Movie Musicals Quiz: Mamma Mia!

The movie version of the musical Mamma Mia! has to be one of the happiest movies out there. With it's gorgeous scenery, funny performances, joyous dancing, and that ABBA soundtrack it just couldn't fail to win hearts everywhere it has been shown.

If you've ever laughed your blues away watching Mamma Mia! I invite you to relive the fun and test your knowledge of Mamma Mia! movie trivia with these three quizzes. The first two are all about the plot and characters. The last quiz is one about the ABBA songs featured in the movie. (The Mamma Mia! The Movie Soundtrack pictured is available to buy via Amazon.com.)

What are you waiting for? Come on, take a chance on Mamma Mia!

The musical Mamma Mia! was based on songs written by Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus of ABBA fame and originally performed with Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Agnetha Faltskog (my apologies for the lack of accented characters on the names).

In April 1999 the curtain rose in London on a stage musical based on many of ABBA's most popular hits. The original London cast starred Siobhan McCarthy as Donna and Lisa Stokke as bride-to-be Sophie.

12 years later Mamma Mia! is as popular as ever as a stage musical, and has been staged in countries around the world including Denmark, Italy, Spain, Brazil, China, Japan (see the Japanese cast of Mamma Mia! in action), and Korea.

Louise Pitre opened the Broadway production playing Donna Sheridan with Tina Maddigan as Sophie. Lisa Brescia and Liana Hunt currently star as the mother and daughter.

Mamma Mia! The Movie burst onto our screens in 2008. Meryl Streep, a huge fan of the stage musical, had jumped at the chance to play Donna. She was joined by former Bond actor Pierce Brosnan in the role of Sam.

Colin Firth and Swedish star Stellan Skarsgard took on the roles of her other old flames, Harry and Bill. Sophie and her husband-to-be were played by Amanda Seyfried and Dominic Cooper.

Mamma Mia! Cast Trivia

Meryl Streep has 2 Academy Awards (Oscars) and has had a record-breaking 16 nominations. She will be 62 years old this year. Her real name is Mary Louise Gummer.

Amanda Seyfried was 23 when Mamma Mia! was released. She is 5 foot 3 and a half inches (1.61m) tall. She stars with Justin Timberlake in sci-fi thriller Now (2011) and in 2012 will appear in another thriller, Gone.

Pierce Brosnan was born in Ireland. He also now has American citizenship. One of his talents is fire eating.

Mamma Mia! Movie Trivia

The church in the movie is on the island of Skopelos in the Greek Islands. Filming in Greece also took place on Skiathos, with beach scenes shot in California.

Pierce Brosnan signed up on the strength of playing opposite Meryl Streep in Greece -- he didn't know what the movie would be.

Box office profits for Mamma Mia! in the UK beat those of Titanic.

With the Mamma Mia! The Movie DVD we can join the wedding party any time we choose.

For me, Mamma Mia! is the perfect rainy afternoon film, or for watching when you are unwell or down in the dumps. It is full of sunshine, laughter, song and dance.

This spoof version of Mamma Mia! features a variety of British comedians, in aid of annual charity event Red Nose Day.

Jennifer Saunders in the role of Donna/Meryl teams up with two of her former comic partners, Dawn French (Rosie/Julie) and Joanna Lumley ("The Posh One", i.e. her other comic role Patsy). Dawn French was originally shortlisted for the part of Rosie in the genuine Mamma Mia! casting but did not have strong enough singing talents and the role went to Julie Walters.

Various comedians take on the role of crew. Bill is played by a swede (a yellow turnip, known as a rutabaga in some parts of the world). Donna's other old flames are James Bond and Darcy, as a tribute to the most famous roles of the actors who played the Mamma Mia! boyfriends. Sienna Miller plays Sophie.

ABBA need no introduction. This legendary Swedish pop group shot to fame in the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest. You can discover the full ABBA story on their official site.

The ABBA stars are now all in their sixties. Although Benny and Frida, and Bjorn and Agnetha, were at one time married the couples both divorced. The group split up in 1982.

Benny and Bjorn went on to work together on the musical Chess. Frida released a solo album in 1996 and Agnetha released a CD of some of her favorite songs in 2004. However, it seems unlikely that the group will reunite and their music lives on in their recordings, the musical Mamma Mia! and tribute bands.