The Mamma Mia! effect
Some want weddings. Others want champagne receptions at sunset on their own private beach. Others, still, want to take a leaf straight out of the film script and "dance and kiss on the beach."
It's called the Mamma Mia! effect. And nowhere is it felt more keenly than on the Aegean isle of Skopelos, where the capacity for life to imitate art has gone full throttle since the release of the film version of the hit Abba stage show.
Tiny Skopelos's spectacular scenery brings in visitors wanting beach weddings
Until the arrival of the Hollywood star cast 15 months ago, Skopelos (population 4,696) was best known for its plums, pears and pine trees. Without an airport, reachable only by ferry and devoid of the gaudiness of other Greek resorts, few could have imagined that the 96 sq km isle, set in the northern sporades east of Athens, would become the backdrop of a blockbuster featuring Meryl Streep, Colin Firth and Pierce Brosnan. Even fewer could have foreseen its emergence as the film's star.
"I've met people who have come because friends had seen the film four or five times and they wanted to see what all the fuss is about," said Dimitra Rekkas at the town hall. "The producers checked out at least 25 Greek islands before opting for Skopelos. They chose our island because of its greenness and the fact it really is a small paradise."
The film's success could not have been better timed for a country whose tourist-dependent economy has been hard hit by violent anti-government protests. On Thursday - thirteen days after riots erupted over the police shooting of a teenage boy - Greek officials announced that hotel bookings had dropped by 40%, prompting Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis to announce emergency measures to boost tourism.
- The text above is an extract from an article by Helena Smith in "The Guardian" first published in December 2008.
