Mamma Mia! Plans from Bjorn Ulvaeus — the bearded fourth of ABBA — to build an ABBA-themed restaurant in London's Waterloo have come under fire from local residents.
Ulvaeus revealed in summer 2017 that he'd applied for permission to build Mamma Mia! The Party — a 'Greek taverna', where everybody gets up in the aisles and sings like your mum.
But not everyone's in the mood to slam ouzo and bash out renditions of Dancing Queen.
Recently, we spotted this note tied to a tree by residents alliance @WaterlooSE1, damning the concept of Mamma Mia! The Party.
It protests the restaurant — similar to an existing one in Stockholm — on grounds that it would be built on land earmarked for social housing, something that's backed up on the alliance's Twitter page, with this map.
To all who support #MMTP without stopping to think about the bigger picture: check out the map that shows it would be in a residential area pic.twitter.com/On4rVw2XPB
— Waterloo Residents (@WaterlooSE1) October 29, 2017
Other protestations include '500 drunk revellers spilling onto the streets singing Dancing Queen', while a Change.org petition cites 'drunkeness' and 'public urination' as a reason to put the restaurant elsewhere. In fact, there seems to be a strong assumption that being drunk is a prerequisite of enjoying the music of ABBA (we'll withhold comment on that).
Another case of nimbyism from those who shouldn't expect tranquility in their central London homes? Or a heartless, tacky move from a filthy rich Swede?
One of these sides is going to prove the other's Waterloo.
