The Brits thought Waterloo was beige, reveals new ABBA documentary

An exclusive look at an upcoming BBC show examines the impact ABBA’s hit single Waterloo had on the group’s lives
Vicky Jessop1 May 2024

ABBA might be one of the best-known bands in the world, but it wasn’t always that way.

When the band scored one of Eurovision’s iconic moments with their hit single Waterloo in 1974, they initially faced an uphill battle in the charts – and in the public eye – to be taken seriously as a band, and not just a gimmick.

An exclusive clip from the upcoming documentary ABBA: Against the Odds shows the impact that the single had on their lives. It opens with the band’s manager Stikkan Anderson signing them to Polar, a Swedish record label that had ambitions of breaking into the rest of Europe.

“Stikkan believed in us from the beginning,” the group’s Björn Ulvaeus says in voiceover. “He always said, one day you’ll write a world hit.”

That they did: the clip goes onto show how Waterloo rapidly conquered the European charts, scoring number ones in the UK, Belgium, Finland, Germany and more.

BBC/Rogan Productions/Alamy

“When we won, it was just like pressing a button, and everything worked all over Europe,” Ulvaeus adds in a recorded interview from the time.

That said, it wasn’t all an plain sailing. “In England, they thought it was quite beige,” Benny Andersson says. “Even if it the song was number one... if you’re a part of Eurovision, you’re dead afterwards.” The sentiment is echoed by Ulvaeus: “It was like an agreement amongst all DJs, amongst everyone.”

Of course, ABBA did go onto conquer the charts, scoring multiple number ones and, fifty years later, opening ABBA Voyage in London.

The documentary, which was produced by Rogan Productions and directed by BAFTA winner James Rogan, tells the story of ABBA’s creation. When they won the Eurovision song contest in 1974 with Waterloo, they faced an uphill battle in the global charts (and in their home country of Sweden) to be recognised as a genuine force in pop.

But once they achieved success, that pressure threatened the relationships at the heart of the band.

ABBA: Against the Odds will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer from 6am on the 4th May, and on BBC One at 10.40pm on the 8th May

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