Blame Abba Chapter 2

"Mary has come up with the idea of a fancy-dress contest in the pub. £20 entry fee, £100 prize. If she gets twenty pairs to enter she get £300 profit for the baby fund as well as a share of the extra bar takings. Eric says he will make a donation again."

"So, Jacqui, what has this to do with me - hang on, I have just realised!!"

I had indeed realised where this was heading.

"But I've just had this great costume idea, for the two of us. I just rang her to check if we can still enter. I've always fancied being a blonde. Right, my hair is long and straight enough now, with a dark curly wig for you we could be the 2 girls from ABBA."

OK, I know it is sad, but I LIKED ABBA. They did good pop songs, post-Beatles they were the best. And the two girls looked so sexy. But dress up like that? The idea was silly but it might work. The contest would give me an excuse. No problem with friends seeing me, they would be dressed silly too and I could spend the evening making fun of myself and my appearance.

"We could even win you know. And give the prize back to the fund like that couple who won last time. Helen and her boyfriend, wasn't it?"

I remembered. They had spent the whole day dressed as Mickey and Minnie Mouse, tied together with a 2 foot length of rope. Very inconvenient, especially when one of them went to the loo. Dare I say yes? Do bees buzz? I did think about it – but not for long. Maybe twenty seconds.

"OK Jacqui, you are on."

Over the next three days I asked Jacqui two or three times about costumes.

"Don't worry, everything is in hand, you'll see," she said, and left it at that.

Then on the day before the event, Jacqui arrived home shortly after me and came in carrying two hire-outfits from the fancy-dress shop in town.

"I am sure the sizes are OK, we can add accessories and so on, now. Let's get dinner out of the way and make a start on getting us ready."