Trivia / The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

• Accidentally-Correct Writing: The book depicted the East German security apparatus's inner workings so accurately that Markus Wolf, East Germany's head of foreign intelligence, suspected that le Carré had somehow had insider's information about The Stasi. Wolf, as a Jew, may have been especially stricken by the fact that Fiedler, who holds the fictional counterpart to Wolf's office, was Jewish too.^note Wolf's suspicions weren't unreasonable; le Carré had written the book while serving with the Secret Intelligence Service in Bonn, and it's possible that the East Germans already knew his true identity.
  • However, le Carré always denied this: he told interviewers that he hadn't even known that Wolf existed, and that had he known that people would later connect Fiedler to Wolf, he wouldn't have depicted Fiedler sympathetically.
• Approval of God: John le Carré loved the film. His favourite performance was Cyril Cusack as Control. He originally felt that Richard Burton was too glamorous for the part of Alec Leamas. Burton's dedicated, unshowy performance persuaded him otherwise. He felt Claire Bloom "too beautiful, classy" for Liz Gold's/Nancy Perry's role. Far from being disappointed with her performance in this movie, he said that "she provided the female-focus the story needed, and (she) radiates tremendous confidence. She knew she wasn't going to be acted off the screen."
• California Doubling: Many of the Berlin scenes were filmed in Dublin. The Checkpoint at the beginning is Dublin's Smithfield Market.
• Dawson Casting: Though playing a woman in her early twenties, Claire Bloom was actually 34 at the time of filming.
• Hostility on the Set: Martin Ritt and Richard Burton didn't get on particularly well during filming. The friction actually helped inform Burton's performance, which many consider one of his best. Their antagonism is believed to have stemmed from Ritt's irritation with constant set visits from Elizabeth Taylor, then just into her second year of marriage to Burton. To make matters more convoluted, Claire Bloom and Burton had had an affair several years earlier, and Ritt felt the need to come to the young actress' defense. According to John le Carré, when filming wrapped, Ritt, delighted not to have to work with Burton any longer, called him (in front of the cast and crew) "an old whore" who had just delivered his "last good lay".
• Reality Subtext: Alec Leamas is a cynical alcoholic - pretty much Richard Burton in Real Life.
• Underage Casting: Alec Leamas was supposed to be around fifty, although Richard Burton was only 39 at the time of filming.
• What Could Have Been: At an early stage, Burt Lancaster was considered to play Alec Leamas (with the character's nationality changed to Canadian to explain his accent). John le Carré initially wanted Trevor Howard.
• Write What You Know: John le Carré worked for British Intelligence MI5 and MI6 during the 1950s and 1960s, and worked in Berlin where this movie is partially set. Le Carré was there when the Berlin Wall was being constructed. Le Carré drew on this real-life experience when he wrote the novel.

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