Just before Christmas last year, I celebrated an ‘0’ birthday, and my lovely children gave a voucher for tickets for me & a guest to see Abba Voyage. I’ve been an Abba fan since the 70s and seeing the show was definitely on my list but something I’d not got round to doing. Of course, my guest ticket would go to Mr Fixit as he’s not averse to a bit of Abba ( we sing Abba songs on our Karaoke player at home), so we booked the show tickets, booked the train tickets and were all set to go yesterday for the matinee performance.

The journey….dismal

We set off from the local train station on a very busy train (standing room only) but unfortunately just a short distance from Euston station, the train ground to a halt. After around twenty minutes, the conductor announced that the train was being held on a red signal as some of the platforms at Euston were out of use & we had to wait until one became free as trains were being let through on a one in, one out basis. Not too bad, we thought, we’s still have plenty of time to get across London to the Abba Arena. Another ten minutes passed and the conductor informed us that the line ahead was blocked by an obstruction. The line parallel was free but unfortunately we weren’t in a suitable place to be able to switch lines so the driver would have to change to the other end of the train and we would have to head back to Wembley, where we would be able to change to the other line and make our way to Euston.

This all took quite a while and we were getting anxious that we would not make the show – the trip across London takes can take up to 90 minutes, so we started researching other routes to try to find the most efficient route to get us there. Our plan was to run to St Pancras (quicker than the tube & we’ve walked this a few times before), get the overground to Stratford International, (we’d haveto pay a bit extra as our travelcards didn’t cover this) then Stratford DLR to Pudding Mill Lane where the Abba arena is situated. Request for ticket compensation from West Midlands Trains incoming, as our journey was delayed by more than 15 minutes,

We finally got into Euston station at 2.15pm, 45 minutes before the show was due to start. We raced off the train, out of the station and along Euston Road, reaching the correct platform at St Pancras (that station is huge) with a minute to spare before the train left. One stop later, we arrived at Stratford International where we got off, and then had to run through a shopping centre to Stratford DLR station. After a short wait, the train arrived, but by this time it was past 3pm when the show was due to start. Luckily, it was only one stop to the arena, so again we raced off the train and to the arena, and after a quick bag & security check, & adorned with dancefloor wristbands, we were allowed in, almost 15 minutes after the show started.

The concert…..awesome!

Wow! Words can’t describe how good I thought the show was, it was fantastic! The avatars (or should that be Abbatars!) of the band are amazingly lifelike, the lighting, the live instrumental band & backing singers, the atmosphere were all absolutely amazing. It truly felt that Abba were on stage at times, and I spent most of the time feeling emotional, and all of it singing and dancing. The most popular Abba tunes, such as Mama Mia, Dancing Queen, Waterloo, Chiquitita & Knowing Me, Knowing You were part of the setlist , with some less familar ones also included, apparently the setlist does apparently change slightly from time to time. I’m not going to go in to to much detail about the concert as it will spoil the experience if you decide to go yourself. I will say, though, that I would definitely go again (and hopefully not miss the start next time) and it is absolutely worth seeing.

Fllming & photography during the concert is strictly prohibited, security are constantly watching out for this and we were pretty sure we witnessed photos being deleted from a mobile phone & an SD card being destroyed.

There’s a bar inside the arena, and you can pop out to get a drink (or pop to the loo) whenever you like, yes, drinks are allowed on the dancefloor. There’s also a merch shop just by the train station, treated myself to a fridge magnet & a poster

As I said earlier, I’ve always loved Abba, I think my favourite Abba song is the classic Dancing Queen, but that’s closely followed by Fernando, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do (Mr Fixit & I had this for our exit music at our wedding ceremony) and Thank You For The Music. Benny & Bjorn wrote some great songs, they really have stood the test of time and of course the Mama Mia films a few years back, revitalised Abba, and gave them a younger following. Abba Voyage is now in it’s 4th year and yesterday the arena was still packed with a full age range of fans. The show is due to run at least until January 2027, so if you want to see it, there’s still time!