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Entertainment Now | March 5 - 11, 2022 By Rachel Jones TV Media S ince 2014, "Outlander" has swept up fans from around the globe and transported them to the Scottish High- lands. But if Book 5 showed view- ers anything, it's that this idyllic life on the serene hillsides comes at a dangerous cost. Book 6 of "Out- lander" premieres on Starz on Sun- day, March 6. "Outlander" follows the story of Claire Fraser, played by Caitriona Balfe ("Ford v Ferrari," 2019), who stumbled across a magical stone portal in Book 1 and landed in the 18th century — quite the shock for a married WWII nurse. Desperately searching for a way home, she soon met Jamie Fraser (Sam Heu - ghan, "The Spy Who Dumped Me," 2018) and threw caution to the wind, leaving the modern world behind in pursuit of love. Book 5 (beware of spoilers ahead) explored the couple's daughter, Brianna Fraser (Sophie Skelton, "Blackbird," 2016), and her relationship with a man from the 1960s named Roger, played by Scottish actor Richard Rankin ("American Odyssey"). Jamie's nephew, Ian, is played by John Bell ("The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug," 2013). Even though Roger entered the stones with Brianna, they realize their place is at Fraser Ridge in the 18th century with their family. But with the Fraser clan living on stolen land in British North Carolina, Ian selling Roger to the Mohawk tribe after thinking he raped Brianna, and the American Revolution looming on the horizon, the events of Book 6 are guaranteed to be some of the most intense the Fras- ers have seen to date. The American War of Indepen- dence is a tough position for this Scottish family to be in, especially considering Claire and Roger know the outcome of the war and are fa- miliar with the heavy toll fighting takes on lives and society. The "Outlander" historical fic- tion series is inspired by the popu- lar romance series of the same name by Diana Gabaldon. Gabaldon's unique background is far from the romantic reverie her series boasts. The author holds a bachelor of science in zoology and originally wrote software reviews and technical articles for computer publications. After seeing an epi- sode of "Doctor Who," however, she was inspired with the idea of Jamie Fraser, and the rest is, well, historical fiction. Since Gabaldon's "Outlander" began its run on the small screen in 2014, it has been nominated for 70 awards and has won more than 30 in a range of categories from cos- tumes, music and production de- sign to, of course, acting perfor- mance. These awards span every- thing from Women's Image Net- work and People's Choice Awards to the BAFTAs, Golden Globes and highly coveted Primetime Emmys. There's no denying that the show's success is largely due to the chemistry between Balfe and Heu- ghan. With 10 books in the series, the pair made a vow during filming that if they're going to make it through, they're going to do it to- gether — just like Claire and Ja- mie. In an interview with the U.K.'s Express, Balfe recalled her initial nerves about coming on set and meeting Heughan, who was al- ready fairly comfortable with his role in the show. Thankfully, the connection was there from the be- ginning. "I just remember him being just such a lovely, calming energy in the room," Balfe said. And now their tangible heat is legendary, leaving fans thirsting for more. Speaking of thirst, Heughan has also launched a whisky brand named for his TV wife: The Sassen- ach. Heughan's involvement in the spirit only makes sense as he, like his character, is native to Scotland, and his interests have always ap- peared to remain fairly close to home. He attended school in Edin- burgh and performed throughout Glasgow before traveling to Lon- don for further exposure. Irish actress Balfe, however, has strayed slightly farther from her roots throughout her career, spending much of her pre- "Outlander" time as a fashion model for Chanel, Dolce & Gabba- na and Louis Vuitton. Both Heughan and Balfe share a charitable spirit, however, and ran marathons in 2018 to raise funds for various health awareness pro- grams and causes. While fans of the show have la- mented its delayed air date, "Out- lander" isn't exactly a pandemic- friendly show when it comes to filming. Known for steamy ro- mance scenes that would make your grandma (or anyone, really) blush, co-executive producer Maril Davis stated in an interview that they had reduced scenes, cast and crew sizes to minimize the chance of contracting any illness. Additional precautions included Heughan recording his infamous lovemaking sounds in post-pro- duction. Heughan now laughs about the somewhat awkward automated dialogue replacement process (re- ferred to in the biz as ADR) and the encouragement he received from the show's composer, Bear Mc- Creary. McCreary, whose musical ar- rangements have earned him sev- eral award nominations and con- tributed to the authenticity of "Outlander," tweeted at Heughan in August last year: "Don't worry, we're slathering bagpipes over all that scene anyway!" "Outlander" is currently listed on IMDb as one of the top 100 most popular shows on television, coming in at No. 75. It has a rating of 8.4 out of 10 — better than Disney+'s highly anticipated "Book of Boba Fett." At a book launch for one of Ga- baldon's other stories, it was re- vealed that "Outlander" has been renewed for Book 7, and fans can expect the final installment of the Fraser family in Book 10. Be sure to get caught up on "Outlander," available on Netflix, before Book 6 premieres on Starz on March 6. Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan star in "Outlander" Beginning of Book 6: 'Outlander' turns a page on Starz 2 | Cover story A/Grindstone Charlie's B/Norris Insurance 1 x 4" Moore's Home Health 5 x 2"

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