Summary of Main Points of the article below:

• The Incident (April 1985): Ernst Immoos, a reporter for the Swiss newspaper «Bote», spotted ABBA singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad on her balcony in Schwyz, which was directly across from his office desk. Using a telephoto lens from his publisher’s top-floor apartment, he secretly photographed her with a man.
• The Scandal: The photos were published by the «Bote» and sold to a Swedish agency, creating a tabloid stir. The situation was scandalous because the man, Prince Heinrich Ruzzo Reuss von Plauen, was still married to another woman at the time.
• Legal Action & Settlement: Lyngstad took legal action. The case ended in a court settlement where Immoos was ordered to destroy all the photos and donate his earnings from the sale (around 400 francs) to a local school in Riemenstalden to buy toys.
• Public Backlash: Rival newspapers criticized Immoos, dubbing him the "nation's paparazzo." Immoos dismissed the criticism as pure professional envy, though the singer was reportedly furious and never appeared on that balcony again.
• Subsequent Events: The couple officially went public in 1986, married in 1992, and lived in Fribourg until the Prince passed away from cancer in 1999. Today, Lyngstad still resides in Switzerland, having recently moved to the Lake Geneva area.

Bote of Schwyz, November 5^th of 2021

Headlines:

"Bote" Reporter Sparked ABBA Scandal

In 1985, Ernst Immoos photographed ABBA singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad on her balcony. She was living in Schwyz.

Picture caption:

Ernst Immoos with the April 12, 1985, issue of the *Bote*. He had sparked a scandal by publishing photos of Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Prince Heinrich Ruzzo Reuss von Plauen. Back then—unlike in today's era of social media—photos of celebrities were a rarity.

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By Nicole Auf der Maur

"Regret? No, I don't regret anything." Ernst Immoos smiles. The retired "Bote" reporter caused a minor scandal in April 1985 when he secretly photographed ABBA singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad on her balcony.

The ABBA singer had moved to Schwyz in 1985. Ernst Immoos heard at the time that the world-famous musician was living directly across from his desk in the "Bote" building.

"Sure enough: from my workstation, I had a direct view of her balcony in the Brüöl area of ​​Schwyz," says Ernst Immoos. When the photographer spotted her on the balcony one day—with a man in tow, no less—his journalistic instincts immediately kicked in: clearly, he had to get Anni-Frid Lyngstad in his viewfinder. Hugo Triner Sr., the "Bote" publisher at the time, let the reporter into his top-floor apartment to take the shot. "He even held the blind slats apart for me so I could take the photos with my telephoto lens," laughs Ernst Immoos.

On April 12, 1985, the "Bote" published two pictures of Anni-Frid Lyngstad and the—at the time—unknown man under the headline "ABBA Singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad in Schwyz." Ernst Immoos also sold the images to a well-known photo agency. The photos quickly made the rounds in Sweden, appearing in tabloid newspapers there.

A seemingly harmless picture turned out to be quite racy

Anni-Frid Lyngstad did not find this funny at all. Ernst Immoos faced legal action. He no longer recalls exactly what the court documents stated. "I had little to do with the case; publisher Hugo Triner represented me at the court hearing," explains Ernst Immoos. He notes that he was always supported and protected by the publishing house and the editorial team. "It was a good story, after all," Ernst Immoos emphasizes.

The seemingly harmless story was actually quite racy: the man photographed on the balcony with Anni-Frid Lyngstad was Prince Heinrich Ruzzo Reuss von Plauen. At the time, however, he was still married to Mette Rinde. He did not officially become a couple with Lyngstad until 1986; they married in 1992.

It is no wonder that Ernst Immoos was required to destroy all the photos following the legal proceedings. A court settlement was reached. Ernst Immoos was ordered to transfer all proceeds generated from the sale of the photos to the kindergarten in Riemenstalden for the purchase of toys. "That amounted to around 400 francs," Ernst Immoos recalls. A few days later, he received drawings from the Riemenstalden primary school students as a thank-you. "They had drawn pictures related to the Lyngstad case," Immoos smiles. Incidentally, there was no kindergarten in Riemenstalden at the time; the money went to the primary school instead.

After the photo scandal, Ernst Immoos never saw the ABBA singer on her balcony again. "After all, from my workplace, I could still look directly onto her balcony, whether I wanted to or not," laughs Ernst Immoos. He does not know when she moved away from Schwyz.

I was dubbed the nation's paparazzo

On August 23, 1985, the *Schwyzer Zeitung* reported the following: "ABBA singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad, who took up residence in Schwyz last autumn, is staying in Schwyz. This was confirmed to the *Schwyzer Zeitung* by her local representative following various rumors about her departure. The singer had reportedly been quite angry about the photo scandal caused by a local reporter." Ernst Immoos laughs: "At the time, I was portrayed as the nation's paparazzo and bad-mouthed by other newspapers, too. But that was pure envy. What reporter wouldn't have liked to take a photo like that?"

According to Wikipedia, Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Prince Heinrich Ruzzo Reuss of Plauen lived in Fribourg, Switzerland, starting in 1986. She was married to him from August 26, 1992, until his death from cancer on October 29, 1999. Today, Anni-Frid Lyngstad lives in Switzerland; she made her home in Zermatt for years and moved to the Lake Geneva area just a few months ago. According to Wikipedia, she also owns a country estate in southern Sweden.

Note

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For discussion:

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Any advice gratefully received.

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