Meryl Streep and Cher are dancing queens of Mamma Mia 2 premiere

The singing superstar joins the cast of Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again as Ruby.

Arriving at the world premiere of the film in London tonight she said: “I thought it was great, we had a good laugh about it.

“She still thinks it’s hysterical, I’m four years older but that didn’t have much to do with anything, it was just a great plot point and we laughed about it a lot.”

Explaining how she came to join the film, she said: “My old manager became the head of Universal (the film studio) and he and I have been friends forever.

“He just called me up and said ‘You’re doing Mamma Mia’ and he hung up. I loved Abba’s music and I love the play so I hung up and I thought ‘I guess I’m doing Mamma Mia’.”

Cher and Meryl Streep were joined by Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Andy Garcia and Lily James for the world premiere.

The 2008 film version of the hit musical featuring Abba songs was a box office triumph and 10 years later the follow-up Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again will premiere at London’s Hammersmith Apollo.

Also on the red carpet were returning cast members Christine Baranski, Dominic Cooper, Amanda Seyfried and Stellan Skarsgard as well as newcomers Alexa Davies, Josh Dylan, Jeremy Irvine, Hugh Skinner and Jessica Keenan Wynn.

The film is set after the events of the first but features extensive flashbacks to 1979 to tell the story of how Donna came to be on the Greek island of Kalokairi and unsure of who her baby’s father is.

Abba stars Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus will also join the cast for the premiere, alongside executive producers Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson.

Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again will be released in UK cinemas on July 20.