Dog ribs and 'KHC' fast food is on the menu in North Korea, along with beer from an imported Scottish brewery


While most Instagram accounts are crammed with shots of cats, food and endless selfies, Simon Cockerell's is very different. But his has a good reason to be. For Mr Cockerell has been to North Korea 140 times in the last 13 years and has an almost unrivalled insight to life in the so-called Hermit Kingdom.

From locals getting drunk in spartan bars, anti-American rallies, going to Christian churches to rollerskating, enjoying a picnic in the park and buying 'KHC' fast food, Mr Cockerell's treasure trove of 800 photos and counting paint a fascinating picture of 'normal' life in the world's most secretive state.

The photos are a reminder that despite the iron rule of brutal dictator Kim Jong Un, who is accused of terror and torture, many people do what they have done for countless generations in such conditions - they make the best of it. They still dance, they still smile, they still enjoy a drink.

Mr Cockerell works for Koryo Tours, one of a handful of companies to act as guides to around 5,000 western tourists visiting North Korea each year. The trips are heavily-monitored and journalists and photographers are almost always banned from entering the country.

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Normality: Many people in North Korea get on with life and make the best of what they have. Locals are pictured dancing in Moranbong Park in the capital city of Pyongyang

Day out: Playing the computer game Angry Birds, rollerskating and picnics are not all the North Koreans enjoy. Mr Cockerell snapped this photograph of a day out on the water

Hitched: One of three wedding parties pose in front of Mansudae Grand Monument in the capital city one morning in January last year

Snack wagon: Mr Cockerell captured this image of women selling snacks close to the beach in Wonsan - a port city and naval base in Kangwon Province. It is a world away from how most people imagine North Korea

Laughter: A state official jokes with a girl about a cricket on his pristine uniform. It is a very different image from those of stern-faced policemen Westerners are used to seeing from the Hermit Kingdom

Just chilling: Families make the most of what they have and enjoy a picnic in the rain in Moranbong Park in the capital city of Pyongyang

Sinking pints: Mr Cockerell met a group of English-speaking gynecologists in a North Korean bar drinking beer. 'They'd knocked off work after 16 hours straight and were sinking some pints. They were making rude jokes about their jobs and putting dried squid into each others' mouths,' he said

Special brew: North Korea bought a brewery owned by Ushers of Trowbridge in 2000, shipped it from Scotland to Pyongyang and rebuilt it. The resulting beer is served in a few bars around the city including an enormous beer hall that punters queue outside to get in

In demand: Scores of people queue outside Kyonghunggwan Beer Hall, which serves drinks made in the brewery. There are seven types of beer, costing 50 US cents a glass, imaginatively named One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Seven. Mr Cockerell said. 'Six and Seven are stout-y, and Five is rice beer. I wouldn't wish Five on my worst enemy. It's appalling'

The internet is not available to normal North Koreans, and it is thought that only about 1,000 computers in the country have online access. However as a foreigner Cockerell was allowed to buy a 3G SIM card in Pyongyang that lets him Instagram live from the country.

'In Pyongyang tablets made locally are increasingly popular, but of course they don't allow internet access,' said Mr Cockerell, originally from Thornbury, near Bristol.

'They cost a few hundred dollars and come pre-loaded with the collected works of Kim Il-sung and the Angry Birds game.'

Angry Birds is a huge smash with smartphone users around the world, and North Koreans haven't proved immune to its addictiveness either. 'I went to a church in Pyongyang last year,' said Mr Cockerell.

'The guy I was next to sat down and immediately started playing Angry Birds on his tablet. It was like being there with a child.'

To many, it would be surprising that Christian churches and Muslim mosques are tolerated at all in North Korea - officially an atheist state. The state has been accused of interfering in religious beliefs but its constitution allows its residents freedom to believe in whatever god they choose.

But it is just one of the many startling insights that Mr Cockerell has of North Korea, an alien state to most in the West.

Fun and games: Despite the iron rule of brutal dictator Kim Jong Un, who is accused of terror and torture, many people do what they have done for countless generations in such conditions - they make the best of it

Skate park: Like children anywhere else in the world, these North Korean youngsters enjoy rollerblading in their local skate park with friends

Musician: Mr Cockerell compared this young girl playing the drums in Pyongsong to a young Keith Moon - the infamous The Who drummer

Smartly-dressed: The pretty young waitresses, wearing blue skirts and matching waistcoats, at Jangjusan Hotel in the country's capital

Traditional: Waitresses at Jannamsan Hotel in the city of Kaesong in the North Hwanghae Province wear customary attire at work

Strictly come dancing: North Koreans attend one of many mass dances that are held in the capital city of Pyongyang

Tribute: Local ladies wearing traditional North Korean outfits hide in the shade outside the mausoleum of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il

Western sights? A young man wears a US T-shirt (left) and ladies ice skate at Ryugyong Health Centre, Pyongyang (right)

Innocence: Children prepare for a school parade. Mr Cockerell said that they are hand-fed an extreme diet of propaganda from an early age

Park life: Mr Cockerell captured these pictures while working for Koryotour, a tour company among a handful allowed to guide around 5,000 western tourists visiting North Korea each year

Future stars: Youngsters enjoy a swimming lesson at Songdowon Schoolchildren's Camp in the port city and naval base of Wonsan

Mr Cockerell may be in a unique position to document life in North Korea, but is under no illusion that his experiences are largely anything other than a sanitised view of the kingdom, which is home to more than 24 million people.

The tourist groups he leads are required to be accompanied by North Korean guides from state-owned companies and free roaming is banned.

The United Nations and human rights groups say North Korea is guilty of appalling treatment of many of its citizens, with defectors reporting mass-starvation, abuse and infanticide in prison camps.

Poverty is rife outside the capital, which is home to about 2.8 million people. Foreigners are never allowed to see this side of things, and Mr Cockerell admits that visitors are seeing an air-brushed version.

He was, however, one of the handful of foreigners permitted to be in the presence of Kim Jong-Un at a basketball match between a North Korean team and visiting US team in January 2014 in Pyongyang. Kim sat next to Dennis Rodman, the eccentric former basketball player he had struck up a bizarre friendship with.

'I was about 25 metres away from Kim – everyone went mad when he appeared,' Mr Cockerell said. 'Everyone screamed and cheered, 'Manse! Manse!', which means long life. It was slightly chilling. The cheering seemed to go on forever – at least 15 minutes, possibly longer.

'Kim was waving his hands like he was saying 'Enough, enough', but people seemed to be genuinely into it. The way some people were losing it… it was like if you went to see Paul McCartney and he somehow brought John Lennon on stage. From the corner of my eye I kept seeing smoke rising – Kim smoked a lot.'

Shopping habits: Tourists have recently been given permission to go to Kwangbok Supermarket in Pyongyang. It was opened with Chinese investment and was the last place Kim Jong-Il visited before he died. Mr Cockerell said he found a shop selling Rollos in Pyongyang for around 70p

Modern: Shoppers go about their daily business inside Kwangbok Supermarket. Mr Cockerell admits what visitors see of the country is air-brushed. Mr Cockerell said: 'It’s easy to see North Koreans as one simple block of people before you go there but interaction with locals shows that in many ways they share the same characteristics as anyone else, but are from a very different place'

Disposable income: North Koreans shop at this handbag store at an international trade fair. However, the United Nations and human rights groups say North Korea is guilty of appalling treatment of many of its citizens, with defectors reporting mass-starvation, abuse and infanticide

Working life: A picture of a young woman working inside a workshop at Pyongyang Textiles Factory on September 14 last year

However, North Koreans are expected to worship their leaders past and present above any deity. Propaganda is pumped into the young minds of children from the moment they start kindergarten.

'In every kindergarten there'll be a model of the birthplace of Kim Il-sung,' said Mr Cockerell. 'The teacher will ask questions like, 'At what age did our great leader depart on his great journey to China?' These kids – babies, really – will know the answers by rote.'

As well as constantly showing dedication to Kim, North Korean men are required to undertake military service. When they leave the army most become members of a civil defence organisation.

'I've seen filthy wooden guns lying around everywhere – especially in factories,' Mr Cockerell said. 'They're for civil defence drills. The government tells them there's a great risk of foreign invasion all the time, so they have to be able to march and carry a weapon. Every factory will have a carpenter who knocks out these wooden guns so they can practice with them.'

Star friend: Mr Cockerell (left) was one of the handful of foreigners permitted to be in the presence of Kim Jong-Un at a basketball match between a North Korean team and visiting US team in January 2014 in Pyongyang. Kim sat next to Dennis Rodman (right), the eccentric former basketball player he had struck up a bizarre friendship with

Away from the prison camps, poverty-ridden rural areas and military obligations, in the capital Pyongyang there are many entertainment options - however basic they may seem by Western standards.

North Korea bought a brewery owned by Ushers of Trowbridge in 2000, shipped it from Scotland to Pyongyang and rebuilt it. The resulting beer is served in a few bars around the city including an enormous beer hall that punters queue outside to get in.

Home-made rice wine is more popular than beer in Pyongyang, but many locals have developed a taste for ale too.

'It costs 50 US cents a beer and there are seven types, imaginatively named One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Seven,' Mr Cockerell siad. 'Six and Seven are stout-y, and Five is rice beer. I wouldn't wish Five on my worst enemy. It's appalling.'

The bar has no music or seats, just low tables and a clientele mainly made up of working men.

'I did spend some time there with a table of women, most of them were gynecologists,' says Cockerell. 'They'd knocked off work after 16 hours straight and were sinking some pints. They were making rude jokes about their jobs and putting dried squid into each others' mouths.'

But Mr Cockerell's interaction with locals on a day-to-day basis is limited due to government restrictions and North Koreans' natural conservatism.

'North Koreans are reticent to make contact with westerners, they are very conservative and it's hard to get interactions with North Koreans who aren't working as guides,' he says. 'But after a couple of drinks they'll come over and say hello.

War games: An unusual children's playground at Chongsan-Ri farm is guarded by chipmunks carrying guns and wearing army uniform

'I've seen filthy wooden guns lying around everywhere – especially in factories,' Mr Cockerell said. 'They're for civil defence drills'

Show of force: As well as constantly showing dedication to Kim, North Korean men are required to undertake military service. When they leave the army (soldiers are pictured on the way to a rally here) most become members of a civil defence organisation

Big Brother: Despite the government severely restricting the public's access to news, many of the North Koreans Mr Cockerell had talked to all seemed curious about current affairs

Training: North Koreans practice their firearm skills at Kumrong shooting range in Pyongyang

Folk hero: An unusal statue in North Korea depicts a disabled soldier firing a gun using his mouth. It can only be guessed what this represents in a country known for its propoganda

'Generally when you do get to talk to people there they are very welcoming; they say the word 'Welcome! Welcome!' in English.

'But once I went to a bar we weren't really supposed to be in, in a city that wasn't Pyongyang, and one guy kicked up a big fuss shouting 'these bloody foreigners'. But it was a bar after all… maybe I looked at him the wrong way or something.'

THEY MAY HATE AMERICA BUT LOVE BURGERS, FRIES, AND 'KHC'... AND COSTA COFFEE 'OPENS UP' IN PYONGYANG Considering Kim Jong-un's hateful attitude to most western values, you might think that he wouldn't tolerate U.S.-style food in Pyongyang. But it is in fact easy to pick up a pizza, fried chicken or a surprisingly tasty burger in the capital. Western food: Mr Cockerell said it is in fact easy to pick up a pizza, fried chicken or a surprisingly tasty burger in the North Korean capital Fries with that? A combo burger with a fried egg in it (left) and KHC crisps (right). Despite brazenly copying KFC's branding, it doesn't actually sell chicken 'There is a chain of burger restaurants set up like a fast food place, but the food is never ready,' said Mr Cockerell. 'Ten minutes after your order it might come out. You might think it'd taste like cardboard but the combo burger with a fried egg on it tastes okay. There are also two Italian restaurants in Pyongyang that are genuinely better than 90 percent of what you'd get in Beijing, where I live.' He also said that there is a fried chicken joint named Kentucky, plus a food stall next to a shooting range and bowling alley named KHC that brazenly copies KFC's branding. However, it doesn't actually sell chicken: just soft drinks and crisps in boxes that look like they should contain French fries. Considering that the average North Korean will never have seen a KFC in real life or in the media, the rip-off tactic seems a bit strange. Mr Cockerell said that the food quality isn't any more effective as a selling point. 'The crisps taste like Salt 'n' Shake crisps if they'd forgotten to put the sachet of salt in,' he said. 'Home-made crisps, basically.' Western luxuries: Popcorn and Costa Coffee - 'There is a café I know in Pyongyang where all the cups say "Costa Coffee" on them. They don't actually claim it's a Costa place, they just got those cups from somewhere, saw it says "coffee" on it and thought that was good enough' Pedigree chow: Mr Cockerell sampled dog ribs, a delicacy in North Korea, although they are not often eaten. The national dish is actually cold noodles Starbucks is yet to expand its empire to North Korea, but fans of Costa Coffee can indulge in a small hint of their favourite caffeine stop there. 'There is a café I know in Pyongyang where all the cups say "Costa Coffee" on them. They don't actually claim it's a Costa place, they just got those cups from somewhere, saw it says "coffee" on it and thought that was good enough.' But the most famous dish in Pyongyang is naengmyon – cold noodles. Mr Cockerell said: 'They don’t look very appetising as they are black and served in a chilled metal bowl with some meat slices and spiced vegetables, but when you add mustard and vinegar they are very nice indeed. Kimchi is the national staple though – it’s the name given to a wide range of pickled and slightly fermented vegetables. They say each family’s version tastes different, and different varieties (with different levels of pungency – it does smell quite powerful at times) are eaten at different times of the year. This is eaten with every meal.' Mr Cockerell also tasted dog ribs, which he said isn't a regular food in North Korea but more of a delicacy, eaten only on special occasions. Advertisement

Mr Cockerell also said that despite the government severely restricting the public's access to news, many of the North Koreans he had talked to all seemed curious about current affairs.

State news reported that the 2008 U.S. presidential election was taking place, so the basic idea of democracy wasn't completely alien to the public.

'Around that election there was massive interest among the North Korean people I spoke to back then,' he says. 'They were fascinated by the difference between McCain and Obama – their ages and races, etc.

'It was because they had a deep dislike of George W Bush and wanted someone else to replace him. Despite their own one-ruler system, they understood the concept of choosing one thing or the other. They believed that Bush had slandered North Korea with the Axis of Evil speech.'

Propaganda is fed to homes (those with electricity) through state-endorsed news reports on TV, and one foreign film, usually Chinese or Russian, is shown every weekend. Every two years the Pyongyang International Film Festival takes place, allowing some of the city's elite to see a wider variety of films.

Religion: Inside of Chilgol Christian Church in Pyongyang. The state has been accused of interfering in religious beliefs but its constitution allows its residents freedom to believe in whatever god they choose

Everyday life: A man has his hair cut at a barber in Pyongyang. This image could have been captured almost anywhere in the world

Civilised: Poverty is rife outside the North Korea's capital Pyongyang, but foreigners are rarely allowed to see that side of things. This picture is one of the dining rooms at the Okryu Restaurant in Pyongyang. It is the most famous restaurant in the country and serves Pyongyang cold noodles and also turtle soup

'There can be no political content in these,' said Mr Cockerell. 'A bit of violence is OK but no sex, although some of the films shown had an implied homosexual theme. British films shown include Mr Bean, Pride and Prejudice and an episode of Sherlock.

'They showed the third episode of the third series of Sherlock, which ends on a cliffhanger, so it was a curious choice but it went down well. Koryotour got access to Bend It Like Beckham for the festival. They also showed it on TV, so if you ask a North Korean what their favourite western film is they often say, 'Bend It Like Beckham'.'

Having visited North Korea regularly since 2002, Mr Cockerell is one of the few people to have been able to observe cultural changes in the country's recent history. One such change is the emergence in Pyongyang of a proto-middle class that, unlike the millions of poverty-stricken rural peasants, has money to spend on luxuries.

'Over the past few years this class has developed – they buy nicer clothes and conspicuously 'consume', which for some reason now seems socially acceptable there,' he said. 'A few years ago there were people with money, but they didn't show it off.

'Children used to just look like smaller versions of adults and clothes just looked like uniforms. But now these people with money get clothes from further afield; they're dressing more like Chinese kids.

'For example, a lot of the younger women have started wearing shoes with really high heels to look taller. Some go to crazy lengths, with impractically high shoes.'

And despite the country's isolated status and the retro styling of most of its buildings, Mr Cockerell has noticed a few modern features of Pyongyang - where 2.5m of the country's 25m people live - that give away the fact that it is 2015.

'It does feel like you're out of time there,' he says. 'But recently you get these odd instances – you might see a load of 1970s Mercedes cars drive by, then suddenly a new DHL delivery van zooms past. You have to do a double-take.'

He even took a picture of a Hummer on the streets.

Moving home: A train carriage that also appears to be a home pictured between Hamhung and Chongjin. Transport in parts of North Korea seems primitive compared to western standards

Views: Mr Cockerell posted this picture of a mountain viewpoint just outside the city of Rajin on September 2 last year. The country is 90pc mountains so there are plenty of stunning vistas. But Mr Cockerell said: 'It is both blessing a curse. It limits the amount of arable land, which contributes to low harvests and the food insecurity issues that we all know about'

Hobbies: North Korean skiers pictured atop Masik Pass Ski Resort. Perhaps not what you would expect to see in the country

He added that a water park opened just over a year ago in Pyongyang and skate parks have started popping up in the capital and other cities in the last couple of years, even though the kids of North Korea much prefer rollerblading to skateboarding.

Recently, the government has allowed tourists to go into the city's Kwangbok supermarket, which was opened with Chinese investment around 2011. It is more of a department store, said Mr Cockerell, with several shops that sell imported goods.

'There was actually a shop I used to know that used to sell Rollos,' said Mr Cockerell. 'How they had them, I don’t know. That shop has provided all of the Rollos I’ve eaten for the last ten years. I felt kind of obligated to buy them. They were about 70p.

'And there is a supermarket in a newly-developed district of Pyongyang that’s like going to a foreign supermarket in China. Ten different kinds of cheese and all kinds of bread, but it’s Koreans shopping there. It’s rare for them to distinguish between two kinds of cheese. Most of them would never eat cheese anyway. It’d be like people in Britain being keen on "this kimchi" but not "that kimchi".'

But North Koreans mainly go there to buy meat, cabbages, squid and a lot of frozen seafood - which shows that the electricity supply is good there, said Mr Cockerell. He added that there is a whole row of shelves containing just red bean paste and spicy food - which he said is a 'big thing'.

Largely the streets are empty though, he said, adding: 'It is a notoriously empty city. The roads are very large and foot traffic is very limited. The distances between places tend to be too big for going on foot, and there are always times when you simply see no-one around. It is not a bustling city by any stretch of the imagination.'

ODDEST MOMENT IN MY LIFE: WHEN I WATCHED DENNIS RODMAN SING HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO KIM JONG UN One of the oddest news stories of the past few years was that of ex-basketball star Dennis Rodman's unlikely friendship with Kim Jong Un. It first geared up when Rodman visited North Korea in 2013 for a basketball exhibition event. Mr Cockerell was staying in the same hotel as Rodman's entourage during his third trip in January last year for a 'basketball diplomacy' event. Rodman sat alongside Kim as he watched a team of U.S. players play a North Korean team, but it was Rodman's alleged hotel antics that made the most bizarre headlines. According to an unnamed source Rodman spent most of the trip drunk. Friends in tall places: Ex-basketball star Dennis Rodman with a guide. He sparked up an unlikely friendship with Kim Jong Un when Rodman visited North Korea in 2013 for a basketball exhibition event Star turn: Dennis Rodman with a friend of Mr Cockerell. 'It wasn't known that it was Kim's birthday. Rodman gave a speech in the basketball stadium then started singing Happy Birthday' The source was quoted as saying: 'The night before he left for the U.S. he was drunk unconscious, and vomited everywhere he turned. He even urinated and emptied the bowels in the hallway.' It is news to Mr Cockerell though. 'I never saw anything like that,' he said. 'Alcohol is readily available there, he was drinking, he's been pretty open about that since, and he went to rehab. But there's no way the misbehavior reported happened, we were there and we never heard about it.' Seeing Dennis Rodman defecate in a hotel hallway might have bumped it down the list, but Mr Cockerell says that seeing Rodman sing Happy Birthday to Kim on January 8, 2014 remains the oddest thing he's seen in his life. 'It wasn't known that it was Kim's birthday,' he said. 'Rodman gave a speech in the basketball stadium then started singing Happy Birthday. It didn't catch on at first. It went from being a basketball event to a birthday party.' Rodman was heavily criticised by human rights groups for aiding what they said was just a publicity stunt for North Korea. He has defended the country in the wake of The Interview, the U.S. comedy film which features Kim Jong Un being assassinated, and that prompted North Korea to allegedly hack Sony Pictures. Rodman said he would have liked to take the film's star Seth Rogan to Pyongyang to 'see what's really going on'. His political diplomacy skills may be limited, though, as Mr Cockerell said: 'He told me that he didn't actually know what the difference between South and North Korea was.' Advertisement

He said though that outside the capital, the country is even more desolate. North Korea's landscape is 90 per cent mountains. 'It has some utterly stunning vistas. But of course, being so mountainous is both a blessing and a curse as it limits the amount of arable land, which contributes to low harvests and the food insecurity issues that we all know about.

'You don't go to the deepest, darkest parts of the country on a tour, but you do see the clear difference between Pyongyang, other cities, areas with good soil and some more remote and difficult parts of the country. This is evident to anyone with eyes.'

The borders to North Korea are currently closed to tourists, although they are expected to open in time for April's Pyongyang marathon, in which foreigners can enter. So while for most people a visual glimpse of North Korea will still have to be obtained through photos such as Mr Cockerell's, he says that inch by inch more of the country is being exposed.

'The default answer to everything in North Korea is: 'No: you cannot do this',' he says. 'We make requests and it's about trying to expand the list of stuff that we can do. Five years ago you couldn't even go on a bicycle trip, now you can. Things will become possible.'

Reflecting on this visit and those of tourists, Mr Cockerell said: 'I think the abiding memory people have when they leave is of the humanity of the people they encounter. It's easy to see North Koreans as one simple block of people. But interaction with the locals shows that in many ways they are the same as anyone else, but are from a very different place.'

He said that tourists who visit come back with a 'deeper need to understand the nuances and complications of the national situation and to see it not simply as a mass of land which is known for its international disagreements. The vast majority of the population have nothing to do with those and deserve better than to be just imagined as a faceless mass.'

Surprise: Mr Cockerell posted this picture of a Hummer on the streets of Pyongyang. Seeing the car surprised him given the state's hatred of the West

Dancing: Students prepare for a mass dance to mark Victory Day in Pyongyang. Mr Cockerell said: 'Children used to just look like smaller versions of adults and clothes just looked like uniforms. But now these people with money get clothes from further afield; they're dressing more like Chinese kids'

Alien state: Despite the country's isolated status and the retro stylings of most of its buildings, Mr Cockerell has noticed a few modern features of Pyongyang that give away the fact that it is 2015. This is Pyongyang ice rink where ice hockey is played

The Red line: A mural at Red Star station at the end of the Chollima metro line in Pyongyang. Red Star is also the name of North Korea's computer operating system - a rip-off of that used on Mac computers - with state-approved wallpapers

Cityscape: Kwangbok Street apartment building in Pyongyang (left) and apartment buildings with Yanggakdo Hotel in the background (right)

Running to victory: The borders to North Korea are expected to open in time for April's Pyongyang marathon, which foreigners can enter

Towering: Perhaps the most famous landmark in Pyongyang, the Ryugyong Hotel, soars above the low-level sprawl of the capital

Streetview: Mr Cockerell may be in a unique position to document life in North Korea, but is under no illusion that his experiences are largely anything other than a sanitised view of the kingdom. This picture shows the iconic traffic ladies of Pyongyang hard at work

Mass transit: A picture of the Pyongyang metro system hard at work. But Mr Cockerell says the city of 2.5m is anything but 'bustling'

Er...: Another unexpected and quite inexplicable sight Mr Cockerell encontered while travelling along the roads of North Korea