Tourists Now Line Up on Prague’s Charles Bridge to Recreate Iconic 1988 Depeche Mode Photo

As AP reports, the queue has become a daily fixture of the 14th-century landmark. For centuries, the bridge’s biggest crowd-puller was the nearby statue of St John of Nepomuk. It’s polished pedestal engravings supposedly bring luck and guarantee a return to Prague. Now it has competition thanks to the two synth-pop legends.

The Story Behind the Photo

Depeche Mode first crossed the Iron Curtain in March 1988 to play a historic concert in Prague, then the capital of communist Czechoslovakia. They came back in November with Corbijn, who photographed them around the city. The images later ended up in his book Depeche Mode: Strangers, and the shot by the Pietà became a fan favorite.

[Related reading: How to take striking and intoxicating photos, Anton Corbijn style]

Fans have been making the pilgrimage for years. But photos of a mass gathering on the bridge between the band’s 2024 Prague concerts seem to have kicked off the current boom, and the recreations are now racking up millions of views on social media.

“We just saw this on Pinterest or on TikTok, and it’s kind of one of the most famous pictures you can take here in Prague,” a visitor told AP. “So, we wanted to do it as well.” Her companion added that they like the vibe of the music and “feel like it fits the vibe of the city pretty well.”

[Related Reading: A fan throws a film roll on stage during Depeche Mode concert; the band mails him the photos]

Cute Tribute or Lack of Creativity?

The photographer side of me craves originality and effort, so this whole thing, at first, seems appalling. Anton Corbijn walked around a city that was new to him and made something that still looks fresh almost 40 years later. And I’m not talking only about this image, but the entire series. Meanwhile, hundreds of people a day are snapping the same frame with their phones, from the same spot, “for the Gram.” And waiting in a long line to take a snapshot everyone else is taking is beyond me (or maybe that just Serbian trauma of waiting in lines talking).

However, as a Depeche Mode fan, I find this somewhat adorable. Corbijn’s photos defined how a whole generation pictured the band, and standing in the same spot is a way to pay tribute to both the band and the photographer. Perhaps not the best way, but certainly a way. As 1988 is also my birth year, this series of photos is even closer to my heart.

I can be very judgy, but lately I’ve been trying to be a bit softer and kinder. So, if you’re heading to Prague, by all means, go grab your Gahan-and-Gore moment everyone is recreating. But then, put the reference photo away and go find your own Prague and make your own Depeche Mode tribute. That’s the most Corbijn thing you can do.

Would you wait to take the photo, or just go take other photos around the city? Or you’d do both?

[via the Associated Press]

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