Andy Whitfield complete history the lead actor, Spartacus: Blood and Sand Spartacus

Andy Whitfield Whitfield at the San Diego Comic-Con International, July 2010 Born Amlwch, Wales Died 11 September 2011 Sydney, Australia Occupation Actor, model, engineer Years active 2004–2011 Andy Whitfield (died 11 September 2011) was a Welsh-Australian actor and model.[1] He was best known for his leading role in the Starz television series Spartacus: Blood and Sand during 2010.[2] Contents 1 Career 2 Illness and death 3 Filmography 4 References 5 External links Career Whitfield was born in Amlwch, Wales. He studied engineering at the University of Sheffield, England and worked in Lidcombe, New South Wales, Australia as an engineer before settling in Sydney in 1999.[3][4] He appeared in several Australian television series, such as Opening Up, All Saints, The Strip, Packed to the Rafters, and McLeod's Daughters. Whitfield gained his first prominent role in the Australian supernatural film Gabriel.[5] He also starred in the 2010 television series Spartacus: Blood and Sand, which was filmed in New Zealand.[5] He portrays a version of the historical Spartacus, although in this retelling he is a conscripted soldier condemned to death who defeats all four of his executioners and is thereby recycled as a gladiator. The actual Spartacus, like this fictional version, was destined to lead a rebellion against the Romans (the Third Servile War).[6] Whitfield also appeared in the Australian thriller The Clinic starring opposite Tabrett Bethell (of Legend of the Seeker fame) which was shot in Deniliquin.[7] In August 2010, Whitfield teamed up with Freddie Wong and created a 2-minute YouTube video named "Time Crisis", based on the game Time Crisis.[citation needed] Whitfield made a brief, uncredited voice-only appearance in the prequel mini-series Spartacus: Gods of the Arena, which premiered on 21 January 2011.[8] Illness and death In March 2010, Whitfield was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma and began undergoing treatment immediately in New Zealand.[9] This delayed production of season two of Spartacus: Vengeance.[9] While waiting for Whitfield's treatment and expected recovery, the network produced a six-part prequel, Spartacus: Gods of the Arena, with only a brief uncredited voiceover from the actor. Although declared cancer-free only two months later, he suffered a recurrence of the disease later in the year and was ultimately compelled to abandon the role.[10][11][12] Starz recast Australian actor Liam McIntyre as Whitfield's successor.[13] Whitfield died of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in Sydney, Australia, on 11 September 2011, 18 months after his initial cancer diagnosis, at the age of 39.[1][14] Filmography Television Year Title Role Notes 2004 All Saints Matthew Parkes "Opening Up" (season 2, episode 7) 2008 The Strip Charlie Palmer (season 1, episode 2) (season 1, episode 7) Packed to the Rafters Nick Leigh "All in the Planning" (season 1, episode 10) McLeod's Daughters Brett Samuels "Nowhere to Hide" (season 8, episode 4) 2010 Spartacus: Blood and Sand Spartacus Lead role 2011 Spartacus: Gods of the Arena Spartacus (voice / uncredited) "The Bitter End" (season 1, episode 6) Film Year Title Role Notes 2007 Gabriel Gabriel Lead role 2010 The Clinic Cameron Marshall

40,000 residents to benefit from medical screening June 13, 2012

40,000 residents to benefit from medical screening June 13, 2012 Rotarians for Fighting AIDS have said that about 40,000 residents in Ogun and Lagos states will benefit from its free medical screening services. The District Governor of Rotary District 9110, Mr. Kennedy Ejakpomewhe, who spoke at the inauguration of the programme in Lagos, said the free screening service was part of the organisation’s activities to mark the World Family Health Day. He added that residents in these states would be screened by qualified medical personnel and volunteer groups for diseases including HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, cataract, diabetes, high blood pressure, cervical cancer and dental problems. According to him, the week-long activity which is in collaboration with the Coca-Cola Foundation globally, is a community-based initiative implemented in several countries to build sustainable communities that are empowered to tackle HIV and other killer diseases through the provision of free check-up. He said, “The Foundation invests in social projects to help create sustainable communities by improving the quality of life. It is an action group of the Rotary International. “Our aim is to provide essential health services to the less privileged and help satisfy a basic human need for quality health care for many who cannot afford it.” He added that the organisation had focused on HIV/prevention to reduce the population of Nigerians dying from the virus.

Al-Qaeda blames Germany for hostage’s death June 13, 2012

Al-Qaeda blames Germany for hostage’s death June 13, 2012 Al-Qaeda’s North Africa branch has blamed Germany for the killing of a German engineer during a military raid in Kano, The Associated Press reported on Tuesday. Edgar Raupach, who was kidnapped by gunmen at a construction site in Kano, where he worked for Dantata & Sawoe Construction Co. Ltd. in January, died on May 31 as soldiers launched a raid against the house where his abductors held him. Nigeria’s military later said it had no idea gunmen held Raupach inside the home and that kidnappers stabbed him to death as the raid began. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the terrorist group that claimed it held Raupach, issued a statement on an Internet forum this week, saying the hostage’s death came only after the German government refused to negotiate with it. “Your government gave the green light for the operation,” the message posted on Monday night read. “We say to the family of the German citizen Edgar Fritz Raupach, the blood of your son hangs from the neck of your government,” AQIM said, according to a SITE translation of the statement posted online on Monday. The US-based SITE monitoring service tracks jihadi websites. However, the group, known by the acronym AQIM, had demanded that German officials release Filiz Gelowicz, a German woman convicted last year of supporting a foreign terrorist network. Gelowicz’s husband was among a group convicted of plotting unsuccessfully to attack US soldiers and citizens in Germany. German officials released Gelowicz from prison in late April on probation after she served two-thirds of her sentence. In Berlin, a government source said on Tuesday that Nigerian authorities raided the house only in an effort to arrest terrorists, not as part of a rescue operation for Raupach. “German authorities were not informed beforehand,” the official said. “Nigerian authorities have already (said) … they had no knowledge of the whereabouts of the German.” The source spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. Meanwhile, the Christian Association of Nigeria in Plateau State has warned Boko Haram to stop attacking christians. State CAN Chairman, Dr. Phillip Dafes, said in Jos on Tuesday the association would no longer tolerate the bombing of churches and killing of worshippers. He condemned Sunday’s bombing of Christ’s Chosen Church of God, regretting that government had not done enough to protect lives in the state. Dafes said, “The church is gradually losing count of number of lives lost, number of Christians (women and men) with permanent disabilities, number of women turned widows, number of children made orphans, number of churches, property and businesses destroyed and also relationship and business opportunities that eluded us because of the ridiculous attacks.’’

C’River okays UJ Esuene Stadium for athletics June 13, 2012

C’River okays UJ Esuene Stadium for athletics June 13, 2012 Cross River State has certified the U.J. Esuene Stadium in Calabar ready to host the 66th All Nigeria Open Athletics Championships. The state Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development, Patrick Ugbe, made this known after inspecting the stadium over the weekend. “I am happy to tell Nigerians that the U.J. Esuene Stadium is in good shape to host the best of Nigerian athletics as from the 19th of this month. The track where most of the events will hold is smooth and ready. The lush green nature of the pitch will also add to the beauty of the spectacle that will be on display.” Ugbe inspected the main bowl of the stadium where most of the events will take place as well as the medical centre, the media tribune, the areas designated for doping control and call rooms. “Apart from the wonderful stadium where the real action will take place, the athletes, officials and spectators will also have a taste of the famed hospitality of Cross River as well as the serene and tranquil nature of Calabar, the state capital,” he said. The South-South All Comers Athletics Championships which starts on Wednesday (today) at the stadium is designed to test run the facilities the state is going to use for the event.

Union Bank finances agriculture with N40bn June 10, 2012

Union Bank finances agriculture with N40bn June 10, 2012 Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, has said that its current portfolio on agricultural lending is about N40bn, adding that over 60,000 farmers have benefitted from its agriculture lending. The bank’s Managing Director, Mrs. Funke Osibodu, said this during an interview at the sidelines of a sub-regional workshop of the African Rural Agricultural Credit Association in Abuja. The seminar, with the theme “Enhancing the agricultural value chain through innovation,” was aimed at transforming the agriculture value chain. Osibodu said that lending to the agricultural sector had been profitable and described as the driving force for the bank’s increased and consistent lending to the perceived ‘risky’ sector. “We have given out so much. I would say we have given out about N30bn to N40bn on agriculture. That is the current portfolio but we have been lending very actively to agriculture for close to 30 years. “The performance rate has not been bad, especially for small scale lending. We have a customer base of over 60,000 comparising farmers that we lend to all over Nigeria in different areas. We understand the seasons.” Osibodu noted that the bank’s plans currently was to move beyond the small scale agricultural lending and focus more on the large scale farmers. This, she noted, would, create the needed chain of economic growth for the nation. She said the outcome of the workshop would enable banks to better structure their credit facilities to farmers. She said, “For majority of banks, agriculture financing had not been an attractive and profitable sector for the deployment of shareholders/depositors funds due to the perception of high risks. “We need to release financial resources on a sustainable basis to Africa’s agriculture. Union bank has been supporting agriculture intensively for years.” She said the long term benefits of the value chain model would help to increase per capital income, generate employment and develop the sector. Agriculture employs 60 per cent of the population. It also contributes up to 42 per cent of the country’s GDP and about 75 per cent of the non-oil sector GDP. Osibodu said if wealth creation and poverty reduction were to be achieved, there was need to adopt efficient and cost effective financial services that supported agricultural production and innovation across the value chain.