Man spends 50 years recreating The Thing spy bug

A specialist in counter surveillance who spent 50 years recreating a "totally unique" 1940s covert listening device has had a documentary made about his life's work.

It was in the 1970s that John Little first learnt about The Thing - a gadget that had been hidden in a hand-carved ceremonial seal that the then-USSR had given to the US in 1945.

The 79-year-old said he was so "fascinated" by it that he became determined to make a new version of the bug, which had no wires or batteries and had passed unnoticed in the office of the US ambassador in Moscow.

The documentary, called The Thing, will preview at the National Museum of Computing, at Bletchley Park, Buckinghamshire, on Saturday.

Mr Little used to be a telephone engineer from Lowestoft in Suffolk before he moved to Bletchley Park and he still lives in the Milton Keynes area.

He said he had his 56 years of experience in technical surveillance counter measures (TSCM) , said he was first introduced to The Thing in 1975 when he worked for the British Foreign Office, and was on a radio monitoring course.

In 1945, a large wooden seal was presented to the US ambassador, Averell Harriman, and it stayed on his embassy office in the Russian capital for seven years, listening to his conversations.

"I was fascinated. It's totally unique and I was determined I was going to make one of those and make it work, and I did... but it took a long while," Mr Little said.

"It was like no other surveillance device and even today it's looked at as a work of absolute genius."

The original was made by the Russian inventor, Leon Theremin, who also created the musical instrument the theremin, which could be played without being touched - creating an eerie sound.

Emily Barnard, a partner of St Albans based Omph Creative, who made the film with Ben Killner, said Mr Little's work was "mind blowing".

"It was going to be a short video to put on YouTube, but we just realised how momentous this was and a documentary story needed to be told."

She said the device was called The Thing because no-one knew what it was, how it worked and it led to "scandal, espionage and political wrangling on a global scale".

"John is very humble, but he's also a genius like Leon Theremin," she said.

"Sometimes technology doesn't need to be complex; it needs to be simple and clever and go under the radar and not be noticed."

Mr Little said that after working on The Thing recreation, he started on "the 2024 version".

"This one incorporates internet, 4G, sat-phone technology, which gives us the ability to remote control the system so now it has a range of 12,500 miles - half way round the Earth," he said.

"I'm sure if Leon was still alive he would do that."

He said his work was only possible due to a team of about 10 people, including Greg Williams and John Carter.

"You can't retire from this," he added.

The film's premiere sold out within 48 hours and another screening was being planned for 27 September, Ms Barnard added.

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