THE BASICS ABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in 1970, made up of Anni-Frid "Frida" Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Fältskog. They are one of the most successful pop bands in history, with global record sales approaching 400 million.
WHY ABBA? Why not? The clue is in the first letters of their Christian names. The band had to ask permission from the Swedish fish-canning company Abba Seafood AB to use it.
WHO WAS MARRIED TO WHOM? Björn and Agnetha were married, as were Benny and Anni-Frid. But not for long. In fact, the band lasted longer than the marriages, just.
THE WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS SWEDES? Probably. Except that Anni-Frid is actually half-Norwegian and half-German, but was brought up in Sweden by her maternal grandmother after her mother died aged just 21.
BUT THE BOYS WERE THE BRAINS BEHIND THE BAND? Some would argue that the boys really made the group with their incredible hit-writing talent. Stig Anderson, a Swedish songwriter and music publisher, went on to become ABBA's manager after telling the boys: "One day the pair of you will write a song that becomes a worldwide hit." That said, we all know who looked better in those silver platform boots.
AND THEY DID WRITE A HIT? Yes, in fact they wrote several hits, most of which you probably know the words to. The first one to make it big on the international music scene was the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest winner Waterloo. It went to no. 1 in the UK, Germany and Australia. It got to no. 6 in the US. Go on, you know the words...
TONGUE TWISTER If you really want a challenge, try the Swedish version. All together now: Jo, jo, vid Waterloo Napoleon fick ge sig...
THEN WHAT? The hits just kept coming; 1975 saw the release of I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do. Then later that year SOS, followed by Mamma Mia. In 1976, they released Fernando; the following year, Knowing Me, Knowing You and The Name of the Game and in 1978, Take a Chance on Me. Are you singing yet?
SUPER TROUPER? You said it. By 1976 ABBA were truly global superstars. That year saw the release of a Greatest Hits compilation album, which became their first UK no. 1 album and sold more than a million copies in the US.
SO WHICH IS YOUR FAVOURITE SONG? Too many to relate, but who hasn't fallen in love to Chiquitita, or made a fool of themselves on a dance floor to Dancing Queen, got the words wrong to Does Your Mother Know? or crooned with the best of them to The Winner Takes It All. And don't be embarrassed if you're a secret ABBA maniac. The group still sells around three million albums a year, every year. They're never out of style. And nor are those silver platform boots.
VOULEZ-VOUS? For Björn and Agnetha the answer was no by 1979. Their split led to speculation about the band's future, but they promised to play on. In 1981, Benny and Anni-Frid followed suit and got divorced.
THE END? The dissolution of the band was never officially announced, but their last public performance was on UK television in 1982.
Life after ABBA
CHESS Benny and Björn's first major project after ABBA, a musical that debuted in 1986 and tells the story of a love triangle in the Cold War. Lyrics by Tim Rice.
ANNI-FRID THE PRINCESS? Yes, from pop star to princess, it's the stuff of fairy tales. She is officially known as Her Serene Highness Princess Anni-Frid Synni Reuss of Plauen, following her marriage to a German prince, who died in 1999. The Instant Expert feels a musical coming on.
MAMMA MIA! The musical that no one (well, almost no one) can resist. Let's face it, 42 million punters can't be wrong. Then there was the film, also a mega-hit, the most successful British film ever. There is now a version in Mandarin, so another few billion people won't feel left out.
THE ABBA LEGACY An exhibition called ABBA WORLD tours the globe offering fans the "music, memories and magic". An ABBA Museum is planned in Stockholm. Until then you can enjoy the ABBA City Walk, all two hours of it.
ANY CHANCE OF A REUNION? None at all. They got together briefly for a picture when the film version of Mamma Mia! came out, but that's all, folks.
Björn Again will perform at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company on Friday night (October 7). Tickets are priced at Dh75-Dh400. For more information go to www.adnec.ae.
Analysis
Members of Syria's Alawite minority community face threat in their heartland after one of the deadliest days in country’s recent history. Read more
SPECS
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Barbie
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New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
What is tokenisation?
Tokenisation refers to the issuance of a blockchain token, which represents a virtually tradable real, tangible asset. A tokenised asset is easily transferable, offers good liquidity, returns and is easily traded on the secondary markets.
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Brief scores:
Day 1
Toss: South Africa, field first
Pakistan (1st innings) 177: Sarfraz 56, Masood 44; Olivier 4-48
South Africa (1st innings) 123-2: Markram 78; Masood 1-4
Brief scores:
Toss: South Africa, chose to field
Pakistan: 177 & 294
South Africa: 431 & 43-1
Man of the Match: Faf du Plessis (South Africa)
Series: South Africa lead three-match series 2-0
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
UAE%20SQUAD
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Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Match info
Uefa Nations League Group B:
England v Spain, Saturday, 11.45pm (UAE)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Kandahar%20
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The five stages of early child’s play
From Dubai-based clinical psychologist Daniella Salazar:
1. Solitary Play: This is where Infants and toddlers start to play on their own without seeming to notice the people around them. This is the beginning of play.
2. Onlooker play: This occurs where the toddler enjoys watching other people play. There doesn’t necessarily need to be any effort to begin play. They are learning how to imitate behaviours from others. This type of play may also appear in children who are more shy and introverted.
3. Parallel Play: This generally starts when children begin playing side-by-side without any interaction. Even though they aren’t physically interacting they are paying attention to each other. This is the beginning of the desire to be with other children.
4. Associative Play: At around age four or five, children become more interested in each other than in toys and begin to interact more. In this stage children start asking questions and talking about the different activities they are engaging in. They realise they have similar goals in play such as building a tower or playing with cars.
5. Social Play: In this stage children are starting to socialise more. They begin to share ideas and follow certain rules in a game. They slowly learn the definition of teamwork. They get to engage in basic social skills and interests begin to lead social interactions.
