News Archive: 2011

DateNews
15 December

MM! Advent Calendar

Get your daily MM! fix throughout advent by going to this link.

07 December

Your Photos

In the last magazine, we announced a photo competition - we asked members to send in pictures where you were supposed to hold up one of our magazines in an unusual/interesting place. You can see the entries we have received here, but we do not want it to end it like this - PLEASE keep sending them in - whether you are getting out of breath climbing the Great Wall in China or diving in the Red Sea - send us your pictures, and we will add them to the website.

02 December

Magazine #109

The December issue has now been sent out. Click here to get to the links collection for this isssue.

More details
02 December

CHESS coming to Japan

Fans in Japan finally get a chance to see some CHESS concerts in their own country. You can see it at the Aoyama Theatre in Tokyo from January 26 to 29 and in Osaka at the Umeda Arts Theatre from January 10 to 12. Tickets go on sale tomorrow.
02 December

Very Rare ABBA Track

Remember when ABBA sang part of the Swedish Christmas song Nu är det jul igen for the a German radio show Mal Sondock's Hitparade in 1981? Now the short track is officially availble for the first time on the Broadway Cares charity Christmas album Carols For A Cure - Volume 13. It features as an intro to the NYC MM! cast's contribution of the classic Hark! The Herald Angels Sing. Of course, you can get your copy of this rarity from the Fan Club Shop.
02 December

BAO Playing Uppsala next August

BAO are part of the line-up of artists to celebrate the nyckelharpa [key fiddle] player Eric Sahlström during a 2-day festival in Uppsala. They are playing on the 25th August at Vaksala Torg. Further details will be available soon.

21 November

Exclusive Happy New Year Single

Universal is releasing an exclusive 7" vinyl glitter single with Happy New Year/The Way old Friends do, beautifully presented in a clear cover. It is a very limited edition indeed and will not be available in record stores, so visit our shop fast to get your hands on one of the 500 singles available.

15 November

Nominate MM! as Best West End Show

You can nominate MM! for the British WhatsOnStage Award in the category Best West End Show until the end of November by going to this link.
09 November

Charity Auction - Signed Vinyl Box

November 14 is World Diabetes Day, and many Swedish celebs have donated signed/special items for a charity auction that benefits, in this case, the Child Diabetes Fund. You can bid on the stylish vinyl box, signed by all four members, by going to this link.
05 October

John Spalding

It is with much regret  that we have to announce that John Spalding of Bocu Music passed away at the weekend.  John was a good friend to the fan club and our  thoughts are with his family at this very sad time.
14 September

Benny/Ludvig on Swedish/Norwegian TV

You can watch Benny and Ludvig by switching to Skavlan on Swedish TV1 on Friday at 20:00 tuning to NRK1 at 21:25.
12 September

Magazine #108

Our magazine #108 has now been sent out. Click here to get to the links collection for this isssue.

More details....
10 September

Bright Lights Audio Book

The wonderful Bright Lights Dark Shadows by CM Palm is now available as an audio book - you can listen to it in the car or at home while you do the ironing. Great or what? You can order from our shop.

10 September

ABBA -You Can Dance for Wii

It's out soon - You can dance to ABBA on your Nintendo Wii in no time. Watch the trailer to see how much fun you can have.
22 August

Dutch Radio Show

From today on, a Dutch radio station is broadcasting a music programme where people can phone in if they recognise which ABBA song is being played backwards. There is a chance to win a place in the final ABBA quiz on the 2nd September. You can listen to the show and find out more details by going to this link.
10 August

Mundo ABBA from Mexico

You can now listen to our member Gustavo Moran's weekly radio show Mundo ABBA at any time by going to this link.

04 August

BAO Clips

Click here to watch a clip of BAO performing Kisses of Fire at Skansen last weekend. The same link leads you to a few more clips from the same concert.
24 July

ABBA Picnic London

This year's London ABBA picnic takes place on the 6th August, as usual in St. James's Park, and both members as well as non-members are welcome to attend.
Further information...

21 July

Visit Viggso - on BBC2

The BBC screened a programme on Sweden that included a visit to ABBA's writing hut on Viggso. You can watch things here till next Sunday.
07 July

Studio Albums on Vinyl

Universal is relasing individual vinyl copies (180 grams) of the original eight studio albums in a limited edition on the 8th August. Each record includes a digital voucher for an MP3 version of the album. You can pre-order them from the Fan Club Shop to ensure you are one of the first to receive copies.
07 July

London MM! Cast at Summer Festival

The London cast of Mamma Mia! is taking part in this year's Magic Summer Live festival on the 17th July at Hatfield House in Hatfield, Herts. Further acts are Elton John, the Lighthouse Family, Rumer, The Overtones, The Pierces, Wonderland and casts from other West End shows. The event begins at noon (the Mamma Mia cast performs at 15:25 on the Village Stage). For further info and tickets go to this link or call 08700 601054. UK residents can also win a pair of tickets in a competition.
29 June

Allsång på Skansen Tonight

BAO are appearing on Allsång på Skansen tonight. You can watch their performance here.
09 June

BAO in Studio

Here you can watch BAO in the studio recording one of the songs of the new album.
09 June

Sven-Olof Walldoff Has Died

Sven-Olof Walldoff, famous for his Eurovision Song Contest appearance as Napoleon with ABBA in 74, has died at the age of 82.
01 June

Magazine #107

Our magazine #107 has now been sent out. Click here to get to the links collection for this isssue.

More details....
23 May

French TV

French channel M6 is the first freeview station to show MM! The Movie on June 2, followed by an exclusive ABBA programme,show and the ABBA in Concert documentary from 1979.
20 May

Tracklist of new BAO CD

Here comes the tracklist of the CD O Klang Och Jubeltid which is released on June 15: 1. O Klang Och Jubeltid   Helen Sjöholm, Tommy Körberg & Kalle Moraeus, 2. Kära Syster Helen Sjöholm, 3. Månstrålar Klara  Trad., Text Arvid Ödmann - Tommy Körberg, 4. Midsommarpolka, 5. Allt Syns När Man Är Naken Helen Sjöholm, Tommy Körberg & Kalle Moraeus, 6. Alla Goda Ting, 7. En Dag I Sänder Helen Sjöholm, 8. Flickornas Rum, 9. De Ljuva Drömmarnas Orkester Helen Sjöholm, Tommy Körberg & Kalle Moraeus, 10. Jag Hör... Tommy Körberg, 11. Sorgmarsch, 12. Vilar Glad. I Din Famn  Text Kristina Lugn  Helen Sjöholm, 13. Brudmarsch.
19 May

Fancy a Flutter?

One of Benny's racing horses, Beatrice Aurore, has been admitted as a latecomer to the prestigious Epson race on the 3rd June.
16 May

New York MM! Competition

MM! is celebrating its 10th anniversary in NYC on the 18th October, and there is a sing-along contest that might get you two tickets for the 18th, flights to NYC (U.S. residents only), hotel accommodation and a meal. Just film your performance of a classic MM! clip and send it in. Further information can be found here.
12 May

New BAO Single

The new single Kära Syster by BAO (featuring Helen Sjöholm) is available from Monday, the 16th May, but it is only released on iTunes. The good news is that they will be producing a few hard copies for the Fan Club shop, and the CDs will be available in the first week of June.

10 May

BAO - Jubeltid Indeed

Be one of the first to get your hands on the brand new BAO album O Klang Och Jubeltid that is released on June 15th. BAO are celebrating their 10th anniversary with this amazing new 13-track album recorded in Benny's brand new studio. Of course, Helen and Tommy are involved, as usual. You can now pre-order this beauty from our shop.
03 May

Polar Music Prize

This year's Polar Music Prize is going to the American string quartet Kronos Quartet and the American poet and and musician Patti Smith. The ceremony is taking place on the 30th August at the Stockholm Concert Hall.
11 April

More ABBA Weekend

We have added some footage to our website in connection with the recent ABBA Weekend - many of you were itching to see the greetings the ABBA members sent us, and there are lots of photos as well, of course. 
06 April

London MM! Cast on ITV Tomorrow

The London cast of MM! is making an appearance on the ITV1 show This Morning tomorrow to mark the 12th anniversary.
06 April

MM! The Movie on Free TV in UK

ITV1 is showing MM! The Movie for the first time on free-for-all television - tune in this coming Saturday (9th April) at 7 pm.
04 April

Footage of Fantastic ABBA Weekend

The 25th Anniversary ABBA Weekend has been a great success, with well over 500 fans partying in Roosendaal. There are two links to TV footage from a Dutch station (Friday night only): here the relevant footage is right at the end, and if you go to this link, you can watch more footage (the relevant part starts about 26 mins in, and there is a little more right at the end).
23 March

ABBAWORLD Comes to Prague

ABBAWORLD is moving on to Prague and opening at the Slovanski Dum on the 6th May. Tickets are available from the 24th March from Ticket Pro.

15 March

ABBAWORLD Sydney Extended

Good news for our fans in OZ - ABBAWORLD's stay in Sydney has just been extended until the 26th June 2011.
09 March

Tracks Super Trouper Deluxe

The tracklisting for the Super Trouper Deluxe edition is now available. The CD contains the original 10 album tracks plus Elaine, On And On And On (full length version, stereo mix), Put On Your White Sombrero, Andante, Andante (Spanish) and Felicidad. All tracks have bee remastered especially for this release. The DVD contains ABBA performing on German TV (Show Express), Happy New Year from SVT, the Swedish documentary Words and Music, previously unreleased footage from the album sleeve photo shoot, the original (remastered) promo clips for Super Trouper and Happy New Year, two Super Trouper TV commercials from the UK and an international sleeve gallery.

09 March

LAYLOM Cover

The French trio Revolver has recorded a cover version of Lay All Your Love On Me. To listen to the song, please click here.
09 March

MM! Paris Run Extended

The French MM! production in Paris is now running until the 25th July 2011. Here is the link to a promotional video.
09 March

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Plays ABBA

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is playing ABBA classics at the Royal Albert Hall in London on Friday, the 13th May, at 19:30, including vocalists Mary Carewe and Ria Jones (who co-incidentally was in the London Chess cast). You can book tickets by calling +44.207.589212 or going to this link.
24 February

Magazine #106 Posted

Our Magazine No. 106 was sent out on Wednesday. For a sneak previews while you are waiting for the postman, click here.

Click here to get to the links collection for this isssue.
24 February

Super Trouper Deluxe

Super Trouper Deluxe is next - released on the 9th of May, more details on the DVD will be available here soon.
19 February

New Mexican Radio Show

Our member Gustavo is starting a new radio show in Mexico today - it is on every Saturday from 12 noon to 2 pm local time. Apart from lots of ABBA and ABBA-related music, Gus promises to talk about the history of the songs, his personal memories and that of other fans, and there will be guest appearances by well-known local artists.
18 February

ABBA Walks In Stockholm

Stockholm's City Museum is starting guided ABBA Walks,  based on Sara Russell's Stockholm guide book, in May. Further details will be available shortly.
17 February

Kristina Cast Helsinki

The leads for the Finnish Kristina production that is opening on the 29th February next year have been announced, and you can see a clip and some pictures here.
17 February

Björn at QX Gala

To watch footage of Björn at the QX Gala for gay men and lesbians in Stockholm earlier this week, go to this link.
17 February

Cristal Globe for French MM!

The very successful French production has just won a prestigious Cristal Globe award in the category Best Musical.
17 February

BBC Special Reminder

Just a reminder that you can still listen to the BBC Radio 4 special Like An Angel Passing Through My Room for which Frida was interviewed until the 23rd February.
17 February

UK Chess visiting Toronto

The current UK touring production of Chess is heading for Toronto for a limited season in late September. 
08 February

Vote for Mamma Mia!

Mamma Mia! has been shortlisted for the BBC Radio 2 Olivier Audience Award for a long-running London show. At the moment, there are 18 shows listed and you can cast your vote here. Later, once the final shortlist has been established after the first round of votes, you can vote again by using the same link.
06 February

More Amazing ABBA Weekend Guests

We are happy to announce the final line-up for the ABBA Weekend - you all know about our great guests Janne Schaffer and Bubi Heilemann by now, but we can now also confirm the wonderfully supportive Goerel Hanser as well as Mr I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, Ulf Andersson. Come along and let us have a big party in Roosendaal on the first April weekend!
11 January

BBC Special Including Frida Interview

BBC Radio 4 is broadcasting a special called Like An Angel Passing Through My Room on the 16th February. It includes an exlusive interview with Frida by British Comedian Christopher Green. It will be available here for a week from February 16.
01 January

2010 News Moved to Archive

Not to worry, we have not deleted the 2010 news, we have just moved it to the news archive 2010.