Sophie Ellis-Bextor: ABBA, My Supergroup…
Sophie Ellis-Bextor counts herself as one of ABBA’s biggest fans and in the hour-long special, Sophie Ellis-Bextor: ABBA, My Supergroup, she reveals how their iconic tunes found their way into her life.
Sophie Ellis-Bextor:
“I’ve spent thousands of hours singing and dancing to ABBA’s songs throughout my life since I first fell in love with them. This is my dream show, to share their music and the joy they bring to me and so many millions of others!”
By the time Sophie was of an age to truly appreciate music, ABBA had already broken up several years earlier, but their absence only made her heart grow fonder of their music. She tells how she became familiar with their songs through 90s films such as Muriel’s Wedding and The Adventures of Priscilla – Queen of the Desert, and TV shows like Knowing Me Knowing You, as well as her lifelong love of Eurovision.
The 1992 hits compilation, ABBA Gold, opened up their back catalogue of hits to a teenage Sophie and from there on she was a fully-fledged fan, enjoying the ABBA journey through Mamma Mia! the stage musical, the movies which followed and their eventual incredible avatar reunion. The programme is packed with Sophie’s enthralling and delightful personal stories and gives a fascinating insight into how ABBA’s influence shaped the aspirations and sound of one of the UK’s most successful female artists of modern times, Sophie herself.
The programme is soundtracked by over 20 of the group’s biggest hits, as well as archive audio from interviews, film trailers and live performances. It is available now on BBC Sounds and will be broadcast on Radio 2 on Saturday 13 April (1-2am).
Other highlights include a Top 30 ABBA Countdown.
