Latest news with #QueenElizabethOlympicPark
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Saving money, money, money: Abba Voyage chiefs replace experienced band with cheaper musicians to cut costs
It is the lucrative show that allows Abba fans to experience a concert from the group as they were in their prime – or rather, through digital 'Abbatars' and a glittering ten-piece band. But despite having raked in £300 million in ticket sales, The Mail on Sunday has discovered that the producers of Abba Voyage are cutting costs. They have replaced the live band – which accompanies the four singing avatars of Abba – with cheaper musicians. The show has attracted more than 2.5 million visitors since it opened in 2022 at the Abba Arena in London 's Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, and it has contributed £1.5 billion to the economy. The original line-up of musicians – to accompany the avatars of Agnetha Faltskog, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad – was put together by former Klaxons singer James Righton, husband of Keira Knightley. He scoured the globe for a band that could bring the group's hits to life, hiring the likes of singer-songwriter Victoria Hesketh, known as Little Boots, on the keyboard. 'The [band was] always brilliant and had amazing players,' Righton told NME magazine at the time. 'This band had to step up to being as good as the original line-up.' However, neither Righton nor any of the musicians who worked with Abba members Benny and Bjorn in Stockholm to bring the extravaganza to life still work at the 3,000-capacity arena. 'Now it is a huge success with sell-out audiences, the bosses have begun cost-cutting and have even replaced the band with cheaper musicians,' one worker said. 'If something as successful and lucrative as Abba Voyage is cutting corners, there is not much hope for the rest of the industry.' Last month auditions took place for new performers after an open call for 'a full-time contract with our live band at the Abba Arena'. The advert said: 'We are searching for professional guitar, bass, keyboard, saxophone, drums and percussion players, as well as female-identifying singers of the highest quality. Ability to read sheet music is a bonus.' Workers fear that the quality of the show will be compromised when the new musicians take over in December. Abba Voyage, a 95-minute run-through of 20 of the band's greatest hits, took five years and an estimated £15 million to make. One of the most iconic moments in the show is when the four avatars are silhouetted against vintage footage of Abba winning the Eurovision Song Contest in Brighton in 1974. Originally billed as a temporary structure, the Abba Voyage venue is not slated to be earmarked for housing redevelopment until 2029. Abba were approached for comment.
The Sun
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
ABBA Voyage arena set to be demolished as developers unveil plans for housing estate
ABBA Voyage has been a huge success since its launch three years ago, but now the Swedish group's digital avatars are set to be kicked out of their East London arena. I can reveal plans have been drawn up to make way for a 1,000-home neighbourhood, which would mean the venue, constructed especially for the concert spectacle, will be demolished by the end of the decade to make way for apartment blocks. 2 2 The news is likely to devastate fans, as the group have said the concert — using state-of-the-art technology to show a younger version of the group on stage — is the closest anyone will come to seeing Agnetha Faltskog, Benny Andersson, Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Bjorn Ulvaeus perform together again. It also scuppers hopes the Spice Girls could take over the arena, in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, after The Sun revealed the girl group have been planning to create their own similar digital residency. The concert is currently booking up until January 2026, although it is expected to continue for longer. The show's CEO and executive producer Michael Bolingbroke previously said: ' ABBA Voyage will certainly run for another couple of years and hopefully longer — in an ideal world we'd stay for ever.' Building work on the first two phases of a major new estate is scheduled to start next year just metres away from the arena. Real loss That will include construction on the site of the nearby hotel and bar Snoozebox, where revellers often congregate after the performances and which only has permission to stay until the end of 2025. The first homes on the site are scheduled to be completed in 2028, but earlier this year, ABBA's Bjorn said he believed the arena could remain until 2029. He explained: 'We are allowed to stay in our venue till 2029, but sales might drop, you never know.' The arena was originally built as a moveable venue, but the band later admitted they hoped the show would stay in the area. During its run, ABBA Voyage has attracted more than two million visitors and has contributed £1.4billion to the UK economy. A spokesperson for ABBA Voyage said: 'We are in constant dialogue with the London Legacy Development Corporation and Newham Council about our lease and we welcome the opportunity to stay at the arena for as long as viable. 'At present, there are no plans for any changes to be made.' It would be a real loss for it to go, but it's certainly been a massive triumph.
Yahoo
13-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Bjorn Ulvaeus unsure if Abba Voyage will continue if a bandmate dies
Bjorn Ulvaeus said he does not know if the Abba Voyage virtual concerts will continue if one of his band members dies. Since opening in May 2022, more than three million people have seen the show that brings to life younger versions of the Abba members through digital 'Abba-tars' and a 10-piece live band in a purpose-built arena in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London. The influential pop group, also made up of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Agnetha Faltskog and Benny Andersson, were the first Swedish winners of the Eurovision Song Contest with their hit Waterloo in Brighton in 1974. Asked on Times Radio if the virtual concerts will continue if a member of Abba dies, Ulvaeus told the station: 'That's a question I've never had before… I honestly don't know, hadn't thought about that. 'It's good you raise that question – I'll talk to the others about that as we need to decide beforehand between us if it's OK for all four of us to go on after we're gone.' Faltskog and Ulvaeus married in 1971 before splitting almost a decade later, while Andersson and Lyngstad also married and divorced in 1981, a year before the band broke up. Abba had a string of chart-toppers including Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!, Dancing Queen, Super Trouper, The Winner Takes It All and Mamma Mia! The group reunited and released their first new music in almost 40 years with Voyage, their ninth studio album, which topped the UK album charts. Their songs also inspired the musical Mamma Mia!, which began in London in 1999, and became a hit worldwide sensation. It spun off two movies, 2008's Mamma Mia! and 2018's Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bromley crowned London Youth Games champions for 12th time
Bromley has clinched the Jubilee Trophy at the London Youth Games (LYG) finals. The borough was crowned champion at the exciting finale weekend at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park from July 4 to 6. This year, more than 10,000 young Londoners competed in 37 sports. Advertisement The Jubilee Trophy recognises the borough with the most points from their top 24 scoring competitions of the season. Bromley boys' basketball team huddle up during London Youth Games showdown (Image: London Youth Games) This marks the 12th time Bromley has claimed the trophy, a testament to their consistent performance throughout the season. Bromley shone in multiple sports, securing gold in Para Games athletics, U15 girls' football, boys' cross country, and both girls' and boys' Para Games swimming. Read more Louise Hills, sports and events manager for Mytime Active, which coordinates Bromley's LYG entry, said: "We are absolutely delighted to win the Jubilee trophy and be crowned LYG Champions for another year. Advertisement "Our teams performed consistently well during the entire season and we are so grateful to our loyal team managers who recruit and train the players." Bromley Para swimmers celebrate gold at London Youth Games (Image: London Youth Games) The London Youth Games, founded in 1977 to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee, have seen over two million young Londoners aged seven to 17 compete in 37 sports. Among them are renowned athletes and para-athletes including Olympians Sir Mo Farah and Christine Ohuruogu MBE, Paralympian David Weir CBE, and England footballers Chloe Kelly and Raheem Sterling MBE. As the 50th anniversary Golden Games approach in 2027, LYG is encouraging Londoners to share their stories and experiences about the transformative impact of the Games. Advertisement The London Youth Games Foundation also aims to raise £5 million to celebrate this milestone and ensure the Games continue for future generations.
BBC News
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Chic Nile Rodgers curates David Bowie Centre display in Stratford
Chic star Nile Rodgers has guest-curated a display for the new David Bowie Centre, including personal correspondence between the two V&A Museum, which is behind the new David Bowie Centre, said Rodgers has also selected a bespoke Peter Hall suit worn by Bowie during the Serious Moonlight tour for the Let's Dance David Bowie Centre will open within the museum's new East Storehouse in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, in Stratford, east London, on 13 of Bowie, Rodgers and guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan recording Let's Dance in New York will also feature. Costumes worn during Bowie's Ziggy Stardust period, and those worn by other musicians including Sir Elton John and PJ Harvey, will also be on said: "My creative life with David Bowie provided the greatest success of his incredible career, but our friendship was just as rewarding."Our bond was built on a love of the music that had both made and saved our lives."Rodgers produced Bowie's single Let's Dance and the 1983 album of the same name, as well as his 1993 album Black Tie White Noise, with the personal correspondence in the exhibition relating to the Award-winning indie rock band The Last Dinner Party have also curated part of the exhibition, describing Bowie as a "constant source of inspiration to us".Their items include Bowie's elaborate handwritten lyrics for his song Win, and notes and set lists for his 1976 Isolar band said: "David Bowie continues to inspire generations of artists like us to stand up for ourselves."Access to the David Bowie Centre will be free, with tickets released nearer its opening.
