TV

Deutschland 83: Reminding us what a thrill the past really was

Cold War kid Sam Delaney is belatedly recognising the retro spy shenanigans of Deutschland 83

P30911 Original Film Title: DEUTSCHLAND 83. English Title: DEUTSCHLAND 83. Film Director: EDWARD BERGER. Year: 2015. Stars: JONAS NAY. Credit: RTL/UFA FICTION / Album

P30911 Original Film Title: DEUTSCHLAND 83. English Title: DEUTSCHLAND 83. Film Director: EDWARD BERGER. Year: 2015. Stars: JONAS NAY. Credit: RTL/UFA FICTION / Album

Easily my favourite genre of TV drama is the espionage thriller. First it was American spies in Homeland, then it was French ones in The Bureau and now, finally, I am catching up on Cold-War era East German spooks in the brilliant Deutschland 83. The personalities vary depending on the nationality of the agent but the spy craft is always the same. I have been watching shows like this for so many years that I regard myself as a pretty much qualified secret agent.

Admittedly, my natural personality traits wouldn’t mark me out as an obvious MI6 candidate. I mean, I’d have to work on my really loud speaking voice, rampant indiscretion and constant need for attention. But the more important stuff, like switching identical briefcases on trains, hiding coded messages inside old library books and making up awesome false identities (“Bonsoir madame! I am Everald De Boise, a diamond dealer with a club foot from Bruges”) I am totally ready for.

Lockdowns have taken income away from hundreds of Big Issue sellers. Support The Big Issue and our vendors by signing up for a subscription.

In fact, should any spymasters be reading this (a lot of them do take The Big Issue, I’m told), please keep me in mind next time any freelance work comes up. I couldn’t commit to anything full time as I have this column to write, childcare to take care of and quite a busy Fifa 2021 playing schedule to keep up with. But any simple missions you’ve got going, particularly ones based in warm climates, then I’m your man.

I should say, mind you, that I am only really interested in working for liberal democracies with at least half-decent human rights records. I mean, yes, I am desperate for money and recognition but I still have my ethics. Ideally I’d do a bit of part-time spying for somewhere benign and lovely like Denmark. Do the Danes even have a spy agency? It doesn’t seem to fit with their laidback attitude to life. But I suppose they need someone to keep an eye on the Swedes in case they try to make a regional power-grab at some point.

Anyway, Deutschland 83 is about six years old now (and has spawned two follow-ups, 86 and now 89) so forgive me for being so late to the party. I have been watching other stuff. I am glad to have caught up with it now, not least because I have a perverse nostalgia for Eighties-period Cold War shenanigans. It reminds me of the exhilarating tensions that would accompany me on my way to school every day, knowing that a distant mushroom cloud on the horizon could signal the end of everything at any given moment.

Although watching Deutschland 83 reminds me that I didn’t really have any clue of just how close we ever were to Armageddon. It is fictionalised drama that is rooted in historical truth: detailing the daily misunderstandings between Washington, Moscow and Berlin that often led the world to the brink of a missile exchange that none of the parties ever really wanted.

History can be so dull when delivered by nerdy documentary hosts and academic books. But in the hands of skilled dramatists like the ones behind Deutschland 83 we are reminded of just what a thrill ride the past really was.

Deutschland 8386 and 89 are on All 4

Support the Big Issue

For over 30 years, the Big Issue has been committed to ending poverty in the UK. In 2024, our work is needed more than ever. Find out how you can support the Big Issue today.
Vendor martin Hawes

Recommended for you

View all
Ralf Little on leaving Death in Paradise, his replacement and taking on Jeremy Hunt
Ralf Little
Exclusive

Ralf Little on leaving Death in Paradise, his replacement and taking on Jeremy Hunt

Mary & George's Tony Curran on playing pacifist, pleasure-seeking King James
Tony Curran as King James I
TV

Mary & George's Tony Curran on playing pacifist, pleasure-seeking King James

John Malkovich on fashion, hope and why beauty is mandatory for the survival of the species
TV

John Malkovich on fashion, hope and why beauty is mandatory for the survival of the species

Filmmaker Adam Curtis on epic new BBC drama The Way – and how the power of TV is shaking up Britain
Callum Scott Howells in The Way
TV

Filmmaker Adam Curtis on epic new BBC drama The Way – and how the power of TV is shaking up Britain

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Here's when UK households to start receiving last cost of living payments
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Here's when UK households to start receiving last cost of living payments

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know
4.

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know