ABBA News
Latest update:
This page presents ABBA news arriving between the 
issues and is updated regularly.
Visit us on Facebook and
Instagram for further news!
News Archive 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021,
2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004
- "Dancing Queen" is turning 50! Special events are being held to mark the occasion. They will take place on August 14, 2026,
in Berlin, and on August 15, 2026, in other cities such as Stockholm, Sydney, Gothenburg, Mexico City, Amsterdam, and more.
- The new ABBA calendar for 2027 has just been released. Titled "Thank You For The Music" it is now published by Edition
Lempertz following the insolvency filing of Heel Verlag. It stands out for its characteristically high quality and fantastic photos.
Regina Grafunder, President of ABBA Intermezzo, contributed to the selection of images and the drafting of the captions.
You can order it here.
- Our deepest condolences – we are infinitely saddened and left speechless.
- Universal will release "Dancing Queen" on two 10-inch vinyl records on August 14 to celebrate its 50th anniversary - one on
classic black vinyl and the other on glitter-effect vinyl. The B-side features the Spanish version of this iconic song, titled
"La Reina Del Baile".
The vinyl records can be ordered here: https://shopde.abbasite.com/collections/abba-vinyl
- Benny and Anni-Frid at ABBA Voyage on June 3!
ABBA Voyage launches education program which will support young people from underrepresented communities across east London. Developed in partnership with the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), the initiative builds on a series of education and community projects that ABBA Voyage has run over the past four years.
To mark the launch, Benny and Anni-Frid made a rare public appearance at the ABBA Voyage arena, joining nearly 3,000 children for a one-off event that included a Q&A, hosted by broadcaster Vernon Kay.
Photo: ABBA Voyage - CISAC President Björn opened the General Assembly of the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers
(CISAC) which celebrates its 100th anniversary on June 4.
Held at the Pavillon Cambon in Paris’ 1st arrondissement, in the Opéra district, the General Assembly convened more than 300 participants from around the world. Discussions have focused on international cooperation, fair remuneration in the digital environment, and emerging challenges such as artificial intelligence.
- ABBA No. 107 has now been published and sent to all members!
With this issue, we are celebrating a very special anniversary - 50 years of "Fernando"! You can also look forward to other reports, including an exclusive interview with Lena Andersson. As always, there are news, unpublished photos and a fantastic prize draw - everything on 36 glossy colour pages!
Contents of the magazine:- News Extra with exclusive news and photos
- Prize Draw with great prizes to be won
- Pippi På Sirkus – Premiere at Oslo's Det Norske Teatret with Björn
- Back in Business! Björn & Benny Musicals "Kristina" and "Chess"
- Mamma Mia! The Party Celebrating 10 Years
- 50 Year's "Fernando": Reader's Story & Collector's Corner
- The Stars Were Bright!
- On A Journey Through ABBA's Stockholm
- Exclusive Interview with Lena Andersson
- Farewell to Karin Glenmark
- Sweet Birthday Songbook: Agnetha Fältskog - When Springtime Comes
Our exclusive poster features a stunning ABBA image from 1976, taken at the recording for the "Fernando" video, that differs from the one used for the single cover.
As always, we look forward to your feedback!
-
- German TV show "Sag die Wahrheit" on channel SWR, at 10 p.m., will contain small pieces of ABBA videos in their show on April 27.
Regina will also take part in the show. - It was 'Pippi På Sirkus' opening night in Oslo on April 18. It was a brilliant and outstanding show and the
artists/performers had fantastic voices with Pippi being the star of the show. The musical is only being performed until June 27th.
Björn attended the premiere and took a lot of time for fans and the press on the yellow carpet. He joined the cast on stage after
the show and has given a nice speech at the After Show Party.
Photos: © Regina Grafunder / ABBA Fan Club - ABBA Voyage celebrated 4 million visitors at ABBA Voyage!
- There is a new gigantic 3-sided video billboard for Chess right in the middle of Times Square directly underneath the iconic
Coca-Cola sign.
CHESS the Musical (2025 Broadway Cast Recording) was released on all digital platforms on April 10: chessthemusical.lnk.to/2025BCR
Photos: © Michael Polito / ABBA Fan Club
- At Canada’s National Summit on Artificial Intelligence and Culture, CISAC President Björn delivered a recorded opening
keynote urging policymakers to ensure the rapid development of AI strengthens, rather than undermines, the rights of creators.
- On 18 March 2026, there was a special performance of "Mamma Mia! The Party" at Tyrol in Stockholm arranged for the benefit of the
World Childhood Foundation, as a tribute to The Queen on the occasion of Her Majesty's 50 years as Queen of Sweden. Among the guests
were members of the royal family as well as friends and Swedish entertainment profiles.
Björn Ulvaeus surprised Queen Silvia with a speech based on the song "Dancing Queen" which was performed by ABBA at the Royal Opera on the evening before the wedding of Queen Silvia and King Carl XVI Gustaf in 1976. The invited guests paid between SEK 3,500 and 5,000 but were also encouraged to swish a gift to Childhood. The money went in full to the Queen's charity, which raised SEK 2.6 million during the evening.
- Björn visited the rehearsals in Oslo for the upcoming musical in February. The Norwegian version of "Pippi at the Circus"
entitled "Pippi på Sirkus" will premiere on 18 April 2026 at Det Norske Teatret in Oslo under the direction of Roine
Söderlundh. Natalie Bjerke Roland (photo) will play the title role as the world's strongest girl.
Pictures: Ole Herman Andersen; Eirik Malmo/DNT
- The German Village Museum in Cloppenburg is currently presenting an exhibition about the legendary BRAVO Star Cutouts until September
27, 2026. On March 13, 2026, Bubi Heilemann will be at the Museum to share stories from his impressive photo collection about
his eventful life with pop and rock icons. He will present a wealth of photographic material, including, of course, ABBA photos.
During the event, you will have the opportunity to visit the BRAVO Star Cutout exhibition with Bubi and learn more about the posters firsthand.
The event will take place on March 13, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. in the lecture hall of the Münchhausenscheune at the Cloppenburg Museum Village, Bether Straße 6. Admission is EUR 15.00 .
- Here is the cover for the new 2027 ABBA calendar by Heel Verlag. The ABBA calendars by Heel Verlag are known for their high
quality. The new calendar will be called "Thank You For The Music" instead of "Waterloo" from now on. It can be ordered in Spring.
- ABBA has reached #1 for the first time ever on the Billboard US Top Dance Album chart this week with "ABBA Gold", selling over
50,000 albums in one week even though the original album release was over 35 years ago! This is thought to be mostly attributable
to the use of the song "Fernando" as part of the last season of the Netflix series "Stranger Things".
- Mamma Mia! The Party celebrated its 10th anniversary at Tyrol in Stockholm on January 21st. Björn enjoyed the fantastic
show and spoke to the audience afterwards.
More about it in our next ABBA issue.
Photo: © Regina Grafunder
- Personal message from Frida to you all!
122 We received this wonderful message from Frida after she read the current ABBA Magazine
which was her special birthday issue!
Thank you so much, dearest Frida ♥ ♥ ♥
- New limited-edition ABBA Valentine's release - plus free ABBA Bag:
Picture Disc Lay All Your Love On Me / My Love, My Life, packed in a plastic wallet.
The image on the picture disc is hand illustrated with elements from one of the photo sessions ABBA had with Barry Levine.
Order your copy here: abbasite.com
You will receive a free ABBA bag to your order from this shop.
-
- "Chess" revival on Broadway - 16 November 2025
Danny Strong (writer), Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Tim Rice on the red carpet as they launched the musical back onto Broadway 37 years after its original production.
Photo: Sergio Villarini for Broadway.com - Tommy Körberg said in a short interview for Swedish Radio that he has just got a new song with music and lyrics
by Björn Ulvaeus. He will perform it for the first time on New Year's Eve at Skansen.
Sveriges Radio
Special thanks to our friend Pentti! - Now you can enjoy Gemini's music digitally!
Finally, Gemini's two original albums are being released digitally via Mono Music/Playground Music for the very first time, something that has long been requested by fans.
So far, only the collection “The Best of Karin and Anders Glenmark” has been available digitally. With the release of the original albums, the six songs that were not on the collection are made available and Gemini's entire catalog gets new life via streaming services. - On November 22, 2025, the fantastic premiere of the musical "Kristina" in concert form, sung in German, took place at the Theater
Koblenz. This masterpiece by Benny and Björn Ulvaeus is a true work of art, even in German. Udo Brinkmann's German translation
is very touching and authentic – simply perfect. Additional explanations between the songs allowed even audience members unfamiliar
with the Swedish original to easily follow the story and experience Kristina's moving fate. The performers/singers were magnificent –
as was the powerful orchestra. The only criticism was that it was all over far too quickly – we could have listened to the singers
for much, much longer. It was so emotional that we couldn't hold back the tears. This concert version is already so moving – just
imagine how it will be on October 31, 2026, when the musical is staged! You can still see and hear the concert version at the Koblenz
Theatre on December 14 and 20, 2025.
A heartfelt thank you to everyone involved for these wonderful moments!
- ABBA No. 106 has now been published and sent to all members!
With this issue, we are celebrating a very special birthday – Frida is turning 80! We are honoring Frida with a special tribute, featuring a detailed report looking back at her eventful life. As an extra gift for all members, there is a special giant poster of Frida with one of her most beautiful photos from 1977.
We're not only celebrating Frida's birthday, but also our own 35th anniversary. That's why the back of the giant Frida poster features a beautiful ABBA image from 1976.
Contents of the magazine:- News Extra with exclusive news and photos
- Competition with great prizes related to Frida's birthday
- Tribute to Anni-Frid Lyngstad-Reuss - a huge special report
- Special report on the 50th anniversary of the 'ABBA' album, Part 3
- Exclusive interview with Judy Craymer, to whom we owe the wonderful musical 'Mamma Mia!'
- 80th Birthday Songbook: Frida and Ratata 'As long as I have you' and 'Så länge vi har varann' as well as Frida: 'Älska Mig Alltid'
- Amazing Frida poster in the centerfold with a photo from 1996
As always, we look forward to your feedback!
- This unique limited-edition Zoetrope 7” single is released as a collector’s edition to celebrate New Year 2026. Features
the tracks 'Happy New Year' and 'Felicidad' and individual numbering. Limited to 4.500 copies.
Order your copy here.
- Karin Glenmark has passed away in her hometown Ystad on 30 October 2025. She was 73 years old.
During the 1980s Karin became known to a wider audience when she participated in the Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Tim Rice musical "Chess" both the recording of the concept album and the concert tour. Moreover in 1985, she formed the pop duo Gemini together with her brother Anders Glenmark. They released two albums with songwriting contributions by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus who also co-produced both albums. The song "Mio Min Mio" from the album "Geminism" was released in both Swedish and English and in Sweden it became the duo's biggest hit single when it reached number 3 on the sales chart.
However in 1987, she was one of the many well-known Swedish singers who appeared on Benny Andersson's solo album "Klinga Mina Klockor".
Karin Glenmark, who has lived in Ystad for many years, is survived by three children: Lisa, Nils, and Anton.
Our heartfelt condolences to her family and friends.
- The Story of CHESS returned to Brodway. The preview was a big success. Benny attended the rehearsals earlier in October.
The premiere will be on November 16 at Imperial Theatre, New York City.
- Martin Fröst has released a new single from his B.A.C.H. album called "Largo" which he performs with Benny.
Special thanks to Pentti Koponen. - Björn's wife Christina has recently opened an online candy shop called
Sugar Rush Candy Couture.
We have tried the Swedish Mix and it was very yummy! - Frida enjoyed the ABBA Voyage Show in London on 13 September again.
Photo: © Svana Gisla - Book "Livet Är Ett Gig" by Gunnar Sandevärn with foreword by Frida!
Frida has written a heartwarming foreword for this book about Gunnar's meetings with Frida, Stikkan Anderson, Svenne Hedlund, Benny Andersson and Tommy Körberg among others. It includes some stunning photos of a young Frida and also two of a young Benny.
You can order the book here: Premium Publishing - Livet är ett gig – Mina möten med Anni-Frid, Hasse, Tage, Cornelis och andra på nöjets estrader
- ABBA No. 105 has been published and sent to all our members!
With this issue, we continue to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ABBA album. You can also look forward to other special reports, including a detailed report on the 3rd anniversary of the ABBA Voyage Show with great exclusive photos. As always, there are news, unpublished photos and a fanastic prize draw - everything on 36 glossy colour pages!
Magazine Contents:- News Extra with lots of news, mainly about Björn
- Competition with great prizes to be won
- Special report on the 3rd anniversary of the ABBA Voyage Show
- Special report in memory of Gesine Unverzagt
- Special report in memory of Michael B. Tretow
- Part 2 of our extensive report on the 50th anniversary of the "ABBA" album
- Reader's story about meeting Frida
- Songbook: Agnetha - S.O.S. (Swedish)
Our exclusive poster features a stunning ABBA image from 1974, taken during a photo session by the unforgettable photographer Gesine Unverzagt.
As always, we look forward to your feedback!
- Björn will appear at Gothenburg Book Fair on September 27, 2025 at 12-12:45.
TV host / author / journalist Fredrik Wikingsson will interview Björn under theme "To write song lyrics" - among other things about Nordic melancholy, inspiration, meter and the interaction between text and music.
Special thanks to our friend Pentti Koponen. - It has officially been announced that the Broadway revival of "Chess" will begin performances on October 15, 2025 and have its
Opening Night on Sunday, November 16th. It will be performed at the Imperial Theatre, the exact same location of its original Broadway premiere in 1988.
Tickets are now available at www.telecharge.com.
- Björn is currently in London at SXSW. He is planning a musical with the help of AI.
- ABBA Voyage's 3rd Anniversary was attended by Frida and Benny as well as Voyage's producers Svana Gisla and Ludvig
Andersson. The show now contains new songs: Super Trouper (or Take A Chance On Me), Money Money Money and The Name of The
Game. When All Is Said and Done was taken out. Special thanks to Dan Daniell who sent us these wonderful photos.
- ABBA's sound engineer and long time friend Micke B. Tretow passed away on May 20 at the age of 80. We owe the wonderful
'wall of sound' ABBA sound to him and he always was known as the 5th ABBA member.
Our deepest sympathy go out to his family. Rest in peace, Micke, and thank you for everything!
Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus, Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Agnetha Fältskog commented on Micke's passing for Aftonbladet:
- We are very moved, happy and grateful for Björn's wonderful video-message he sent us to thank you all for your fantastic
birthday wishes!!!!
You can watch the video on our sites here: Facebook Instagram
- On Tuesday Björn was in Brussels speaking at EU Parliament
A high-level delegation of creators led by ABBA co-founder and CISAC President Björn Ulvaeus has visited Brussels to call for action by the EU to safeguard creators’ rights in the AI era. They met on May 20-21 with top EU policymakers and join forces with other leaders from the cultural and creative sector to call for proper implementation of the EU law to ensure transparency, consent and remuneration for creators in the generative AI market.
CISAC
Photos: Daina Le Lardic, Hans Nijenhuis, European Parliament - On May 7, Björn was one of the guests in the Dutch talk show "Eva" broadcast live from Amsterdam! After Summer, "Mamma Mia!
The Party" in Rotterdam is going to be extended.
You can watch the interview here: Björn Ulvaeus over het succes van ABBA: "Overnight we were famous all over the world"
- New 'ABBA' Releases to celebrate its 50th anniversary!
Universal will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 'ABBA' album with several releases on vinyl in limited edition on June 13th:- 2 LP 45 rpm Half-Speed-Master: ABBA
- 4 x 7" Boxset, including:
- I Do I Do I Do I Do I Do (dark red vinyl)
- Mamma Mia / Intermezzo No. 1 (red vinyl)
- So Long / I've Been Waiting For You (blue vinyl)
- S.O.S. / Man In The Middle (yellow vinyl)
- Picture Discs:
- I Do I Do I Do I Do I Do / Rock Me
- Mamma Mia / Intermezzo No. 1
- So Long / I've Been Waiting For You
- S.O.S. / Man In The Middle
- German Heel Company will publish their new ABBA Calendar for 2026 by the end of May. It will contain some wonderful photos.
Here are some spreads from it.
Their calendars are always very professionally produced and we can highly recommend them.
- ABBA No. 104 has now been published and sent to all members!
With this issue we celebrate a very special birthday - that is Björn's 80th birthday. As a homage to him we honour him with a special account looking at his life inspiring for all fans. A special super poster with a 1979 photo from the popular photographer Bubi Heilemann well-rounds this special celebration. The photo is also purchasable with a favour price here.
We don't only celebrate Björn's birthday but two more jubilees - our own 35th jubilee and the 50th jubilee of the album 'ABBA'. As thanks for your loyality we celebrate our jubilee with another great photo on the back side of the super poster, which matches to the 50th jubilee of the 'ABBA' album.
Content:- News Extra with exclusive news about the new published 50th jubilee 'ABBA' album plus more great news
- Exclusive Interview with Sir Tim Rice
- Prize Draw with great prizes around Björn's birthday and the 50th 'ABBA' jubilee
- Homage to Björn Ulvaeus - great special report
- Special Report about 50th jubilee of 'ABBA' album
- Special Report reminding about Graham Tainton
- 80th Birthday Songbook: Hootenanny Singers - Young As Long As You Love!
As always, we look forward to your feedback!
- SUPER TROUPER! - ABBA'S BJÖRN AT 80
Björn is gracing the front page of the brand new The Times Magazine - 19 April 2025
It is featuring an in depth interview with stunning portrait and pictures of Björn wearing fancy designer clothes.
- We are proud to present you this outstanding video from the wonderful event 'Making Melbourne A Summer Night City'
on 8 March. Special thanks to Julie Craik.
Watch this great video with Ludvig Andersson, Svana Gisla and Benny on our Instagram account. - ABBA Live 1973 is the working title of a forthcoming book about ABBA's 1973 tour of the Swedish folkparks by ABBA historian
Carl Magnus Palm. The book is the first in a projected series of volumes about ABBA's tours 1973 - 1981. The writing and production
of the book is funded through a crowdfunding campaign. You can pre-order and support the campaign here:
Order your copy
- ABBA historian Carl Magnus Palm offers tours for ABBA fans in Stockholm! Over two days, you will join him on an exclusive
tour of ABBA’s Stockholm. More infos and tickets here:
Tours for ABBA fans Stockholm
- On March 27, 2025 ABBA sent a message to their fans. They will be adding a little something to their ABBA Voyage concert.
Photo taken by Ludvig Andersson, April 2021. - Björn will be one of the speakers at SXSW conference in London (2 - 7 June 2025)
The SXSW London conference will focus themes which include ‘Humanity, Machines, and the Future of AI’, ‘Our Future Health, New Tech Frontiers’, ‘Tech, Governance, and the Future of Society’, ‘Business Matters: Navigating Business in a Changing World’ and ‘Innovation Meets Imagination: The Future of Creativity’.
Gillian Anderson and ABBA's Björn Ulvaeus to speak at SXSW London
- Benny has developed and will appear in "Siw", a feature documentary about Swedish music icon Siw Malmkvist.
The film will tell the story of the life and 70-year career of Siw Malmkvist, a beloved Swedish artist of the schlager music style. Benny will join a host of creative figures in the documentary.
It has been developed with executive producer Andersson and his son Ludvig Andersson, for their RMV Film. NonStop Entertainment will distribute it in Nordic territories, with a theatrical release scheduled for autumn 2025. - Tribute Band akkaband from
reset production (known as Abbamusic in Germany) is on
tour in Europe right now. Some of our members were lucky to win Tickets for the show in our competition. Everyone was overwhelmed and
had a lot of fun. They not only played the well-known songs but also songs like 'The piper', 'People Need Love', 'Hole in your soul'
etc. and ABBA's 2021 song 'Don't Shut Me Down'. The band told us that their aim is not to copy the real ABBA as no one can do it but
to celebrate their fantastic music with many fans.
If you still haven't seen their performances, make sure to get your tickets here: resetproduction.de ....and have the time of your life.
Photo: Lucky ABBA Intermezzo member and winner Bayya Assem with the tribute band. - A longer version of the song 'Guldet blev till sand' is now available digitally:
Peter Jöback - Guldet blev till sand
- Happy Valentine's Day
Just in time for Valentine's Day, a heart shaped ABBA 12" Single will be released on February 7, 2025: Lay All Your Love On Me / I've Been Waiting For You.
Also available is a new 'I Love ABBA' Sweater. You can pre-order both already now here.
Win a heart shaped 12" single and sweater!
All ABBA Fan Club Members will have the chance to win a copy of the heart shaped 12" vinyl
and a sweater. See our mail to all our members which we mailed on 22nd January.v
- CHESS IN CONCERT (in English) will be performed four times in Dalhalla, Sweden in August. It will have a "new" song. Björn
Ulvaeus and Emma Ulvaeus have written English lyrics to "Glöm mig on du kan" which was added to CHESS PÅ SVENSKA theatre
production which has been performed in Sweden and Finland. The melody is best known for ABBA fans as "Just Like That".
Special thanks to Pentti Koponen. - Clarinettist and conductor Martin Fröst has published in social media a photo with Benny in the studio with this text:
"Creative collaboration with one of the great geniuses of the music world, not to mention a living legend, Benny Andersson. Exiting soundscapes. New doors to the future. Stay tuned."
Special thanks to Pentti Koponen. - We have deleted some older messages. If you found this page by a search engine, don't miss the whole site!
You will find the old messages from the last years in our News Archive 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012 and 2011.