The 2025 ABBAday

Like every year, I went to the ABBAday organized by the fan club in Roosendaal.

Thanks to Gerardo, I even went to the party at the Moriaan Café, since he invited me to spend the night at the Bastion Hotel.

This year, everything was quieter: much less people, and when we arrived at the café at the appointed time, there was nothing to suggest that something special was going to happen, apart from a few people dressed with truly outdated clothes.

But an hour later, the music started and Anita welcomed us. 

The highlight of the evening was the competition, where we had to answer twenty questions, some of them were easy, some others, impossible to find.

 

An Scottishman won first Prize, a book signed by the four members of ABBA, but second Prize went to Philippe, and third Prize went to our friend, Yvon.

Then a mini-concert by the ABBAgirls closed the evening. These two girls have everything it takes to create a great atmosphere with little equipment. Being in the front row, I made the most of it, you can see it in the three videos I filmed.

  

 

The next day, we met at the Rottier. We had the regulars, but also some newcomers, like a very friendly Canadian who was discovering ABBAday for the first time, and an entire Indian family (from India), who all had a great time.

From the moment the doors opened at 11 a.m., the ABBA Market was the center of attention for all visitors. You can find there any kind of items, unfortunately often the same as in previous years. Since I wasn't looking for anything special, I ended up buying very few things, none of them were particularly interesting.

 

 

After Helga and Anita's welcome, Finn Sjöberg and Hans Löfvenberg introduced themselves and told us about their work with ABBA in 1977, during the tour, since Finn was a musician and Hans was a Tour assistant.

A little later, Finn came back to tell us about 1975 and showed, with his guitar, how “Boogaloo” arrangements were born.

 

This was also the theme of the exhibition, which featured several objects from that year and many press reviews, including a double-page spread from "Made In Sweden" signed by all four members.

  

  

  

 

 

A third surprise guest took the stage: Stany Van Wymeersch, with his daughter Ophelia. They recorded ABBA's "Crazy World" with Klaas Tomme and the participation of Susie Webb, Stefan Blomquist, and Janne Schaffer, who wasn't there. We had the honour to see the music video, which has yet to be released on YouTube. The song itself is available on all streaming platforms. We, however, had the opportunity to purchase the physical 45 rpm record, limited to 500 copies.

 

As every year, a contest allowed all visitors to win fan club gifts, some of which were signed. They made an effort to find questions that were difficult to search for on the internet, such as: Where was the Cats' costume first worn on television? Unfortunately, some clever people asked ChatGPT, who answered correctly (the program "Made in Sweden" in April 1976).

After a quick dinner out, we returned to the venue for the disco party prepared by Roeland.

 

As usual, the evening ended too soon, and at 11 p.m., after a family photo, we left.

On Sunday, the fan club organized a trip to Mamma Mia The Party in Rotterdam, but I didn't attend.

I am happy with the two days I spent there, especially because it allowed me to meet up with friends I only see on this occasion. Finn Sjöberg's demonstration was also very interesting.

I would like to thank Helga and Anita who, as they do every year, have done everything to ensure that this event is a celebration that you always want to return to.

So, see you next year!