AUSXIP NETWORK SITE UPDATES Created 15 December 1996 and maintained by MaryD APRIL 2021 Click here for the more current news Click here for the more archived news   28 April 2021 MaryD's Blog 104-year-old Anzac, Alf Carpenter, recalls fighting in the Battle of Crete Black and White Photographs of Queen Elizabeth in the 1940s! Anzac Day 25 April 2021 – #LestWeForget MaryD's Fiction Music Video: Addicted to You Lucy Lawless / My Life is Murder UKTV's Alibi Acquires Linear Rights To "My Life is Murder" DCD Rights Announces International Platforms and Broadcasters for My Life is Murder Season 2   24 April 2021 AUSXIP Publishing News New Staff AUSXIP Publishing Welcomes New Staff Member: Lucia Nobrega Upcoming Releases Upcoming New Children's Illustrated Novel: "Serene and the Spirits" by Arielle Strauss Brueland Serene is a three-year-old Japanese-American girl who lives in Ohio with her moms. Serene is excited that her family will visit her cousins in Japan and attend the Obon's annual Buddhist summer festival. The celebration commemorates one's ancestors, and Serene spends the day connecting with the spirits of their ancestors. New Releases New Release: Enemy at the Gate Audio Book by MaryD and Narrated by Arielle Strauss Brueland   20 April 2021 Audio Fic - Virgin Podcasters Present "It's All In The Mind" by T. Novan This is a treat! TN's Subtext Virtual Season Episode - Season 7, Episode 04 It's All In The Mind by T. Novan is now an audio fanfic by the supercast of the Virgin Podcasters! IT'S ALL IN THE MIND AUDIO FIC During a morning time spat, Gabrielle expresses a wish, and Aphrodite grants it.  Or does she?  Sometimes there's truth in the saying "Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it. Xena Fanfic - XIPPY Awards & Reviews Ghost of a Chance by DJWP Wow, I absolutely LOVED this short story by one of my favorite bards. Xena and Gabrielle enter a deserted Castle on a stormy night. The only problem is, it's not deserted, and it's haunted. Gabrielle reaches out to this poor lost soul and Xena uses her own method to flush him out. http://www.ausxip.com/fanfic12/GHOST.html  Hardcore Nutcrackers by Nalysia What a hoot this is. What if Xena and Gabrielle were really immortals. This short story cracked me up and I loved the pillow fight. http://www.academyofbards.org/fanfic/n/nalysia_nutcrackers.html  MaryD's Blog Anzac Day 2021: Light Up The Dawn 25 April 2021 MaryD's Fiction - Video I had so much fun creating this video. Set to the amazing song "Addicted to You" by Avicii, I thought I would shine a little light on my own fictional characters. ENJOY! Music Video: Addicted to Eva by Zoe - set to Addicted to You by Avicii - that was a fun video to create! Supergirl Katie McGrath Previews Lena Luthor's 'Really Important' New Role on 'Supergirl' The race to free Kara (Melissa Benoist) from the Phantom Zone continues tonight on Supergirl, and this time, the Super Friends have a new weapon in their arsenal: Lena Luthor. After several seasons of playing in the morally grey area - and a few instances of just being wicked (with good reason!) - Katie McGrath's enigmatic alter-ego is earning her place amongst the heroes in "Lost Souls," an hour that finds the self-made sister of villain Lex Luthor (Jon Cryer) employing her particular set of skills to help the team save Supergirl... Supergirl star Katie McGrath teases how the final season ends for Lena The end of Supergirl is, unfortunately, nigh. And with the end of a long-running series like the CW's high-flying superhero drama comes a lot of expectations - both from fans who have been around since its early days on CBS and the actors who brought these characters to life for six years. But all Katie McGrath wanted by the time the sixth and final season ends is for her character Lena Luthor to learn a little self-love... 12 April 2021 Xena Fanfic - XIPPY Awards & Reviews Gift (The) by Lawlsfan A hurt/comfort tale that brings back my favorite psycho - Callisto on Solstice Eve. A beautifully written story. Xena gets injured while looking for a gift for Gabrielle and Callisto goes a little mellow when she saves Xena's life as a gift to Gabrielle. http://www.ausxip.com/fanfiction/g/thegift01.html  Gift of Family (The) by Susan A Rice The story is set one year after FIN. Back to her family home, Gabrielle is alone and reminisces about the family she was born into and the family she had made with Xena. A visitor comes on Solstice eve with surprising results. http://ausxip.com/fanfic18/gift_of_family.htm Xena Press Fans of Xena: Warrior Princess! What's Your Favourite Episode? It's been almost 26 years since the show fantasy show Xena: Warrior Princess debuted in the fall of 1995. With over 134 episodes over six seasons, we assume you have some favourites. MaryD's History Blog Ancient History Facts About Spartan Women: They Could Own Land! Spartan women were very different from their sisters in Athens. One of those differences was that they could own their own land! Sparta rose to power in 6 BC. According to the Greek philosopher... Facts about Spartan Women: They Were Educated Spartans were famous for producing strong and powerful soldiers. But what do we actually know about the women of ancient Sparta? Without a doubt, Spartan women were the most educated, athletic and... Supergirl How Supergirl's Haunting Phantom Zone Memory Secretly Sets Up Her Escape nstead of tormenting her, the Phantom's choice of nightmares will give Supergirl hope, setting up the key to her escape: the Legion. 'Supergirl': Peta Sergeant Joins Season 6 As New Series Regular  Peta Sergeant (Snowfall) has joined the sixth and final season of Supergirl as a new series regular. Sergeant will play Nyxly, a quirky and kind 5th Dimensional Imp, wrongly imprisoned in the Phantom Zone and driven by tragic backstory. She helps Kara when she least expects it, and their budding friendship not only heals some of Nyxly's emotional pain, but helps Nyxly reclaim her own power... Thomas Patrick Lennon Announces Mr. Mxyzptlk's Supergirl Return Thomas Patrick Lennon teases his reprisal of the Fifth-Dimensional trickster Mr. Mxyzptlk for Supergirl's final season.   08 April 2021 Restructured my various blog sites MaryD's Blog - WW1 and WW2 History Blog MaryD's Blog - Women's History, TV & Reviews MaryD's Blog - Book Reviews - Lesbian Fiction, History and WW2 Original Fiction Site  MaryD's Original Fiction Site Supergirl Supergirl Star Says The Show's Raised The Bar For Trans Representation Trans actor Nicole Maines, who plays Nia Nal/Dreamer, has stated that the series has raised the bar for representation of people like her Supergirl: Dreamer Actress Nicole Maines Is Trying Not to Copy WandaVision's Scarlet Witch On Supergirl, Nicole Maines' Nia Nal/Dreamer wields impressive powers. Not only can she see the future through her dreams but she can manipulate the energies of that power, using it to interact with the physical world, creating blasts and projections. Dreamer generally does this with the positioning of her hands. Of course, Dreamer isn't the only powerful female hero using her hands to wield major power and it's something that isn't lost on Maines. Maines recently told Buzzfeed that she's trying really hard not to accidentally copy WandaVision's Scarlet Witch... Star Trek: Picard Star Trek: Picard: John de Lancie to Return as TNG Villain Q in Season 2 I am BEYOND stoked about this news! Jean-Luc Picard is about to get reacQuainted with his greatest adversary. (No, that's not a typo.) John de Lancie will reprise his role as Next Generation trickster god Q on Season 2 of Star Trek: Picard, Paramount+ announced on Monday. Star Trek: Picard's Patrick Stewart Teases Q's Tumultuous Return 'Star Trek: Picard' season two will debut on Paramount+ in 2022 Star Trek: Discovery Star Trek: Discovery: Burnham and Co. Face a Scary Threat in Season 4 Trailer Star Trek: Discovery's new captain and her crew will be feeling the pressure when Season 4 hits later this year, according to a new trailer. Paramount+ unveiled the trailer on Monday as part of Star Trek's "First Contact Day" series of events, along with the news that Discovery will return for Season 4 sometime in […] Wynonna Earp Wynonna Earp's Syfy Finale Will Make for 'A Lot of Very Happy Humans' - Watch a 'WayHaught' Teaser Upcoming TV Shows NCIS: Hawaii Poised to Feature Female Lead, Marking a Franchise First   05 April 2021 Xenite Memorial It is with great sadness that I announce the passing of an Amazon Elder: Jan Shenderey. Jan passed away from a long term illness on April 4, 2021. Rest in Peace, Jan. I will be adding Jan to the Xenite Memorial Lee Winter has a beautiful eulogy on Facebook about her friendship with Jan. Click here to read that on FB     For more news, click here for archived news