BOLTON School old boy, Ian McKellen, has delighted his fans after he featured alongside a legendary Abba star for a Christmas clip.

In the video, which was posted to the Swedish pop group’s social media pages at the weekend, McKellen is sitting next to Björn Ulvaeus with knitting needles in hand.

The Lord of the Rings star can be seen furiously ‘knitting’ an Abba branded Christmas jumper while wearing matching outfits,  surrounded by Abba merchandise and reels of wool.

 

 

The only sound that can heard is of knitting needles clacking together. In one moment, Ian hold his jumper up to his body and receives a nod of approval from Bjorn.

The last slide of the 35 second clip reads: “Merry Christmas from Abba and Ian McKellen.”

McKellen reposted the clip and described it as “the most exciting (mostly) silent clip you'll see this holiday season.”

Many of Ian’s fans were delighted by the clip and his unexpected Abba collaboration.

One person said: “How did this come about? I was laughing my head off watching this.

“Love the way you both keep looking to see how far you both got… just brilliant.”

Another wasn’t convinced by the actor’s crafty skills, writing: “Proof he's a good actor, because that's not quite knitting”.

The Bolton News: Björn Ulvaeus and Ian McKellen knitting Christmas jumpers (Credit: @ABBAVoyage)Björn Ulvaeus and Ian McKellen knitting Christmas jumpers (Credit: @ABBAVoyage)

Marguerite wrote: “Love your humour! Oh I needed a laugh with all the insanity in the world! Thank you so much.”

Another said: “I must admit - it is gripping stuff! It had me on the edge of my seat until the very end. Only Mr McKellen could make knitting this exciting.”

“I’m in ‘stitches’,” joked another.

The video is to promote the Christmas merchandise being sold by website: abbavoyage.com.

Their Christmas ‘Little Things Knitted Jumper’ is £80 and there is also a child’s version for £55.

Festive socks and scarves are also available to purchase on their website.