A 1988 Depeche Mode Photo Has Turned This Prague Bridge Into a Tourist Hot Spot

Tourists are lining up at the Pietà sculpture on Prague’s Charles Bridge to recreate a famous 1988 photograph of Depeche Mode.

A Prague bridge has become a popular photo spot for Depeche Mode fans, with tourists lining up daily to recreate an iconic 1988 photograph of the band.

In March 1988, Depeche Mode played a landmark concert in Prague, then part of communist Czechoslovakia. The English electronic band returned to the city later that year with Dutch photographer Anton Corbijn, who photographed the musicians as they visited landmarks around Prague. The images were later published in his book Depeche Mode: Strangers.

An interesting trend has recently appeared on social media: young Depeche Mode fans are recreating Dave and Martin’s poses on the Charles Bridge in Prague

they were photographed in this exact spot in 1988 https://t.co/cHC9mvfMo0

— MUSEO (@MementoM2023) February 5, 2025

One of Corbijn’s black-and-white photographs shows Depeche Mode members Dave Gahan and Martin Gore beside the Pietà sculpture on the south side of Prague’s Charles Bridge. Gahan faces the camera, while Gore stands with his back to Corbijn.

Nearly four decades later, the nearly 40-year-old photograph has inspired a new tradition among Depeche Mode fans. Tourists have been lining up at the sculpture to recreate that exact shot, with fan photos drawing millions of views on social media. According to AP News, a daily line of visitors has become a regular sight at the 14th-century Charles Bridge.

The Most Famous Photo You Can Take in Prague

The news outlet reports that Depche Mode have been making the pilgrimage for years, but images of a mass gathering on the bridge between the band’s Prague concerts in 2024 appear to have helped fuel a recent photo trend.

“Well, I remember seeing the picture from way back, and then I kind of remember, and I looked it up, and I learned that it was here, so I wanted to make sure I took a picture,” Jorge Sanchez, a Californian who was visiting Prague with his wife, tells AP News. “I think it fit at the time, you know, with their music, you know, and their message and their music with your personal Jesus and all of that, so it’s kind of fitting.”

Meanwhile, Maria Hofer and Lara Hinteregger, who are visiting from Austria, said the Depeche Mode photo location has become one of the city’s most famous tourist photo spots.

“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. So, we wanted to do it as well,” Hofer tells AP News. “Yeah, and we also like the vibe of the music. We feel like it fits the vibe of the city pretty well.”

The news comes after PetaPixel reported on how Premier League and Liverpool soccer legend Mo Salah created an unlikely tourist destination for photos: a random rock in Turkey.

Image creditsHeader photo licensed via Depositphotos.