Mamma Mia isle revisited
Original Greek island location that lost out to Croatia in sequel
Down in a tour company’s office in Skopelos Town, a pair of Pierce Brosnan’s discarded flip-flops used to hang on the wall, decked in fairy lights.
For almost a decade, ABBA obsessives and Mamma Mia maniacs flocked to the spot to pose for photos by the iconic Havaianas. But Brosnan’s size sevens are no longer pulling in crowds on the beautiful Aegean island where the £460million-grossing movie was shot.
They recently legged it to Denmark with the tour guide who found them in a bin at the actor’s villa in 2007.
And while some of the 4,700 locals may mourn their loss, most are too preoccupied with another devastating blow to the island’s esteem. For when the long-awaited sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, hits cinemas on Friday, Skopelos can no longer claim to be THE Mamma Mia island.
It must now share the honour with Vis in Croatia, which won over filmmakers, reportedly thanks to hefty government tax breaks.
Now the big-hearted Skopeletians – who helped vertigo-sufferer Meryl Streep sing her torch song on that vertiginous cliff below the wedding chapel – really hate hearing the phrase The Winner Takes It All. Because they’re praying Mamma Mia tourists will continue to Take A Chance on them.
“It was most disappointing for us that filming didn’t take place here,” says local mayor, Christos Vasiloudis.
“We were very sad. When the second part of a drama takes place it should surely be in the same place. But maybe it was much cheaper in Croatia.
“This will not affect our tourism, though. We have as many visitors as ever who want to see the Mamma Mia chapel and film locations.
“But Skopelos has always been a beautiful island with a traditional character– the houses, the music, the friendly people – which is why the producers chose us last time. The island is the film – the film is not the island.”
Some may say Mr Mayor is being a Super Trouper and putting a positive spin on the loss of business. But, visiting stunning Skopelos this week, I discovered it really isn’t just about Money, Money, Money.
Yes, locals made a mint out of the first film shoot, working as extras or drivers, accommodating and feeding cast and crew. And tour firms continue to cash in, with bus and boat trips to the film locations, all soundtracked by ABBA.
But the locals actually feel hurt that Meryl, Pierce, Colin Firth, Julie Walters, Amanda Seyfried and co didn’t get the chance to “come home”. Or that their proud, sunny island cannot shine once more in cinemas around the world.
Mary Diamantis, 53, president of the local Hoteliers Association and owner of the Delphi hotel, said: “We never cashed in with tacky souvenir shops, themed bars or Dancing Queen cocktails.
“One man opened a Mamma Mia cafe in 2009 but it closed after a year.
“Most visitors don’t want that – just the unspoilt beauty they saw in the film. Or to marry in the romance of the place. “We’ve had 150 to 200 weddings every year since 2009.” I took a bus trip with Dolphin Tours to the film sites, starting at the Agios Ioannis chapel, where Donna wed Sam after her daughter Sophie got cold feet about marrying Sky. I tried to sprint up the 220 horribly steep and narrow steps like Donna [Meryl] did. But after five minutes, I was sending out an SOS for water and oxygen. “It took Meryl Streep four hours to get
up here the first time as she’s terrified of heights,” revealed my guide Yiannis. “There was no hand rail then either, so it was five hours to get her down.”
Many fans are disappointed to find the real chapel is tiny, as interior shots were actually filmed at Pinewood Studios in the UK. But Yiannis said: “The real fanatics scream with excitement when they see it.
“I had a party of 25 from Argentina and a woman in her 50s was crying: ‘This is the highlight of my life.’”
Demi Alagiozidis, 55, and daughter Tanya, 24, visited the chapel while on holiday from Melbourne, Australia.
“I’m a huge fan of the movie,” said Demi. “But I love the fact that Skopelos is so authentic, like the fictional Kalokairi. I don’t want fridge magnets or ABBA wigs.” She and all the other tourists we met had no idea the sequel was filmed in Croatia.
“It’s a shame for the locals who didn’t get the jobs this time,” said Don, 54, from Scotland. “But I think folk will still want to come here to the first Mamma Mia Island.”
Another stop on the tour was Kastani beach, where Sophie and Sky sang Lay All Your Love On Me, and randy Tanya tried to seduce a toyboy to Does Your Mother Know?
The wooden jetty and bar built for the film were later dismantled, but now the beautiful beach has a thriving snack bar and is packed with tourists.
Back in Skopelos Town, every local you speak to has happy memories of 2007, when Hollywood magic came to their island. A taxi driver tells me he had a beer with Pierce, a restaurant owner shows me an autograph from Meryl and a shopkeeper says she was an extra in the movie.
And they’re genuinely gutted to have been spurned this time round.
At the Skopelos Village Resort, where the stars stayed in 2007, a member of staff sighed: “Everyone is very sad. But, since the financial crash in 2009, taxes are too high and the government would have wanted too much money from the movie-makers.”
He shows me the visitors’ book with messages from Meryl, Pierce, and Colin, who apparently loved the margaritas. And, in the bar, there is a Mamma Mia shrine, with film posters and snaps of the cast “relaxing” after a few too many. At a cafe down the road, a woman asks if I’ve seen the new film, but I’ve just seen all the trailers.
“But surely they must use our island views in this film?” she asks. “Won’t the fans notice? And this Vis place could never be as beautiful.”
Later, a driver – who asks me not to use his name – tells me a little secret. Earlier this year, he drove a crew around the island who “secretly” filmed views and locations from the original movie. He swears they were working undercover on behalf of the Here We Go Again producers.
And, despite losing out financially, the locals want to believe it.
Because, When All Is Said And Done, they know that Skopelos is still THE Mamma Mia island.
And, after seeing it myself, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do too.
We never went tacky. Visitors like the unspoilt beauty seen in the film MARY DIAMANTIS HOTEL OWNER ON SKOPELOS