IRA's 1984 Brighton Bombing: How It Nearly Killed Margaret Thatcher

At 2:45 am on October 12, 1984, a bomb was set off by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) at the Grand Hotel in Brighton, England, coinciding with the Conservative Party Conference. This attack resulted in the deaths of five individuals and left 31 others injured, while Margaret Thatcher, the intended target, escaped unharmed. The incident was part of an ongoing struggle between Irish Republican factions and Thatcher's administration. Previous assassinations included Airey Neave in March 1979, executed by the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA), and Lord Mountbatten in August 1979, carried out by the IRA. The bomb, planted by IRA member Patrick Magee, utilized a long-delay mechanism. Thatcher’s refusal to provide Special Category Status to IRA prisoners triggered the 1981 hunger strikes. The Troubles persisted for more than a decade following this event.