‘Spartacus’ actor with cancer leaves show

New York — Starz network says “Spartacus: Blood and Sand” star Andy Whitfield is leaving the show to battle a recurrence of cancer.

Production of the “Spartacus” series’ second season was postponed this spring when Whitfield was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The cable television network said Whitfield was responding well to treatment, but the cancer has returned.

The British-born Whitfield played the gladiator hero in the show’s breakout first season.

The network said co-stars Lucy Lawless and John Hannah would take center stage for a six-episode prequel leading up to Spartacus’ arrival. It will air beginning in January.

In a statement, Whitfield expressed regret at leaving the series while describing his cancer battle “as another extraordinary journey.”

Portrait of John and Yoko up for auction

New York — A photo that Annie Leibovitz took of John Lennon shortly before he was killed is going up for auction in New York City.

The photo was taken in December 1980 for Rolling Stone magazine. It shows Yoko Ono and her husband embracing while reclining.

It is not the famous photo on the cover featuring a nude Lennon with a clothed Yoko Ono.

It’s one of 40 copies and is expected to bring $10,000 to $15,000 at Swann Auction Galleries on Oct. 19.