Born in the rural fenland of east of England and raised close to Boston, Tom Littlewood gained a place to study French and German at Cambridge University. During his 4 years of studies he spent a great deal of time in Berlin and began working for the newly launched Vice Germany. Initially he began writing music reviews before becoming their first full-time editoral staff writer. Upon graduating he returned to Germany. A year later he was made chief editor in Berlin at the age of 23. He now heads the German branches of Vice Magazine and VBS.tv, as well as contributing to several other international publications.

More from Tom Littlewood

Listen In: Berlin

Photo Gallery

Interview

Hi Tom. How does a guy from rural England wind up venturing into abandoned Cold War facilities in Berlin?

Well, I ended up spending a year in Berlin as part of my studies. I had a great year, so when I graduated I moved back. I’ve been working for VICE for over 5 years now and through that, I’d worked with Palladium on other projects. When I heard they were doing a shoot in Berlin, I was keen to take part. I find the history of Cold War espionage fascinating..

So you went off exploring hidden spy posts?

Indeed. We went to Teufelsberg, a man-made mountain built from the rubble of destroyed buildings after the Second World War. The Americans built a huge listening station there to carry out surveillance on East Berlin but when the Wall fell, Teufelsberg was decommissioned and the station abandoned..

What did you know about Teufelsberg beforehand?

I had heard all sorts of stories, urban myths of raves and secret parties. It was all hearsay though. I hadn’t actually met anyone who had gone onto the site and I wanted to see it for myself..

In photos, it’s a fairly unassuming dome on a hill.

Actually, there are two hills. One is mostly forest, often frequented by trial bikers and kite enthusiasts. The other hill is private property, and officially closed to the public. That adds to the intrigue of the place. You either have to break in or befriend the owner. In a way, it’s become a Berlin legend..

So someone owns a hill with a listening station on top of it, right in the middle of Berlin?

Yeah. It’s just this one guy. He bought the land the station was built on..

What was it like up there?

Well, there are four domes in total and various abandoned buildings. It’s a surreal kind of place. You could tell people had been there, but there were no obvious clues as to what exactly had gone on..

You met Harry Pohlabel, a former US solider, who was stationed at Teufelsberg. What was he like?

He’s a very interesting guy. He explained how the station functioned and gave his own insight into Cold War paranoia. He said that no one really knew what was going on beyond their own individual job. The information each person collected was immediately passed on, so they had no idea what was important or relevant. He said working there didn’t mean you knew at all what you were actually working on..

Any particular stories you found interesting?

He explained that the antennae of the listening towers were mobile. When curious West Berliners came up to the fence surrounding the site, the guy controlling the tower antenna would occasionally point it directly in the visitor’s direction and track them along the perimeter..

That really went on?

Yeah. Apparently it helped break up the monotonous daily routine..

Were there other outposts like this in Berlin?

We were told about one in Tempelhof airport. When we got there we found it had been completely dismantled and removed. We went to the bunker underneath the airport, which was pretty impressive. It used to store celluloid war footage from the frontlines. The Germans had wired the entire thing to prevent marauding Russians getting their hands on the films. When the doors were opened it set off a several charges, killing the scouts and destroying thousands of reels of film. The entire bunker was burnt out and abandoned..

What was the photo shoot like?

Cold and equally awe-inspiring; from the very top you have a 360-degree panoramic view of Berlin, the countryside and the whole city in sight. Peter and I were just exploring the site—actually getting in there to see what we could find..

More generally, are abandoned places common in Berlin?

Yes, of course. There are hundreds of crumbling and dilapidated buildings in the city. Most have been vacated and boarded up, so you have to break in. These spaces are often used for illegal parties. There are abandoned buildings on every street—they’re a part of Berlin life..