ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus, 76, SPLITS from wife Lena Kallersjö after 41 years of marriage

ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus, 76, and wife Lena Kallersjö, 73, SPLIT after 41 years of marriage but vow to ‘remain close friends’ and continue enjoying family holidays together


Björn Ulvaeus and wife Lena Kallersjö have split. 

The ABBA star, 76, and his wife, 73, confirmed on Wednesday that they have decided to end their relationship after 41 years of marriage.

However, the pair – who share two children – have vowed to ‘remain close friends’ and continue enjoying family holidays together in the wake of their separation. 

OVER! Björn Ulvaeus, 76, and wife Lena Kallersjö, 73, have split after 41 years of marriage (Pictured together in September 2021)

In a statement provided to HuffPost UK, the estranged couple shared:  ‘After many wonderful and eventful years, we have decided to go our separate ways.

‘We remain close friends and will continue to celebrate our grandchildren’s birthdays and other family holidays together.’

Björn and Lena’s split comes just months after he started working with his ex-wife and bandmate Agnetha Fältskog, 71, again when ABBA reunited to release their first album in four decades, Voyage. 

Björn shares children Linda, 48, and Peter, 44, with first wife Agnetha, while also sharing daughters Emma, 40, and Anna, 35, with his second wife Lena. 

Amicable: The pair - who share two children - have vowed to 'remain close friends' and continue enjoying family holidays together in the wake of their separation (Pictured in 2001)

Amicable: The pair – who share two children – have vowed to ‘remain close friends’ and continue enjoying family holidays together in the wake of their separation (Pictured in 2001)

Agnetha had been an angelic-looking and shy 19-year old when she met Bjorn, five years her senior and who was then a member of a popular folk group.

They were instantly smitten and married two years later in 1971, the year before Abba was formed. Two children, Linda and Peter, followed. But six years into the marriage, it was in deep trouble.

In 1979, at the height of Abba’s fame, they split up — to the horror of Abba fans — and, at a stroke, blew away that wholesome image.

Separating: The estranged couple shared a statement which read: 'After many wonderful and eventful years, we have decided to go our separate ways (Pictured in 2003)

Separating: The estranged couple shared a statement which read: ‘After many wonderful and eventful years, we have decided to go our separate ways (Pictured in 2003)

Within a week of their separation, Bjorn was dating Agnetha lookalike Lena Kallersjo, a Swedish TV presenter.

The couple met at a New Year’s party at the home of Björn’s ABBA bandmates Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. 

Two years later, in 1981, they were married – just six months after being granted a divorce from Agnetha – and he had another two children with his second wife.

At the time, Bjorn and Agnetha described their break-up as a ‘happy divorce’ but reality suggests otherwise. Agnetha later confessed she had felt ‘mangled’ and had needed counselling.

The pain of the split was immortalised in the hit The Winner Takes It All, and many fans have wondered over the years if Bjorn was being deliberately cruel in asking his ex-wife to sing the tragic lyric: ‘Tell me does she kiss like I used to kiss you?’

In 1990, Agnetha married for a second time — to divorced Swedish surgeon Tomas Sonnenfeld. The marriage was conducted, at Agnetha’s insistence, in secrecy, and became public knowledge only after it disintegrated three years later. 

ABBA in their heyday: Benny Andersson, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Agnetha Faltskog and Björn Ulvaeus (Pictured in 1974)

ABBA in their heyday: Benny Andersson, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Agnetha Faltskog and Björn Ulvaeus (Pictured in 1974)

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Read more at DailyMail.co.uk