About
Remembering the late and great Andy Whitfield, our Champion.
Andy Whitfield was born on October 17th, 1971, in Amwlch, Wales. He became an engineer after graduating from the University of Sheffield, England, and worked in Lidcombe, New South Wales, Australia as an engineer before settling in Sydney in 1999.
He married Vashti Whitfield and together they have two beautiful children, son Jesse Red, 10, and daughter Indigo Sky, 7.
Our Champion gained his first prominent role in the Australian supernatural film 'Gabriel'. However, his role as the Thracian rebel and warrior "Spartacus" in 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand' propelled him to stardom and into our hearts and minds, forever.
In March 2010, Andy was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, a type of cancer, and was given between 3-6 months to live if he did not receive treatment. He began undergoing treatment immediately in New Zealand.
Although declared cancer-free only two months later, Andy suffered a recurrence of the disease later in the year and was ultimately compelled to abandon his role as Spartacus.
Sadly, our Champion passed away in Sydney, Australia, on September 11th, 2011, 18 months after his initial cancer diagnosis. He was 39.
"On a beautiful sunny Sydney morning, surrounded by his family, in the arms of his loving wife, our beautiful young warrior Andy Whitfield lost his 18-month battle with lymphoma cancer." - wife Vashti Whitfield, in a statement
Andy, even though you were only with us for a short time, the lessons and joy you brought and continue to bring so many will keep your close to our souls, close to our minds, and forever in our hearts.
"Be Here Now"
In June 2012, a Kickstarter campaign was set up to fund "Be Here Now", a film by Oscar-winning director Lilibet Foster, which documents Andy's battle with NHL.
The campaign was a huge success, with just over $300,000 raised in total funds! Please visit http://beherenowfilmcomingsoon.com to stay up-to-date with the film's progress.
"'Be Here Now' is all about being present, and not fearing what you don't know." - Andy Whitfield
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On Saturday June 13, 2015, 'Be Here Now: The Andy Whitfield Story' premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival in Los Angeles, CA. Among the film's attendees were Vashti Whitfield, 'Be Here Now' director Lilibet Foster, and 'Spartacus' cast Liam McIntyre, Viva Bianca, Lesley-Ann Brandt and Stephen Dunlevy.
The film was received with much critical acclaim from both the press and the public.
We are sure Andy would be proud.
--UPDATE: February 19, 2016--
'Be Here Now’ will be in select theaters in New York on April 8 and in Los Angeles on April 15 - it is finally hitting theaters in larger part thanks to fans who funded the film on Kickstarter, making it the third most successful documentary campaign on the crowd-sourcing site.”
The film will be available nationwide via BeHereNowFilm.com and TUGG on April 15, 2016.
For an updated preview of our champion Andy's extraordinary story of love, legacy, and the triumph of legacy, visit ETonline.com below:
http://www.etonline.com/news/182681_be_here_now_the_andy_whitfield_story_goes_inside_the_spartacus_actor_s_battle_with_cancer/
With much gratitude and excitement ~
Vashti on Twitter: http://twitter.com/maybemcqueen
Lilibet on Twitter: http://twitter.com/magnifi7
'Be Here Now' Film on Twitter: http://twitter.com/beherenowfilm1
Vashti on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Maybemcqueen
'Be Here Now' Film FB Page - https://www.facebook.com/beherenowfilm