MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina's ?Beatles' prepare to conqueror the Falklands.

The young and not-so-young world of the Falklands music and dance scene is preparing itself for an historic first ever visit to the Islands by an Argentine music group. And it is the all-female ?THE BELADIES', four lovely Argentine girls who sing only Beatles songs, who are set to musically win the hearts of Islanders.

The girls, all aged between 19 ? 23, formed their group just one year ago, and their first public appearance took place in front of 1,500 people in Palermo, a suburb of Buenos Aires, last October. Since then they have been playing non-stop in festivals and in the pub circuits.

This Saturday the girls accompanied by their General Producer Martin Aragaon, Press Officer Hernan de Lorenzi and an interpreter, will arrive in the Falklands at 1500 hours on board the weekly Lan Chile flight from Santiago. They will have little time to practice before making their first public appearance in Stanley's Town Hall before a sell-out crowd of youngsters and middle-aged popsters who idolized the more famous Liverpool group who took the world by storm in the 60's and 70's. It is anticipated that several coaches carrying British Servicemen and Women will make the journey to Stanley from the Military base, 35 miles away. The Argentine group will be supported by two other bands, ?The Strutters' which includes Martyn Clarke, the footballer who created considerable media interest when he joined Boca Juniors for a spell in 1999, and ?R.I.P.' a band made up of musicians from the South Atlantic island of St.Helena. The 4 men are employed on the Military Base in the islands.

Later in the week ?THE BELADIES' will play on their own at the Globe Tavern pub, and then on Friday 23 March will be joined by the other two bands for a farewell performance in the Globe Tavern.

As excitement mounts in the islands, one former Councillor said that the now retired Foreign Minister Guido Di Tella, ?would be overjoyed at the prospects of an Argentine all-female band playing in the Islands, so confirming that his so-called ?charm offensive' is working'.

Julie Clarke, the proprietor of the Globe Tavern said that ?interest in the arrival of the Argentine group is phenomenal - the local Radio Station has been talking about it all week and the only newspaper Penguin News, ran a photograph and advert last week'.

Each show that the girls play contains 20 well-known Beatles songs such as ?I saw her Standing there' ? ?She Loves You' ? Roll over Beethoven' ? Please, Please Me ? and takes around one hour to perform.

?THE BELADIES' were formed a