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Britain’s 9/11

The Bombing of the Brighton Grand Hotel by the IRA

In October of 1984 Britain was shocked by a terrorist act unlike any other in

recent times. The Provisional IRA detonated a bomb on the sixth floor of a hotel being

used as the headquarters for the annual conservative party conference. The goal was

simple, to assassinate Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher along with as many of her

cabinet ministers as possible. The previous decade had seen a steady escalation of attack

and reprisal by both government and paramilitary forces. The IRA had launched a major

campaign on the British mainland while the government under Margaret Thatcher had

imposed harsher and harsher anti-terrorism measures.

The conservative party of the late seventies and eighties were aggressively

capitalist. They opposed entry into the European Union, while promoting

entrepreneurialism and privatization of public utilities including British Telecom. An

extreme response to the coal miner’s strike of the mid eighties, the introduction of a poll

tax and large increases in VAT -sales tax- eventually led to Margaret Thatcher’s stepping

down from office in 1990. During this time unemployment, crime and drug use had

greatly increased.

Margaret Thatcher was a supporter of Ronald Reagan during the Cold War; the

US was allowed to store nuclear missiles at British bases. She also went against NATO in
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supporting Reagan’s air strike against Libya, by giving the US the use of a base and

allowing them to fly through the straits of Gibraltar. The US had previously supported

Britain in the Falklands war against Argentina.

The conservative party conference is an annual event where they make speeches

announcing their policies, putting the opposition down and generally drumming up

support. It is a huge media event with many hotels booking up months in advance. Most

of the government stayed at the Brighton Grand Hotel and while there was a lot of

security in place, it was only temporarily secure. All the elements for the perfect act of

terrorism were in place; lots of media on site, a high profile and relatively unpopular

primary target and with the right planning a soft target.

While the IRA had operated in England in the 1930’s it wasn’t until provoked by

the shooting of twenty six civilians in the 1972 “Bloody Sunday” incident that they

launched a major bombing campaign. Further provocation came from the lack of

response to the hunger strikes in which a total of ten people died1 including Bobby Sands.

During this time the IRA planted car bombs in London and various other cities

around England. Targets included army bases, the Old Bailey - London’s central criminal

court, several bars and a coach carrying soldiers and their families. Later on in the 1990’s

they would start targeting economic targets: causing 85 million pounds in damage to the

Canary Wharf Offices and over 350 million pounds in Bishopsgate. (Timeline IRA)
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They assassinated Earl Mountbatten of Burma, Prince Phillip’s uncle, in 1979 by

blowing up his boat in a Donegal harbor. At the same time eighteen soldiers were killed

in County Down. The London bombing along with these acts hardened an already

unsympathetic government against their members and their cause.

Terrorism itself is not a modern phenomenon and neither as it happens was this

plan. In 1605 a plan to assassinate King James I was uncovered in England. The

Gunpowder Plot as it became known involved blowing up the houses of parliament

during the state opening. A group of English Catholics wanted to overthrow the

protestant government and abduct the royal children to start a revolution. While he is now

considered a minor figure in the affair, Guy Fawkes was arrested, tortured and sentenced

to be hung drawn and quartered, he avoided the worst part of this punishment by jumping

from the gallows and succeeded in breaking his own neck. Guy Fawkes Night is

celebrated every November 5th throughout Britain. He and his plan have been preserved

in a children’s rhyme.2

The bomb was planted 3 1/2 weeks before the conference. Patrick Magee booked

into the Grand Hotel on the 14th of September using the name Roy Walsh, he stayed until

the 17th. During this stay he placed a bomb made from 20-30 lb 3 of gelignite in the

bathroom wall of room 629. The actual plan was formed three years earlier in response to

the British government’s stand on the hunger strikers.

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Despite all the planning and effort, they missed their primary target. At 2:40am

the bomb went off. Only 5 people were killed and just over thirty injured. A large part of

the front of the hotel was blow out, a chimney stack fell down through the building taking

some of the rooms down into the basement. The Prime minister had just left her

bathroom, which was destroyed, to consult with her private secretary. If the bomb had

gone off a few minutes earlier or had been on the 5th floor instead of the 6th the plan

would have succeeded. (Case Closed)

The man entrusted to carry out this plan was Belfast born Patrick Magee,

nicknamed ‘The Chancer’, an Irish term used to describe someone who is both lucky and

a habitual risk taker. His family moved to Norwich England when he was 2 years old. He

returned to Belfast in 1969 aged 18 where he joined the Provisional IRA. By the late

1970’s he had built a reputation for his skill in the use of explosives, skills he may have

gained at a Libyan training camp, and became the IRA’s chief explosives officer.

(Wikipedia)

Some time around 1980 he returned to England, during this time Magee was

linked to several attempted bombings but managed to escape to Amsterdam or Dublin.

After examining the timer the police were able to determine when the bomb had been

planted. They also found the registration card signed by “Roy Walsh” which gave them

part of the palm and a fingerprint. They found it matched with Patrick Magee; who had

been pulled over while driving as a teenager. By this time he was already back in

Holland. (Case Closed)

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He was arrested at a safe house in Glasgow Scotland in June 1985. Police closing in

on Peter Sherry another suspected IRA member, they discovered Magee planning more

attacks on other British resorts. They also found a number of weapons including

explosives and timers. He was given eight life sentences at The Old Bailey with a

minimum of 35 years, this was later changed to the whole of his life and then cut back to

50 years after a judicial review. In handing down the sentence Justice Boreham described

him as, “a man of exceptional cruelty and inhumanity.” Magee responded with a raised

fist and a shout of “Tiochfaidh ar La” meaning “our day will come.” (Case Closed) He

was the only person convicted for the bombing; he also denies that the fingerprint

evidence used to convict him was genuine, and still refuses to talk about the details of the

operation.

In 1994 Magee was among the first prisoners transferred to Ulster. He was released in

1999, after serving only 14 years as part of the Good Friday agreement. While in prison

he gained a BA with first class honors and a PHD. His thesis on fiction dealing with the

troubles in Northern Ireland formed the basis for his book “Gangsters or Guerillas?” 4

This is not unusual as Republican prisoners traditionally turn to study when in prison,

whereas loyalists generally concentrate on physical activities.

Since his release Magee has met with some of the victims and their relatives. He has

never claimed to like or willingly accept the violence involved. Magee stated that while

he regrets hurting people he also believes that they were given no alternative and an
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armed struggle was necessary. He has been criticized in the press for stating that he is not

sorry nor does he regret his actions only that people were hurt. Talking specifically about

the Brighton bombing in an interview in the august 2000 issue of “An Phoblacht” Magee

says it was a turning point:

``After Brighton, anything was possible and the British for the first time began to

look very differently at us; even the IRA itself, I believe, began to fully accept the

priority of the campaign in England.''

“All attempts to destroy democracy by terrorism will fail” - these were the words of

Margaret Thatcher in a speech she gave to the party. At her insistence the conference

started on time at 9:30. While she had obviously made changes to the speeches she had

planned to give, she was determined not be seen to give in. Before this a split had started

in the conservative party with some members calling for a change in leadership over

among other things the way she handled the miner’s strike, but this crisis brought the

whole party together.

Britain now firmly supported Margaret Thatcher’s hard stance against the IRA. In

1988 members of the British Special Forces, SAS killed 3 unarmed IRA members in

Gibraltar. Most British people supported the decision; they were terrorists planning to set

a bomb, a case of kill or be killed. This incident triggered even more violence in Northern

Ireland, a loyalist gunman fired shots into the crowd at the funerals of the first two. While
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at the 3rd, 2 soldiers inadvertently driving by were beaten to death by the crowd. There are

plenty more examples from both sides, deliberately or not, adding to the tit-for-tat cycle.

Had they succeeded in killing such a large section of the government, while the

country would obviously have been shocked, the Labor party could have easily stepped in

to keep order. In England which ever party is in opposition forms a shadow cabinet,

appointing ministers as if they were in power. Not only is this advantageous in the event

of some catastrophe, it also helps both in forming policies and in taking over after an

election. While it would have brought about a dramatic change this bomb would not have

destroyed England.

It is, however, very possible that wiping out the government would have turned a

whole generation against the republicans. As it was the special powers act allowed the

British army and the RUC to arrest and detain anyone suspected of being a terrorist

indefinitely without a trial or even being charged. Authorities also used “the 5

techniques” a combination of stress positions and deprivation. The measure used to deal

with paramilitary groups would have gotten harsher, and may even have become

officially war.

The value of the Brighton bomb was that it failed to kill its intended targets.

Suddenly the IRA was a force to be reckoned with; they had now established themselves

as a major threat. It had become impossible not to treat them seriously. The people

involved were left feeling lucky, relieved, and happy to have survived but most
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importantly scared. The knowledge that it could have been so much worse, was more

valuable in terms of propaganda than 50 or 60 fatalities could ever have been.

From time to time in England, references to this story will appear in the news,

whether in connection with paramilitaries in general, the peace process or the ever

controversial Good Friday Agreement. There is no doubt that this was a defining moment

for many people. America has 9/11 and the assassination of Kennedy, England has the

Brighton Grand Hotel and Princess Diana.

"Today we were unlucky, but remember, we only have to be lucky once; you will

have to be lucky always.” Unknown IRA Spokesman.

“All attempts to destroy democracy by terrorism will fail” Margaret Thatcher British

Prime Minister 1979-1990.

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NOTES

1) The ten men who died on the 1981 hunger strike in Long Kesh prison.

• Bobby Sands, Member of Provisional IRA and elected MP. Died 5 May, after 66
days
• Francis Hughes, Also member of PIRA. Died 12 May, after 59 days
• Raymond McCreesh, PIRA. Died 21 May, after 61 days
• Patsy O’Hara, Irish National Liberation Army. Died 21 May, after 61 days
• Joe McDonnell, PIRA. Died 8 July, after 61 days
• Martin Hurson, PIRA. Died 13 July, after 46 days
• Kevin Lynch, INLA Died, 1 August, after 71 days
• Kieran Doherty, PIRA. Died 2 August, after 73 days
• Thomas McElwee, PIRA. Died 8 August, after 62 days
• Michael Devine, INLA. Died 20 August, after 60 days

2) The rhyme inspired by the gunpowder plot

Remember, remember the fifth of November,

The gunpowder, treason and plot,
I see of no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, 'twas his intent
To blow up the King and the Parliament.
Three score barrels of powder below,
Poor old England to overthrow:
By God's providence he was catch'd
With a dark lantern and burning match.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, make the bells ring.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, God save the King!
Hip hip hoorah!

3) I found a number of reports placing the size of the bomb from 20 – 100 lbs but 20-
30 lbs was most widely reported figure. One report even mentioned two bombs.

4) Gangsters or Guerrillas? Representations of Irish Republicans in “Troubles

Fiction” by Patrick Magee (2001)
with Foreword by Danny Morrison

ISBN: 1-900960-14-1 (Paperback) 248pp

http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/bibdbs/magee01/index.html
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References

Timeline of IRA in London BBC, Nov 21 2006

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1201738.stm

The gunpowder plot, Nov 21 2006 http://www.gunpowder-plot.org

Case Closed BBC, Nov 21 2006

http://www.bbc.co.uk/crime/caseclosed/grandbombing.shtml

Timeline for Patrick Magee BBC Nov 21 2006

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/301223.stm

Wikipedia article on Patrick Magee, Nov 21 2006

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Magee_%28bomber%29

An Phoblacht, interview with Patrick Magee, Nov 21 2006 http://republican-

news.org/archive/2000/August31/31brig.html

Conflict Archive on the INternet http://www.cain.ulst.ac.uk/ conflict and politics in

northern Ireland (1968 to the present)