water is so clean. They have the most amazing wasabi there; it's really sublime.

Read the full interview.

Rex features posted some terrific photos of Lucy & Andy from the NYC premiere of the Harrison Ford & Brandon Fraser movie Extreme Measures.

Click here to see the images.

StarTraksPhotos has more images of Lucy from The Pix Morning Show. There are additional images of Lucy with Nick Lachey.
Click here to see the images.

INF images has photos of Lucy at the studio before or after the filming of her interview.
Click here to see the INF images.




News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Although the new Starz series, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," may involve a lot of guys and gals running around and committing all sorts of swordplay, you should in no way take the fact that it's executive produced by Robert G. Tapert to indicate that it will in any way resemble earlier Tapert productions like, say, "Hercules" or "Xena." I mean, heck, if the warrior princess herself doesn't see any similarities, then anything you think you've spotted is strictly a case of looking too hard to find something that isn't there.

"It's totally different to me," said Lucy Lawless, who plays Lucretia on the show. "Completely different, tonally. The fighting, the technology, everything has changed so much. I don't recognize the fights at all. The way they do them is foreign to me."

Read the full article.

By Jenna Busch
posted: 22 January 2010 11:02 am ET

Love and Betrayal.

From warrior princess to a gladiator's mistress, Lucy Lawless is telling Wendy all about her new show, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" on the Starz network. Plus, Lucy is known for changing her hair and will tell Wendy if blondes really do have more fun.

Then, "Ugly Betty" star Mark Indelicato stops by!

Plus, Wendy serves up some advice for members of her studio audience during "Ask Wendy."

Don't miss it!

Source

News submitted by Barbara Davies

NY PIX Morning News Lucy Lawless

Airdate: 21 January 2010

Actress/singer Lucy Lawless joins us in the studio this morning to talk about her starring role in the new Starz series Spartacus: Blood & Sand, which premieres this Friday.

Spartacus: Blood and Sand is an upcoming Starz original TV series that focuses on Spartacus, a Roman gladiator, who later became the leader of a major slave uprising against the Roman Republic.

Watch Interview Video

Lucy Lawless is back on the small screen in Starz’ new series SPARTACUS: BLOOD AND SAND. Lawless joins Marc Istook in the Hollywood 411 studio to talk about recreating ancient Rome on a green screen set. She also shares the benefit of playing a woman in ancient Rome as opposed to a man where the women bare much less!

Airdate: 22 Jan 2010

Click here to view video

The New York Times has a great article about Lucy and the rest of the cast as they work out during their PR tour...

The Happy Warrior...

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif.

“IS my slave here?” Lucy Lawless asked a publicist while crossing the lobby of the London Hotel here. Ms. Lawless wore stiletto sandals that brought her frame above six feet. She glanced over her shoulder as the publicist took two paces for each of her strides. Hotel clerks and guests looked up or swiveled in their chairs to watch her pass.

“Ever since I cut my bangs again, people have been like, ‘Oh! Xena!’ ” she said, referring to “Xena: Warrior Princess,” the TV series in which she starred — with bangs — as an Amazonian vixen. With her skimpy armor and high-pitched battle cry, she kicked and karate-chopped her way to sci-fi cult status.

Near the elevators, the two women were intercepted by another publicist holding a bag of workout clothes and shoes for the actress, who promptly went to change into them.

Ms. Lawless was in town to promote “Spartacus: Blood and Sand,” a series on the Starz network where she — once again — plays a fearsome dominatrix from yesteryear. The show had its debut Jan. 22, and its production is very much a family affair: her husband, Robert Tapert, is an executive producer (as he was for “Xena,” where the couple met), and her daughter from her first marriage, Daisy, who is 21, works in the sound department.

Ms. Lawless, who is 41, also has two young children with Mr. Tapert, and the family has moved back to her native New Zealand from Los Angeles for the series. “Xena” was also filmed there.

Since that show wrapped in 2001, Ms. Lawless has done turns on “Battlestar Galactica” and “The X-Files” and has been raising her children, she said.

Like “Xena,” “Spartacus” is set deep in history and coated in fantasy. This time, Ms. Lawless plays Lucretia, a social climber in ancient Rome who favors orgies, back-stabbing and hot gladiators.

On the roof of the hotel, Ms. Lawless met up with several other Spandex-clad “Spartacus” cast members, including Andy Whitfield, who plays the title character, and Peter Mensah, who plays a gladiator trainer. They were there for a group workout.

Lesley-Ann Brandt, who plays Lucretia’s head slave, greeted Ms. Lawless with a hug. They danced together — pumping their arms and wiggling their hips — without music near a poolside cabana to keep warm.

Read More

From Show Patrol:

The makers of "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" splatter the screen with sex, violence and plenty of R-rated language, but you won't convince them that any of it is out of place.

"I take issue with you using the word gratuitous," star Lucy Lawless said. "In fact, all of us, the actors and writers, are very serious about why we do it. We do not want one single thing to be gratuitous; it's not what we're about."

Lawless plays Lucretia, a Lady Macbeth-like figure in Starz new series premiering at 9 p.m. Friday. It tells the story of Spartacus, the gladiator who eventually leads an uprising against the Roman empire.

So why all the sex?

"It seems relevant to that time and what a sort of volatile, crazy world," said newcomer Andy Whitfield. "Actually, it would be inauthentic to not go there."

Read the full interview.

iesb.net interviews Andy Whitfield.

Q: Did Lucy Lawless give you any advice about what it's like to carry a show like this?

Andy: I never realized I was carrying it until about half-way through. I just always assumed it was an ensemble thing, where I was just on the poster. I guess I was in a little bit of denial. I came to acting late, just a few year ago, and it's not something I ever wanted. I guess I've overcome that by enjoying the process and the work. Obviously, Lucy's been through it before.

More images of Lucy and Andy from the NYC premiere of Extreme Measures.

Zimbio: Premiere, After Party, AP Images, StarTraks, Corbis, Bruno Press, INF Events

Photos of Lucy & Andy out and about at AP Images.




News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Dennis Hensley interviews Lucy Lawless, Andy Whitfield, and Rob Tapert at the LA premiere of Spartacus: Blood And Sand.

Click here to watch the video.

The Inside Reel Interviews Lucy Lawless and Andy Whitfield for the Starz Original Series "Spartacus: Blood and Sand." Lucy and Andy discuss what makes their characters so unique and exciting.

Click here to watch the video.

The Spartacus team is well aware the series can't survive on lust, gore and ancient eye candy alone. "Viewers won't keep returning just to see two gladiators beat the crap out of each other in the arena," DeKnight says. "Basically, we're softies. At the core of our show is a sweeping drama and a passionate romance." Early in the first episode, Spartacus (Andy Whitfield) and his wife, Sura (Erin Cummings), are brutally separated by Roman soldiers who condemn him to die in the gladiator games and sell her off to a Syrian slave trader.

"It's Spartacus' all-consuming love for his wife that makes him survive against impossible odds," Whitfield notes. "It's a story so amazing you can't get your mind around it. I still stand back and go, 'This guy I'm playing actually built an army of slaves and took on the entire Roman Empire? Really?'"

Whitfield's own story ain't too shabby, either. A former engineer who hails from Wales, he only took up acting seven years ago--at the age of 30. Until then, he'd made his living as a facade specialist, scaling the exteriors of skyscrapers and bridges to spot architectural problems. "Finding Andy was like finding another Russell Crowe or Viggo Mortensen--a tough son of a bitch with soul," DeKnight says. "We really lucked out."

But the execs didn't push that luck when casting the plum female role, Lucretia, a desperate, social-climbing conniver married to Batiatus (John Hannah), the downwardly mobile owner of a gladiator school. They simply handed it to Tapert's internationally adored wife, former Xena star Lucy Lawless. "I keep being asked, 'Why are you doing the sword and sandals thing again?', but this is so different," Lawless says. "And who doesn't want to play Lady Macbeth?" (Click here to read our Q&A with Lawless.)

Read the full article

Lucy Lawless knows some viewers will be offended by her new series "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," premiering tonight at 10 on Starz.

"I think a lot of people are going to be shocked and they are going to shut off their televisions," Lawless said in a recent telephone interview from Los Angeles.

"And I absolutely encourage that because if they're shocked by the first few episodes, it ain't going to let up. But for the people who have the stomach for it, this is a bloody good yarn."

Lawless plays the conniving Lucretia, who owns the slave Spartacus (Andy Whitfield) with her husband, Batiatus (John Hannah).

"She does terrible things, but she does them out of desperation and need, which is how most people get involved in criminal activities," Lawless said. "She is venal, but she is also religious. She is full of contradictions, and my aim is to make her so real and so believable that the audience will say, 'Yes, you know what? I can see myself doing the same thing if I was in her shoes.' "

Click here to read the full interview.

Lucy Lawless Gets Down and Dirty

The former warrior-princess talks to IGN about her sexy new role in Spartacus: Blood and Sand, her demise on BSG, and playing a zero on Flight of the Conchords.

The actress chats about behaving badly in Spartacus, gayness in the ancient world, and whether or not she'll ever pick up Xena's sword again. By Noah Michelson

The first thing you notice when you meet Lucy Lawless -- even if you consider yourself 100% gay and completely immune to the charms of the opposite sex -- is how ridiculously, supernaturally gorgeous she is. The second thing you notice is how tall she is. And the third thing you notice (if you're not too captivated by the first two) is how easy and graceful her presence is. It's as if you could plunk her down anywhere -- a cocktail party, a Congressional hearing, Taco Bell -- and in five minutes she'd have the entire room under her spell.


Earlier this week the New Zealander, most famous for playing the titular role in the campy mid-'90s lesbian favorite Xena: Warrior Princess, sauntered through the halls of Out magazine oohing and aahing over cover shots of Lady Gaga and Donatella Versace and making jokes about "knowing a thing or two about what gays like" before sitting down to chat about playing the crafty, conniving Lucretia, who owns a gladiator camp with her husband, on the new series Spartacus. In the video above and the following interview, Lawless talks about behaving badly on screen, overdosing on simulated gore and sex, gayness in the ancient world, and whether or not she'll ever pick up Xena's sword again.

Out: Why were you drawn to Lucretia? Was it the chance to play a bad girl?
Lucy Lawless: Yeah, I never had the chance to play a bad girl before [smirks]. Why is that? Why is it that, you know, if you've got a bad girl in your script who're you going to call? Call Lucy. No, I was very drawn to this character because she's a whole lot of contradictions. She's very wicked and religious at the same time. She loves her husband more than life itself, almost as much as her own self. And she'd do anything to make him happy. So she's boffing a gladiator in order to get impregnated. She's having this really abusive relationship with Crixus the champion gladiator, and is also falling in love with him so she's very conflicted and playing a very dangerous game. Because, though Roman men could stop off to see a prostitute on the way home from the Senate, Roman women were not afforded the same freedom of exploration.


Read the full article


News submitted by Lori Boyles

HQ Screencaptures of Lucy from The Today Show and Live with Regis & Kelly are now online. Screencaptures created by Roger.

Live With Regis & Kelly

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The Today Show

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Lucy was on The Today Show and was interviewed about Spartacus.

The video is now available to view on AUSXIP Video. Created by Roger.

Click here to view

Lucy was on the show Live with Regis & Kelly 22 January 2010 with Jerry and Kelly (Regis was not there but Jerry O'Connell was the guest host with Kelly).

Lucy briefly discussed Spartacus Blood and Sand. Video by Roger.

Click here to watch video on AUSXIP Video

Lucy was on Entertainment Tonight in the US 21 January 2010. Roger has created some HQ screencaptures of the interview.

Lucy talks about filming the series, loving HBO’s Rome, how technology and 300 have inspired the creation of the show, as well as the different standards of Ancient Rome.

Click here to view the HQ Screencaptures (1920 X 1080)

Click here to watch the video

(Please note: the online version had more of Lucy than the televised version)

Received the following updates from Spartacus PR of upcoming interviews - mainly updates to interviews already listed but more info about them:

This Week

Friday, January 22, 2010 – live INTERVIEWS

Live with Regis & Kelly
Date: Friday, January 22, 2010
Time: 9a.m. – 10a.m.* ET / MST/ PT (Lucy interview scheduled during the final half hour )
*Please check your local listings.

Featuring:
LIVE Interview with Lucy Lawless of “Spartacus: Blood and Sand”

The Today Show
Date: Friday, January 22, 2010
Time: During the 10 o’clock hour, ET* *Please check your local listings to confirm.

Featuring:
LIVE Interview with Lucy Lawless of “Spartacus: Blood and Sand

Coming Up Next Week
“Wendy Williams” with Lucy Lawless will air sometime next week - a definite date will be posted tomorrow

“Live with Rachel Ray” will air in the next few weeks.

You can now listen to Lucy's interview from The Buzz on the show's website. Lucy called in to Afentra's Big Fat Morning Buzz to chat about Spartacus. A little show called Xena also came up...

Click here to listen to the interview.








News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Update: You can now read the transcript of the Q&A below.

--

fancast has sent me the code to follow the fancast Q&A with Lucy (and you can send your question directly from the form below!)

The chat is live Thursday, January 21 at 2:00 pm EST / 11:00 am PST, and the content is entirely fan-driven, everyone can feel free to send in their own questions.

Listen to Lucy calling in to the KFNS Martin Radio Show. She initially disguises her voice a little to throw the hosts, but once they realize it's her, Andy joins in on the conversation. Lucy, Andy and the hosts discuss Spartacus.

Click here to listen to the interview.

In this mini interview Lucy discusses Lucretia's motivations and notes that each episode will bring viewers something they haven't seen on TV before.

Click here to watch this video.






News submitted by Barbara Davies.

In case you haven't heard already, the new Starz series, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," has a lot of nudity in it. We're talking full-frontal, kids. Did I mention there's a lot of sex, too? And a lot of sweaty, grunting, oiled-up dudes grappling with each other? Moreover, there's a lot of bloody violence, which is made either more or less graphic by the fact that it's stylized, "300"-style, with slow-motion streams of blood that hang in midair after spurting out of a man's jugular. As star John Hannah puts it, "We're really pushing the boundaries." Last night, Sling.com chatted with John Hannah, Lucy Lawless, and Andy Whitfield about their new series, which premieres on Friday (and has Starz so excited that they've already ordered a second season).

The show got picked up for a second season. What was it like when you heard that?

Lucy: Oh, it's wonderful. Starz has got some cojones, man. They got behind us, boots and all. There's posters everywhere, and they put trailers before "Avatar" and before "Sherlock Holmes" -- really big movies -- and I'm really, really thrilled and grateful, and we want to do them proud to rebrand that station. They deserve it.

Actress/singer Lucy Lawless joins us in the studio this morning to talk about her starring role in the new Starz series Spartacus: Blood & Sand, which premieres this Friday.

Spartacus: Blood and Sand is an upcoming Starz original TV series that focuses on Spartacus, a Roman gladiator, who later became the leader of a major slave uprising against the Roman Republic.

Lawless plays the sexually voracious Lucretia, who takes the gladiator Crixus for a lover, but longs for a child she is so far unable to bear. She thinks Spartacus is an uncontrollable beast that has cost too much and fears he will bring misfortune upon the ludus.

The New Zealand native is most famously known for her title role as Xena the Warrior Princess and recently starred in the hit sci-fi show Battlestar Gallactica.

Following her run on Celebrity Duets, Lawless' singing career has launched with great success and has enjoyed back-to-back sold out concerts.

Spartacus: Blood and Sand premieres on Friday, January, 22 at 10pm on Starz. For more information, visit www.starz.com/originals/spartacus.

Click here to watch the video.




News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Lucy talks about filming the series, loving HBO's Rome, how technology and 300 have inspired the creation of the show, as well as the different standards of Ancient Rome.

Click here to watch the video.


News submitted by Lori Boyles.

Lucy Lawless' 'Spartacus': Blood, Sex And A Rockin' Yarn

Lucy Lawless has been at the center of whirlwind of promotional activity trying to make everyone aware that her provocative new series "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" is premiering Friday on Starz.

The former "Xena: Warrior Princess" star was in Pasadena at the Television Critics Association winter press tour Saturday where she chatted a bit with Fancast.com. She then called a few days later for follow-up from New York City where she is doing a flurry of television appearances and radio, print and online interviews.

"I'm doing everything," she said from New York Tuesday. "I'm really thrilled that we can give this show this big launch. I feel like, 'Oh thank God!' Let's put it out there and into the hands of the people and let's see how excited we can get them. I think it really can deliver."

"Spartacus," produced by Sam Raimi and Lawless's husband Rob Tapert, is already riding a wave of buzz because it is filmed in New Zealand almost entirely in CGI and features large doses of bloody violence, nudity and graphic sex.

"If you take away all the blood and sex, the special effects, you still got a rockin' yarn," the actress says. "They're great stories and very gracefully told. I knew that this was going to be a new force in television just like "Hercules" and "Xena" which brought Hong Kong action to television. This will do the same thing. It's edgy and intense.

For the 41-year-old Lawless, the role of Lucretia is a real acting feast.

"The role is just a knockout," she says. "My character is the ultimate manipulator and her ambition knows no bounds. She's full of contradictions. She loves her husband more than life itself, she'd go to the ends of the earth to please him even to the point of sleeping with a gladiator to try and provide my husband with a son."

Lucretia is the manipulative owner of a gladiator camp along with her husband, Batiatus (John Hannah) and is equal to her spouse in cunning. Among the gladiators they own is Spartacus (Andy Whitfield) who they hope will help them out of hard times by restoring them to their previous lofty status in the world of gladiator contests. Still, she thinks of Spartacus as an uncontrollable beast and fumes when her husband does things like play chess with him.

Full article

"Actors Lucy Lawless and Andy Whitfield, who star in the new Starz cable series "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," talk about their roles and swordplay."

Lucy and Andy talk about shooting the show, the news of the second season, Lucy's potential involvement with Caprica and more...

Click here to watch the video.




News submitted by Barbara Davies.

A good interview by Ellen Gray from Philly.com:

"All of us are nude every day," declared the famously frank New Zealander in an interview here last weekend to discuss her new series, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," which premieres tomorrow night on Starz.

SPARTACUS: BLOOD AND SAND. 10 p.m. tomorrow, Starz.

PASADENA, Calif. - It's not as easy as you might think to talk about nudity to an actress you've just seen topless on screen, engaging in the kind of sexual high jinks that make much of what we see on even premium cable seem tame, but Lucy Lawless went easy on me.

"All of us are nude every day," declared the famously frank New Zealander in an interview here last weekend to discuss her new series, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," which premieres tomorrow night on Starz.

Produced by Lawless' husband, Rob Tapert ("Xena: Warrior Princess"), "Spartacus" features the former "Xena" as Lucretia, wife of the gladiator school owner Batiatus (John Hannah) who acquires the newly enslaved Spartacus (Andy Whitfield).

A sort of ancient-Rome Lady Macbeth whose ambitions for her husband know few bounds, she's also remarkably free - by modern standards, at least - about sex, as is just about everyone else in "Spartacus."

Even Lawless admits being a little surprised by just how free.

"I've all week [in interviews] been defending" the series from suggestions that it crosses a line, she said, mimicking herself saying, " 'I take issue with the words "soft core" and "soft porn" or whatever.' And then I saw the premiere the other night, and went 'Oh, my God! That's what they were talking about!' So I have to be honest and say that I was a little surprised myself."

Lawless added that "the show finds its groove in about Episode 5. Every series takes a little while to figure out what's the tone of the show, where its boundaries are." Still, "they are really provocative. Even I, having been through 13 episodes . . . was quite provoked and shocked by the premiere. But it certainly lets anybody who's prudish or squeamish know this is not the show for you . . . If you're not up for Episode 1, you won't be up for Episode 13."

The actress, who's about to set a whole new standard for fitness among 41-year-old mothers of three, said, laughing, that "I think I would have been stressed by the idea of doing any form of nudity at any age." But "if you're an artist of any sort whatsoever - if it seems important to the role or telling the story, or authentic, or historically accurate, then I don't see that you would have an excuse not to do it."

As for Lucretia, "who wouldn't want to be playing a woman who's the rod in her husband's back and is pushing him to new highs, or new lows, depending on your point of view?"

Plus, "I knew this was going to be a new kind of television. I knew it from the way Rob talked about it, from the images and influences he was taking out of history and from modern technology," she said of the series, which Tapert describes as "a green-screen show" where all the exteriors are filmed indoors.

"What's the Buzz" segment from Yahoo!'s OMG: an interview with Lucy and Andy about shooting the series, their characters. Lucy also talks about moving back to New Zealand, her fans and the cast starving on set to stay in top shape.

Click here to watch the video.




News submitted by Barbara Davies.

From mnn.com: Our weekly roundup of eco-related celebrity news including the one actor who became a vegetarian to upset his parents.

"I believe there is a catastrophic change coming if we don't do something now," declares eco-advocate Lucy Lawless (pictured right) an ambassador for New Zealand Greenpeace who has an organic garden, recycles, and switched to CFL light bulbs at home. The former Xena: Warrior Princess is now playing Lucretia in Spartacus: Blood and Sand, debuting on Starz Jan. 22. Reminiscent of both 300 for its stylized look, freeze-frame violence and flying blood and HBO's Rome for its explicit sex and nudity, the 13-part series, already renewed for a second season, is co-produced by Lawless' husband Rob Tapert in New Zealand, where the production endeavored to be as green as possible. "No paper cups, no Styrofoam, virtually no heat on the stages," he says.

Rose just told me that she saw a preview of Entertainment Tonight for tomorrow and Lucy will be on the show.

Set those VCRs (PVRs...Tivo...whatever) :)

In addition to ET - Lucy is also scheduled for the following shows;

- ABC News Now (21 Jan 2010) (Lucy)
- LX New York - WNBC-TV(21 Jan 2010) (Lucy)

I just got an email with more info about the fancast Q&A with Lucy from Khermarin Sokan from Fancast:

I just wanted to pass along some exciting news I thought you and your Spartacus fans might be interested in--Fancast is hosting a live chat with Lucy Lawless! The chat is live Thursday, January 21 at 2:00 pm EST / 11:00 am PST, and the content is entirely fan-driven -- everyone can feel free to send in their own questions.

Just wanted to pass along-- thought it might be interesting for your fellow Spartacus fans!

Best,

Khemarin Sokan

For more info on this go to
http://www.fancast.com/blogs/2010/live-chat/live-chat-with-spartacus-blood-and-sand-star-lucy-lawless/a

A strong following by the gay community has propelled Lucy Lawless from Xena through Battlestar Galactica and onto her new series, Spartacus: Blood and Sand. Lawless will be the first to acknowledge and thank her fans for their support throughout the decades.

"They, along with the geeks, are my life," Lawless said. "I say that lovingly, along with geeks and nerds, [gays] are the most loyal fans and who will follow you and give your career such a solid platform for the rest of your life. I owe them a big thank you and they know that. God love 'em."

Read Full Article

News submitted by Mesh / Barbara Davies

Q&A: Lucy Lawless of 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand'

Lucy Lawless, on the blood, sex and gore-filled 'Spartacus,' and her former life as Xena.

Lucy Lawless says it's true: She was cast in Spartacus: Blood and Sand, an audacious new TV series for Starz, after sleeping with the producer. But don't get the wrong idea. "I've been married to him for a long time," she says with a laugh, "and he doesn't put me in anything he doesn't think I'm right for." Lawless, whose enduring claim to pop-culture fame is as ,em>Xena, Warrior Princess, is back on the airwaves in another stylishly made swords-and-sandals drama.

But Spartacus is so different from Xena, the 1990s TV sensation. Xena was campy and cartoon-like; Spartacus is brash and brutal, a marriage of soft-core sex and hardcore violence. Also, Lawless is a villain this time, not the hero. Set in the days of the Roman Empire, when gladiators fought to the death as entertainment for the masses, Spartacus is the story of a warrior slave who must survive not only his bloody battles in the arena, but also the deadly schemes of those around him.

Andy Whitfield, a British-born actor who's well-known to Australian audiences but a newcomer to the U.S., plays the title role. Lawless plays Lucretia, the cunning wife of the man who owns the gladiator camp where Spartacus is imprisoned. She is a wicked, wicked woman and will stop at nothing to gain status and ensure her survival. It's a different kind of character for Lawless. But her producer husband, Rob Tapert, who she met during the Xena years, was correct: She is right for it. "And I'm really grateful to have this second 15 minutes of fame," Lawless says. Spartacus: Blood and Sand premieres at 9 p.m. CT Friday, Jan. 22.

Read Full Interview

Warning: This review discusses the identity of the gay character in Spartacus: Blood and Sand.

First, let's talk loincloths.

Much ado has been made about the full-frontal female and male nudity on the new Starz show Spartacus: Blood and Sand, debuting this Friday, and the eye-candy is definitely there. But after all the hype and build-up, I confess I was a tad disappointed by this aspect of the show.

On the other hand, I can't quite stop thinking about the loincloths on all the men. It's impossible to watch the show and not be struck by all the impressive male bodies on display - and the attractive way those loincloths feature those bodies.

In the case of Spartacus's costume design, less is more, but sometimes a little more is more too.

But the great appeal of this show, for gay viewers and everyone else, is about much more than just the loincloths. All that other hype about how, like the movie 300, the show is filmed almost entirely in CGI and how "revolutionary" it all is?

Read Full Review

Windy City Times has an interview with Lucy

Lucy Lawless plays Lucretia in the upcoming Spartacus: Blood and Sand for the Starz network. Windy City Times called her up halfway around the world to get the scoop on the warrior princess' new project.

Windy City Times: G'day, mate! How's New Zealand this time of year?

Lucy Lawless: It's hot and muggy. It's been incredibly tropical.

WCT: It's the opposite here. You are done filming the first season of Spartacus, correct?

Lucy Lawless: Yes. You are all going to be disappointed but there are only 13 episodes.

WCT: Well, I watched three of them so far. Your part seemed smaller in the first one but is getting juicier each episode.

Read More

For those who have been thinking they couldn't watch the first episode without buying a subscription to Starz, think again. Starz has released the first episode "The Red Serpent" on their site. It's open to everyone (if you are over 17) and from all regions.

Click here to view online

Episode stills for the first episode are available in the Spartacus Image Galleries

The following was posted on V93.5 facebook page

Tomorrow on the breakfast club, join us as we interview former Xena star Lucy Lawless!!!!! She talks about the new STARZ series Spartacus!

Source

Lucy attended the New York premiere of Spartacus on 19 Jan 2010 and below are the images from the event (from Wire Image)

Click here for the images

More images off site:

- Getty
- Film Magic
- Wenn
- Globe Photos
- Life
- Rex Features
- Star Track Photo
- INF Events

The stars of 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand' spill the beans on their characters, casting, green screen and nudity

In this exclusive interview, Andy Whitfield (Spartacus), Lucy Lawless (Lucretia) and Executive Producer Steven S. DeKnight talked to me

Spartacus: Blood and Sand premieres this Friday, January 22nd on Starz!

Side note: This was a much longer interview but about halfway during the call, I noticed my cat chewing the cord that I use to record the audio. I quickly replaced the cord but missed a lot of great questions. You can thank my cat for that. And if you listen to the audio of the call, you'll be able to hear her "meowing" in the background. Ah... the pleasures of working at home.

Let's pick up the action...

Click here to read the interview and listen to the podcast.

News submitted by Lori Boyles.

From Star Magazine:

I LOVE LUCY!

Live Chat With 'Spartacus: Blood And Sand' Star Lucy Lawless
by Julie Zied

Join us for a live chat with 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand' star Lucy Lawless Thursday, January 21 at 2 pm et/11 am pt.

Named one of Fancast's "10 to Watch in 2010," the Starz series follows a slave, a rebel, and a gladiator in ancient Rome.

Executive produced by Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert, Lawless plays Lucretia, a manipulative owner of a gladiator camp.

With visual nods to films '300' and 'Sin City,' the high-budget 13-episode drama premieres on Starz Friday January 22 at 10 pm.

Learn how to how to chat with Lawless.

From TorchOnline's Spartacus review:

Review: SPARTACUS Slays (and Guts) the Competition

Posted on 19 January 2010 by Tim O'Leary, Associate Editor

Lucy Lawless Spills on Her Nudity-Filled Starz Drama, Spartacus: Blood and Sand
Written by Louis Virtel | 19 Jan 2010, 10:30 AM

With its two-punch powerhouse of Mad Men and Breaking Bad (which stars Pixar friend and Emmy champion Bryan Cranston), AMC remains the gold standard in television serials. But if Sterling-Cooper's chiseled sociopaths marked new creative vistas for basic cable, the pay-network Starz plans to splatter that view with entrails and bodily fluid via the new series Spartacus: Sand and Blood.

The show, which stars newcomer Andy Whitfield as the titular slave-cum-gladiator, is a fresh, "accurate" take on Ancient Rome, with all the frontal nudity and unscrupulous survival tactics of the time. Lucy Lawless, who war-cried for six seasons as the star of Xena: Warrior Princess, co-stars as the scantily-clad Lucretia. Movieline caught up with Lawless at the Television Critics Association panel in Pasadena to discuss the bold new series, which, despite not having aired yet, is already renewed for a second season.

Thanks to Spartacus: Blood and Sand's salacious hype, some might argue that its producers are trying to compensate for underwhelming scripts. Not so, says Lawless, who believes that the show would fail immediately if the show were just a bottomless bacchanal.

"We're asking you to buy into the rock 'n roll arena of fights, and to deal with the nudity"

"This cannot be ridiculous," said Lawless. "Then the whole premise of the show is blown. We're already asking you to buy into the operatic swirls of blood that hit the inside of your television screens every week. We're asking you to buy into the rock 'n roll arena of fights, and to deal with the nudity -- stuff that's historically accurate. So all the characters have to be really, really underplayed and really believable."

Furthermore, Lawless argues that viewers don't need to be told that a show is good. She says the quality is all there in front of them, amplified by sanguine explosions.

"If you take away all the blood and sex, the special effects -- you've still got a rockin' yarn," she said. "This is a great story and very gracefully told. People don't want to hear about how it's so well-written, but every character feels annihilation at any moment. And that's how it was in ancient Rome; it was not a kind society. They couldn't dumb themselves down with television. They were clawing for some kind of security or status."

As for embracing comparisons to Xena: Warrior Princess, Lawless says that being recognized is not a bad thing. In fact, even without her new show airing yet, people suddenly stop her more than ever.

"All I know is that now that my hair is this color again, I'm totally recognized," she said. "I cut my hair for a show. Now, all the sudden I'm in Florida [being recognized]. But I realize that's currency. Being recognized is not a bad thing in my line of business! I don't know why I didn't think of it before."

Source

Lucy is to appear on the 13WHAM News Morning. From their site:

"Check out who is coming soon to 13WHAM News This Morning, weekdays from 5-9 on 13WHAM and CW-WHAM!

Jan. 20 -- Kimberly Williams Paisley, Lucy Lawless"

Source


News submitted by Barbara Davies.

There are quite a few items for today, here's a list of the interviews:

• Lucy and Andy on AP Live. (Pictures on the left. Check for it in the scroll bar at the bottom if you don't immediately see it on the AP website.)
• The Chunga Show (Radio).
• Dave and Darren Show (Radio).

The gorgeous women of Spartacus are featured in an ad in Maxim Magazine alongside a full page ad of Andy Whitfield as Spartacus.

Click here to see the full size ad.






News submitted by Lori Boyles.

Starz Studios: Spartacus Blood and Sand - Go behind the scenes and on the set of the Starz Original series 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand.'

Starz posted a terrific 15-minute behind the scenes of Spartacus feature on their official YouTube Channel.

The feature has interviews with the lead actors as well as the show's creators. You can hear Lucy, Andy, Erin, Peter Mensah, Jai Courtney, Viva Bianca, Craig Parker, as well as producers Rob Tapert, Sam Raimi and Chloe Smith discuss the series. You can also hear from the stunt coodinator and set designer, a superb way to catch a glimpse of how this exciting show is being crafted.

Click here to see the video.


News submitted by Lori Boyles.

Getty Images has posted more images of Lucy and the cast from the 2010 Winter TCA Tour - Day 8. The photos show Lucy, Andy, John Hannah and Viva Bianca in good spirits. :D

Click here to see the images.

You can see Lucy in issue 7 from June-July 2009 of Good Magazine and other digital versions of popular publications on Zinio.Com the Digital Magazine website.

Zinio has pages from the Emmy Magazine as well as others. You will need Flash player to properly display the pages. Zinio will allow a limited amount of pages to be "blown up", but you can zoom on those pages to get a crisp view of the contents.

News submitted by Lori Boyles.

  Added photos of Lucy, Andy Whitfield and John Hannah from the 2010 TCA promotional tour for Spartacus: Blood And Sand.

Click here to see the images.

Added the Spartacus related articles from the January 15 and January 22 issues of Entertainment Weekly, People Magazine and TV Guide to the Spartacus gallery. Terrific photos and reviews from both these popular magazines.

Be sure to get your copies at the checkout lane!

Click this link to see the images.


Scans submitted by Lori and Roger.

Lucy's Sparty PR list has been updated to include the following shows:

- Philadelphia Daily News - Ellen Gray reporter
- ETOnline.com
- IGN Entertainment - Matt Fowler reporter
- TV Guide Network
- AM New York
- AP - Frazier Moore reporter
- out.com
- tvguide.com
- People
- Sirius radio - many different radio shows
- E! News
- MTV radio tour
- ABC News Now (20 Jan 2010)
- PIX Morning show - WPIX-TV (20 Jan 2010)
- fancast.com - live chat 2pm (20 Jan 2010)
- LX New York - WNBC-TV(21 Jan 2010)- ABC News Now

The full list of Lucy's upcoming interviews are:

- TCA Panel - 16 Jan 2010 (Lucy, Andy, Rob etc)
- Wendy Williams (Daytime Talk Show) - Jan 2010
- Rachel Ray (Next Week)
- Access Hollywood (date unknown)
- Extra (date unknown)
- Regis & Kelly - 22 Jan 2010
- The Today Show - 22 Jan 2010
- Philadelphia Daily News - Ellen Gray reporter (date unknown)
- ETOnline.com (date unknown)
- IGN Entertainment - Matt Fowler reporter (date unknown)
- TV Guide Network (date unknown)
- AM New York (date unknown)
- AP - Frazier Moore reporter (date unknown)
- out.com (date unknown)
- tvguide.com (date unknown)
- People (date unknown)
- Sirius radio - many different radio shows (date unknown)
- E! News (date unknown)
- MTV radio tour (19 Jan 2010)
- ABC News Now (20 Jan 2010)
- PIX Morning show - WPIX-TV (20 Jan 2010)
- fancast.com - live chat 2pm (20 Jan 2010)
- LX New York - WNBC-TV(21 Jan 2010)

You can watch Lucy's already completed interviews:

- NPR "Not My Job" Jan 2010 - Listen to Interview
- Good Day, LA - 12 Jan 2010 - Watch Video / Captures

Spartacus: Blood and Sand LA Premiere photos have been added to the Official Starz Spartacus Facebook account.

The images are of the cast and creators including Lucy Lawless, Joshua Donen, Steven S. DeKnight, Andy Whitfield, Rob Tapert, Sam Raimi, Viva Bianca, Erin Cummings, Katrina Law, Lesley-Ann Brandt and Peter Mensah.

Click here to see the photos.

AOL Television has an interview with Lucy - Lucy Lawless Speaks About Sexy 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand'
15 January 2009

Lucy Lawless graduates from a Princess to a Queen, playing the stunningly sensual gladiator school madam Lucretia in 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand,' an original movie on Starz airing January 22.

This is not a rehashing of the classic Kirk Douglas yarn, but a far more risque interpretation. In an interview with AOL TV, Lawless insisted the bloody brutality of the gladiators and "everything goes" sexual philosophy is historically accurate.

There are so many graphic sex scenes that some people may think this is soft porn. Do you agree?

I keep hearing that words soft porn and I really rally against it because a) it's historically accurate where there is nudity (during the Roman gladiator times) and b) it's used in the context of the story properly. All the actors are serious about their craft and they don't want to be viewed gratuitously. There were perhaps some scenes in the earlier first two episodes where we realized that it had gone too far and it had been cut out. In terms of the sex for my character, we wanted to keep everything pretty realistic. The scene where the servants prepare [us] for sex certainly tells you that you're not in Kansas anymore, doesn't it?! [Laughs] It's like nothing else. The Romans' relationship to sexuality, nudity, religion, to homosexuality, prostitution, to food was completely different to ours.

Read More

Lucy's interview for Access Hollywood is now on their website.

 Lucy Lawless talks with AccessHollywood.com's Laura Saltman about her new show, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," created by her husband, Robert Tapert, and how this show is a lot more racy than some of her better known roles.

Click here to watch

Lucy attended the premiere of "Spartacus:Blood And Sand" Series Premiere
January 14, 2010 - Billy Wilder Theater
Westwood Village, CA United States

Added images from Wire Image and PR Photos (licenced)

Added photos by Janna

Links to Photo sites with more pics

Click here to view Event page

Click here to view photos of the other cast

The TorchOnline has a fantastic interview with Lucy. Check it out.

Interview: On SPARTACUS, Lucy Lawless Cuts Loose (Even as She Tones it Down).

Lucy Lawless is not Xena.

On some level, we all know this; I interview actors all the time, so I definitely know they’re not the parts they play.

But when I interviewed Lucy at the Television Critics Association conference in Pasadena last July, I honestly wasn’t prepared for just how much she isn’t Xena.

Xena is somber, down-to-earth, and practical, haunted by her famous “dark” past; Lucy is cheeky, irreverent, and impish, always looking for an opportunity to cut it up.

But they have things in common as well: they’re both fiercely intelligent and very kind-hearted. And of course, they’re both statuesque and stunningly beautiful. At 41, Lucy looks sensational.

With Spartacus: Blood and Sand, a high-profile CGI-intensive retelling of the story of the ancient Roman slave that debuts next Friday on Starz, Lucy is showing the world yet another example of her considerable acting abilities.

She not the “star” of the show, but rather, a major supporting player. Lucretia, the wife of the owner of the training camp where Spartacus trains as a slave, is also very different from Xena: she’s flighty and superficial, at least at first, but also cunning and scheming. And as Lucy herself noted in our interview, she’s not particularly powerful, at least not at the beginning of the series.

Read Full Interview

Lucy Lawless Heats Up Spartacus
by Michael Logan January 14, 2010 02:11 PM EST

First came Xena: Warrior Princess. Then Battlestar Galactica. Now Lucy Lawless could be headed toward her third straight international mega-hit with Spartacus: Blood and Sand. The new Starz series, heavy on sex, rough language and slo-mo CGI gore, stars Wales export Andy Whitfield as the famed Thracian rebel and Lawless in the plum role of Lucretia, a desperate, social-climbing conniver married to the downwardly-mobile owner of a gladiator school (John Hannah). Here Lawless dishes with TV Guide Magazine about everything from her bare boobage (she does her first topless scenes ever in Spartacus!) to the separation anxiety she's feeling now that she's half a world away from her BFF, former Dancing With the Stars contestant Marissa Jaret Winokur.

Awesome show! You sure know how to pick 'em.

[Laughs] Not everybody thinks so! I keep being asked, "Why are you doing the sword and sandals thing again?" But this is so different. The opportunity to do this series was not to be taken lightly. And who doesn't want to play Lady Macbeth?

You're married to Rob Tapert, one of the exec producers of Spartacus and your former Xena boss. Did he beg you to be in this, or did you beg him?

He said, "I would love you to do this, but there's no pressure." Rob's great that way. It meant moving back to New Zealand, the place of my childhood, and, honestly, I was so happy living in Los Angeles with my little life and all my friends, that I wasn't really ready to stop adventuring. But I'm so glad that I'm doing Spartacus, and so grateful for the quality of the role. Only Rob knows what to do with me.

You really think that? Battlestar Galactica handed you an extremely cool part.
That's true. Well, yes, I guess when you put it like that. But this is certainly a more grownup role that I have in Spartacus. And it's going nowhere good, which I love. Lucretia is living in such moral peril. She and her husband are really on hard times, and they're in a society where there's no Social Security, where no one's going to help you out, so she's determined to claw her way up. She latches on to the Paris Hiltons of Rome to raise her social status. She wants to be with the pretty girls but she's older. She hasn't had children, which is a terrible pain for her--she's desperate to have a child!--and at every turn someone's rubbing her nose in it. And, of course, she's carrying on a secret affair with one of her husband's top gladiators. She's in a lot of pain much of the time and that's so much fun to play!

Read full interview

Battlestar Galactica's Lucy Lawless finally bares it all for her role as Lucretia, the rapacious wife of John Hannah's Batiatus, in Starz's upcoming Spartacus: Blood and Sand, and she's not shy about it. At all.

"It's a way of telling the audience, 'You ain't in Kansas anymore,'" Lawless said in a conference call Wednesday. "It certainly jolts you into a new reality where people had completely different relationships to their bodies and other human beings. Slavery, different attitudes to sexuality, prostitution, you name it. They thought of things differently, but essentially human beings haven't evolved so very much, so you're still able to relate to them."

The hourlong drama is a new take on the story of a Roman gladiator who eventually leads a slave rebellion against Rome itself. A kind of mixture of HBO's Rome and Zack Snyder's 300, the show is notable in part for introducing us to Lawless in the buff, beginning with the second episode. But there's a reason for it, she assures us.

Lucy's Sparty PR list has been updated to include the following shows:

- Rachel Ray (Next Week)
- Access Hollywood (date unknown)
- Extra (date unknown)

The full list of Lucy's upcoming interviews are:

- TCA Panel - 16 Jan 2010 (Lucy, Andy, Rob etc)
- Wendy Williams (Daytime Talk Show) - Jan 2010
- Rachel Ray (Next Week)
- Access Hollywood (date unknown)
- Extra (date unknown)
- Regis & Kelly - 22 Jan 2010
- The Today Show - 22 Jan 2010

You can watch Lucy's already completed interviews:

- NPR "Not My Job" Jan 2010 - Listen to Interview
- Good Day, LA - 12 Jan 2010 - Watch Video / Captures

The following is by JEANNE JAKLE San Antonio Express-News, also printed in The Houston Chronicle and available at the paper's website.

Spartacus enters new-series arena

Spartacus: Blood and Sand is easily the raciest of TV's midseason entries -- if only for the copious amounts of blood splashing on screen.

However, all that red stuff is only part of the TV spectacle that is Spartacus. The new Starz series, which premieres at 9 p.m. Jan. 22, is from a producing team that includes Spider-Man director Sam Raimi. It's packed with action, interesting characters, ripped physiques and strong drama.

This is a cast of striking unknowns -- a standout being the magnificently buff Andy Whitfield, who plays the title role -- as well as more seasoned names such as Lucy Lawless (Xena: Warrior Princess) and John Hannah (The Mummy).

[...]

If you're wondering whether women have a place amid all this testosterone, consider the scene-stealing Lawless as Lucretia, a kind of Lady Macbeth to her husband (Hannah).

He may be the monarch of the gladiator school, but she's the power behind the throne.

"The role is just a knockout. I'm so grateful to them for writing such brilliant women's relationships," Lawless said. "It's terribly deadly and very subtle."

Source

News submitted by Ross.

The late Heath Ledger was an ambassador and supporter of Australians in Film. A Scholarship has been established in his honor, to enable Australian actors to pursue their career in the U.S.  Jude Law, a great friend of Ledger, who appears in his last film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, was named as one of the Judges, along with casting director, John Papsidera (who cast Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight) and Susie Dobson, chair of the AIF.

A sold out benefit screening was held at the Ricardo Montablan theatre in Hollywood, featuring traditional Australian dishes, and thousands of dollars were raised to benefit the scholarship fund. [...]

One of the most spectacular soirees is hosted by entrepreneur Norby Walters at the fabulous Beverly Hills Hotel - aptly titled, "The Night of 100  Stars".  This is the 20th year that we have attended this extraordinary Oscar viewing party which includes a stellar mix of TV and movie actors, moguls and media, producers, paparazzi and assorted glitterati. We have wined and dined alongside such celebs as A-Listers Shirley Jones, Daniel Baldwin, James Cromwell, Laura Dern, Martin Landau, Kristy Swanson, Peter Bogdonovich and Frances Fisher to name a few. Last year, our tablemate was Lucy Lawless (Xena) who was unrecognizable without her black hair & bangs, but still a gorgeous Amazon.

Source

The following is from Sharon Delaney from Creation Entertainment:

Airing Spartacus Ep 3 at Xena Convention Feb 5-7!

SPECIAL SCREENING AT XENA CONVENTION FEBRUARY 5-7: "SPARTACUS BLOOD AND SAND"

Thanks to our friends at STARZ we will be screening the episode "Legends" starring LUCY LAWLESS in our theatre. Lucy's new show SPARTACUS airs weekly on STARZ. This series is rated TVMA and is unsuitable for those under 17. The episode will be screened at night on a complimentary basis for all our attendees!

This is the episode that is due to air that weekend on Starz.

AfterElton has a great interview with Lucy about Spartacus and Xena. Check it out:

Lucy Lawless is back!

Actually, she never really left. Since hanging up her chakram as Xena, Warrior Princess, in 2001, she's kept plenty busy, appearing in roles like the Number Three cylon on Battlestar Galatica and her crowd-pleasing runner-up finish on Celebrity Duets in 2006. She's also popped up in television guest spots on everything from The L-Word to CSI: Miami.

But now she's back to episodic television full-time, in Spartacus: Blood and Sand, a CGI-intensive retelling of the story of the rebel slave Spartacus, premiering January 22nd on the Starz network, a premium cable channel.

While her role as the wife of the owner of a gladiator school is very unlike that of Xena, and the show itself has a far more serious tone, Spartacus is very much another high fantasy series set in the ancient world. It was co-created (along with Spider-Man director Sam Raimi) by her husband Rob Tapert, also the man behind Xena.

Lucy says, "People in Hollywood were like, 'Why? Why are you doing that? Spartacus sounds like Xena again. It's like you're going backwards.' And I was like, 'It's really good. Really Good.' They couldn't know what I know about my husband."

Recently, I sat down with Lucy to talk about the show and her status as a gay icon. And while I wasn't at all surprised to find how eager she is to embrace her gay fans, I was pleasantly surprised by her irreverent, almost impish sense of humor.

Read Full Interview

Lucy fights back - The Daily Telegraph (Sydney)
13 January 2010

LUCY Lawless (pictured) has resharpened her sword after signing up for Spartacus: Blood And Sand, a series executive produced by her husband Robert Tapert.

Finding her inner-gladiator has been easy for the New Zealand actress who spent six years starring in Xena: Warrior Princess.

The actress plays Lucretia, who she describes as a ‘‘ kind of Lady Macbeth character’’ in the series, which premieres in the US on Pay-TV network Starz on January 22.

Shot on location in New Zealand, the one-hour drama also stars Andy Whitfield, who made a name for himself in the Shane Abbess-directed film Gabriel in 2007.

TV Guide has a fantastic article on Spartacus which looks at the show and also looks at the two stars of the show Andy Whitfield and Lucy Lawless.

Flesh & Blood - Spartacus Blood and Sand TV Guide 18-24 January 2010
Starz whips up the sex and violence for Spartacus, a graphic adaptation of the Roman slave myth.

A 2,000-year-old dead guy is about to change the future of television. Spartacus: Blood and Sand—the new Starz show about the famed Thracian rebel who led a revolt of 120,000 slaves against the Roman Empire—is the first series ever to be presented in the graphic-novel style that made the film "300" a worldwide box-office smash. That means violence and bloodshed galore—slashed throats, skin ripped from skulls, entire bodies sliced in half like overripe honeydews— all of it artfully done in balletic slo-mo, along with frontally nude gladiators, no-imagination-necessary sex scenes and wildly foul language. (We're talking enough C-words and F-bombs to make David Mamet faint.)

Already green-lit for a second season before it hits the air, Spartacus is so visually dazzling and complex that each episode requires 120 days for the editing and effects alone—in other words, this is the kind of stuff you'd pay to see at your multiplex. It's intended to shock and awe and shock some more, and the show's execs make no bones about it. "It was always our goal to push the boundaries of what's possible on TV, and I think we even surprised ourselves," says creator Steven DeKnight {Buffy the Vampire Slayer). Adds executive producer Rob Tapert (Xena: Warrior Princess): "Most television is not about setting a new bar. It's about playing it safe. Starz was willing to go out on the ledge and take the leap with us, without all the feedback and silly note-giving. It's unprecedented, really."

Read Full Article

Starz has posted 10 clips from Episode 1 The Red Serpent - two of the clips feature Lucy.

Mockery of the Profession Clip #8

Lucretia tries to calm an enraged Batatius.

It's Only Politics Clip #9

Batiatus bites his tongue as his rival Solonius makes a pass at his wife, Lucretia

Click here for more clips. Please be aware that one of the clips does have an age restriction.

Clips #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 (Age restriction) #7 #8 #9 #10

IGN has the latest details about the Bitch Slap DVD, it is to be released March 2.

The action flick stars a sexy young cast, including Julia Voth, Erin Cummings and America Olivo, with cameos by Hercules' Kevin Sorbo and Michael Hurst and Xena's Lucy Lawless and Renee O'Connor.

The DVD includes commentary by cast and crew and a behind-the-scenes documentary featurette and will be available for the suggested retail price of $22.98.

Source


News submitted by Lori Boyles
.

Lucy's interview from Good Day LA is now available through AUSXIP Videos. It was a good interview Lucy fielding questions about Xena, fame and her role on Spartacus.

Click here for screencaptures.

From the GDLA website: "Best known for portraying Xena: Warrior Princess in the long-running TV series filmed in New Zealand, Lucy Lawless lands another "sword-and-sandals" series for television called "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" airing on Starz."

Lucy is mentioned in the Spartacus mini recommendation of TV Without Pity's "New Year, New Shows" segment. The video introduces new shows for 2010, New York Nonstop's gurus from TV Without Pity weight on what you can expect this year.

Spartacus is being lauded for being a delicious mix of 300, Gladiator and HBO's Rome, but the reviewers profess their desire to see Lucy in sandals as a gladiatrix and wish to hear the famed Xena war cry.

The Spartacus review starts around the 2.05 mark and lasts for about 50 seconds.

Make way for one of the fiercest and most dynamic woman warriors to ever grace the TV screen as all 24 Season One episodes of Xena: Warrior Princess come to DVD. Lucy Lawless is Xena: a smart, tough, and fearless fighter who travels the dangerous roads of Ancient Greece defending the innocent from the forces of darkness and seeking redemption for her cruel misdeeds of the past.

Along for the adventures is her devoted friend Gabrielle (Renée O'Connor), a compassionate girl who hopes to be a warrior one day, and other legendary figures, including the formidable Hercules (guest star Kevin Sorbo). Combining impressive displays of mythology, fantasy, and martial arts, it's an iconic show that set the bar for all female action heroes.

It's been a bit over 7 years since Xena: Warrior Princess - Season 1 first came to DVD, as a seven disc set originally sold online, directly to fans, from Davis-Panzer in late 2002, and then distributed by Anchor Bay in retail stores beginning in April 2003.  That release has been discontinued, but now Universal Studios Home Entertainment would like to bring those episodes back to market.  This morning Universal announced that Xena: Warrior Princess - Season 1 will be re-released as a 5-DVD set, for just $26.98 SRP, and available on April 20th.  No details, bonus material (if any), or package art has been provided so far...just the A/V specs:  full screen video, English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo sound, and English subtitles.  Stay tuned, and we'll update you further just as soon as we find out more!


Xena DVD source | Hercules DVD source

The following is from a blog by an intern who did the research for Lucy's appearance for NPR's "Wait Wait" show where Lucy participated in the "Not My Job" segment.

Excerpts: "After the meeting, Peter sat down and talked to me about the Not My Job celebrity player.  Each week, we have a celebrity call in and play "Not My Job" for a listener to win Carl's voice on their answering machine. This week: Lucy Lawless, aka Xena: Warrior Princess.  I help out by researching the guest and then during the read-through on Thursday, I present the information I have found.  After talking about how to go about this, I went back to listening to voicemails until about 5:15ish. [...]

Thursday:  First show!  For those that don't know, the show is taped in front of a live audience on Thursday nights at the Chase Auditorium in the Loop in Chicago.  I got to the WWDTM office at noon on Thursday and it was a mad scramble for me to finish the Lucy Lawless research. She trained in opera in college, but then decided to travel Europe and Australi with her boyfriend and wound up gold mining in Australia around the age of 18 or 19.  The more you know!  I also finally got myown login for my computer set up...and! My own NPR email address.  I feel fancy!"

News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Lucy is set to appear on the daytime talk show The Wendy Williams Show Jan 2010 (sometime in the week starting 11 Jan). The show is filmed in LA and in airs the afternoon - check your local listings, the show seems to air at different times depending on your location.

According to the ever-helpful Wikipedia, Wendy Williams is an American media personality and New York Times bestselling author, a former DJ and radio personality.

Lucy is set to appear on the morning talk show Good Day, LA tomorrow, 12 Jan 2010. The show is filmed in LA for the FOX station. It is hosted by Jillian Reynolds, Steve Edwards and Dorothy Lucey.

The official site has video of the interviews online, so Lucy's segment will most likely be up on the video page shortly after the show has aired.

Looks like ShowPatrol will interview Lucy and Andy in an upcoming show, they tweeted that you can send in questions for the stars or Spartacus.

http://twitter.com/showpatrol: Busy week of interviews. Send questions for Katee Sackhoff; Sharon Gless & Tyne Daly; Lucy Lawless & Andy Whitfield; Matt Bomer & Tim DeKay.

From The AfterElton.com Winter TV Preview!

When It's On: The show premieres Friday January 22nd at 10 PM on Starz.

The Great Gay Says: "People in Hollywood were like, 'Why? Why are you doing that? Spartacus sounds like Xena again," Lucy Lawless tells the Great Gay. "And I was like, 'I don't know. It's really good.'"

Regarding the show's much-discussed female and male nudity, Lawless says, "I have to be naked on screen. I'm terrified. I hate it. But if it's right to fulfill a scene, and it's what a character would do, you gotta go there, because that part, I'm an artist. No matter what my pathetic middle-class morals [say], I want to be truthful more than I want to protect myself. [Anyway], there's plenty of things for people who like bosoms, and there's plenty of things for those who like naked male bodies. However, all that stuff is meaningless unless you care about the character."


News submitted by Barbara Davies.

The Spartacus cast and creators will be a part of the TCA panel shows do for the press as the new season begins.

spartacus_starz    @bhdaviesuk Yes, TCA panel is 1/16 10:30am. For Spartacus on panel tentative: Andy, Lucy, John, Rob, Steven.


News submitted by Barbara Davies.

The official Regis & Kelly website has been updated to show next week's guests. Lucy is indeed appearing on Friday 22nd with Harrison Ford.

LUCY LAWLESS
Actress

actress LUCY LAWLESS chats about her return to her action series roots with the upcoming television show "Spartacus: Blood and Sand."


News submitted by Barbara Davies.

From the official Bitch Slap facebook.

Hey gang!

First off, thank you to everybody who's been able to attend theatrical screenings of the movie! For those of you trying to watch it on VOD, here is what we know:

Fox is handling the Video-On-Demand distribution, and we've just received word that Bitch Slap is now available via PlayStation 3 and Verizon FiOS at premium prices. After the next week or two, Bitch Slap will be widened to more services, including Time Warner Cable and Comcast, with a potentially lower price.

Eric and Rick would like to apologize to any folks who are waiting to see the film but have cable providers who do not yet have Bitch Slap; it's as frustrating for us as it is for you. But don't fret! Though we don't have a date for the availability expansion, we'll post it to the page as soon as we hear from Fox.

Thanks for your continued support and enthusiasm. We will be Slapping you all as soon as we can!


News submitted by Lori Boyles.

Audio for this story from Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! is now available on NPR

January 9, 2010
Lucy Lawless is kind of like King Midas, but for nerds: pretty much every sci-fi or fantasy thing she touches turns to gold. Xena: Warrior Princess and Battlestar Galactica are true classics -- the kinds of programs nerds will tell their children about ... if they ever manage to reproduce.

Lawless is starring in the new Starz program Spartacus: Blood and Sand, which guarantees that pasty people will be dressing up as its characters at conventions for decades to come.

We're asking Lucy to play a game called "We didn't have the chance to say thanks." Three questions great American innovators who died recently.

News submitted by Barbara Davies.

Like 'Spartacus,' Starz lives by the sword

The pay-cable channel hopes to attract attention with its bloody, steamy take on the gladiator tale. Green screen helps save some green. [...]

The cable outlet, best known as an outlet for studio features, is joining the industry's rush into original series programming. "Spartacus" is a flashy, big-budget attempt to forge a brand, complete with a big-name costar ( Lucy Lawless, erstwhile heroine of the syndicated "Xena: Warrior Princess") and the heavily stylized, comic-book-like use of green-screen technology familiar from movies like "300" and "Sin City." [...]

The green-screen technology enabled the producers to cut costs, with a price tag of less than $3 million per episode, less than the typical broadcast series budget. "Empire" and "Rome" were shot using Italian studios and locations, where expenses quickly mounted. "Spartacus" took advantage of tax breaks in New Zealand -- where Tapert and Lawless now spend much of the year -- and was shot entirely on soundstages, with effects and settings filled in later by computer. [...]

Whitfield, who plays the title role, noted that a PG-13 version of "Spartacus" is scheduled to be shown in his native Australia.

"I'm anxious to see it," he said with a wry chuckle. "I can't imagine what's in it."


Source

Starz has released new videos which were originally shown on the Starz channel to promote Spartacus leading up to the premiere on January 22.
The videos with Lucy as Lucretia have been posted to AUSXIP Video Spartacus Blood and Sand Channel and AUSXIP Lucy Lawless Channel

Interviews

The Women - Spartacus Blood and Sand

The women of Spartacus: Blood and Sand can be just as ruthless and skilled. "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" premieres on Starz, January 22, 2010 at ...

Spartacus - Spartacus Blood and Sand

Lucy is interviewed and shares her thoughts on Andy Whitfield as Spartacus

Trailers / Promos

Die By The Sword - Spartacus Blood and Sand

Trailer which features some new Lucy/Lucretia footage.

Worth Fighting For - Spartacus Blood and Sand
Trailer with footage of Lucy/Lucretia. Spartacus must fight for the woman he loves. "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" premieres on Starz, January 22, 2010 at 10 pm et/pt.

Lucy will appear on the TODAY Show on January 22. The TODAY Show airs 7-11 a.m. ET on NBC. Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira are co-anchors of "Today."

"NBC News pioneered the morning news program when it launched "Today" over 56 years ago [...] The four-hour live broadcast provides the latest in domestic and international news, weather reports and interviews with newsmakers from the worlds of politics, business, media, entertainment and sports."

For those Trivia buffs out there: Lucy was last interviewed by Meredith Vieira back on October 18, 1997 when she appeared on The View. Meredith was the interviewer and it was one of the best interviews Lucy has done.

 

Part 1  |  Part 2

Screencaptures




TODAY Show website

Lucy was interviewed on The View on 18 October 1997. This is one of the best interviews Lucy has done. The interviewer, Meredith Vieira, allowed Lucy to finish what she had to say without interrupting and asked intelligent questions. A very good interview that touched on Lucy's life, her just announced engagement to Rob, her appearance as Rizzo in Grease and of course Xena.  Lucy also had her mum and dad in the audience.

 

Part 1  |  Part 2

Screencaptures

From the official Starz Spartacus Facebook page: "Starz is pleased to invite you to a free, advance screening for the premiere episode of Spartacus: Blood and Sand on Tuesday, Jan 19th."

Time and location details are available for Chicago, Dallas, Denver, LA, NYC, San Diego screenings.

Reception 7:15 pm
Screening from 8:00-9:00pm

Must be 21 or older to attend. Tickets are limited.

By Ian Chillag

Lucy Lawless is kind of like King Midas, but for nerds. Every Sci-Fi or fantasy thing she touches turns to gold. Xena: Warrior Princess and Battlestar Galactica are true classics: the kinds of programs nerds will tell their children about, if they ever manage to reproduce. Lawless is starring in the new Starz program Spartacus: Blood and Sand, and we're very excited she'll be joining us this week to play Not My Job. 

Not My Job is a part of NPR's popular Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me program.

Source

News submitted by Barbara Davies

According to the official spartacus_starz Twitter account Lucy will appear on Live with Regis & Kelly January 22.

The popular talk show is filmed in New York and airs in the mornings, check your local listings.

Media7 has released the New Years Eve special featuring Lucy which went to air 31 December 2009

Media7 looks at gender with a loosely structured debate on the contention that “it’s still a man’s world in the media.” The teams are, in the affirmative, Lucy Lawless, Peta Matthias and Pam Corkery; and for the negative, Sean Plunket, Finlay Macdonald and Mikey Havoc.

Part 1 of 3

Part 2 of 3

Part 3 of 3

Click here to view screencaptures from the show on AUSXIP Lucy Lawless Media 7 subsite

News submitted by: Adi

It's back to sword and sandals for Lucy Xena' Lawless

By LUAINE LEE
McClatchy-Tribune News Service

PASADENA, Calif. - Lucy Lawless, who played "Xena: Warrior Princess" for six years, is a warrior in her own right. A New Zealand scrapper who doesn't acknowledge borders of any kind, she's managed to be true to herself in spite of the notoriety that show brought.

When "Xena" ended she wasn't worried, she says, in a small dressing room at a hotel here. "Because I live in the moment. There is no past, there is no future. I wish sometimes I could plan something, but more than a week ahead, I have no idea. I'm not made to multi-task, organize. The greatest talent I have is the talent to surrender to the demands of whatever comes along," she says.

Lawless has always been like that ever since she quit college to experience "adventures" in Europe. "There are a lot of people who multi-task they're on the phone, they're arranging things," she says.

"It's too hard for me. My brain would explode if I had to do any of that stuff ... Sometimes I wish I could do that because my life is quite full of chaos. I keep it really simple. I have, like, a dirt-track of a brain. If it's not on the dirt-track it might as well not exist. I really think this is in my genes. It's a problem sometimes, but not for me because I'm still on the dirt trail," she laughs.

Lawless finds herself on a new kind of dirt trail in Starz's series, "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," premiering Jan. 22.

"I play Lucretia, kind of the Lady Macbeth character," says Lawless, leaning on her elbow. "And my husband owns the gladiator school and the gladiators are fancy horseflesh, and I'm desperate to provide him with an heir. I love my husband, but we're political animals and the fear of annihilation is really high - in Roman society it's dog-eat-dog."

Her real-life husband, Robert Tapert, is executive producer of "Spartacus," which was shot in New Zealand. They have two sons, 7 and 9.

Lucy Media Mentions From Around The Web:

Hot stuff: The Watcher's winter TV preview - Chicago Tribune - The Watcher - 01 Jan 2010
Jan. 22, "Caprica," 8 p.m., Syfy and "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," 9 p.m., Starz: "Caprica" is a promising "Battlestar Galactica" prequel series with a great cast (Paula Malcolmson, Polly Walker, Esai Morales and Eric Stoltz) and zero spaceships. "Spartacus" is an updating of the classic tale of a slave turned gladiator; one of the stars in the Starz drama is "Battlestar" alum Lucy Lawless (pictured at right). Starz must be feeling pretty confident about the show -- the network has already given the green light to a second season.

A look at midseason TV shows old and new: Get ready for TV's midseason, and the return of '24,' 'Project Runway,' 'Idol,' 'Lost' and more....California Chronicle 04 Jan 2010
Spartacus: Blood and Sand: Miss Rome? Check out this sword-and-sandal drama, in which Lucy Lawless and John Hannah play the owners of a gladiator camp that has fallen on hard times, but they also own the gladiator Spartacus (Andy Whitfield), who might help them regain their status. 9 p.m. Jan. 22, Starz

Shake up your TV viewing in 2010 - Wocester Telegram - 2 Jan 2010
5. “Spartacus: Blood and Sand” (debuts 10 p.m. Jan. 22, Starz): Bloody and violent, “Spartacus: Blood and Sand” is not a show for the faint of heart. Once you get past the blood splatter, this is a good old-fashioned tale about revenge and love. Australian newcomer Andy Whitfield is fun to look at and very convincing as our man Spartacus; and he leads an amazing cast that includes Lucy Lawless, John Hannah and Peter Mensah. - News submitted by Jodi

Veronica makes it on to honour list of top mag - Irish Independent
Sunday January 03 2010
THE late Veronica Guerin landed a prestigious honour last week when she was named as one of the Seven Most Courageous Women Ever by America's best-selling women's magazine, Glamour. In a list compiled by the heavyweights, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Judy Williams (of the international campaign to ban landmines), Lucy Lawless (co-star of Spartacus and Blood & Sand) and Rosalind Miles (author of Who Cooked the Last Supper?), the Sunday Independent reporter was placed third behind Harriet Tubman, the runaway slave and spy, and Shirin Edaldi, the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Iranian attorney. News submitted by Barbara Davies

In Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert’s new costume drama Spartacus: Blood and Sand, Lucy Lawless portrays Lucretia, who along with her husband Batiatus (John Hannah), own a gladiator camp.

Devious and manipulative, the character couldn’t be more different than the one which propelled her to stardom, Xena, the Princess Warrior. It was a role that would change her personal life forever as well, as she met and married Rob Tapert during the run of the series.

Now back in New Zealand working on the series, Lawless enthusiastically spoke of her role and the show.

Read Full Interview

In October 2008 Lucy sat for painter Marty Welch as he set out to create her portrait. This was featured on the show called The Sitting which went to air on 10 October 2008. All the portraits with Marty created from various celebrities were going to be auctioned off for charity.

TV One News in New Zealand had a news report about the auction and they also interviewed Lucy.

Click here to watch news report

Click here to view screencaptures & video from The Sitting

News submitted by Jo

The Official Xena Fan Club Page has some gorgeous new episode stills from the Season 4 episodes "Adventures in the Sin Trade Part 1 and 2" as part of the Official Xena Photo Club months for October and November.

Adventures in the Sin Trade Part 1
Distraught with grief over the loss of Gabrielle, Xena travels to Siberia and the Amazon Land of the Dead to find her friend.
Click here to view the images for October

Other Multimedia related to this episode on AUSXIP
Montage | Review | Screengrabs

Adventures in the Sin Trade Part 2
Xena travels to the Amazon Resting Place to battle the evil witch, Alti, and learns that Gabrielle is still alive.
Click here to view the images for November

Other Multimedia related to this episode on AUSXIP
Montage | Review | Screengrabs