Sir Andrew Bowden takes a look back at The Grand hotel bomb

On October 12, 1984, then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, along with other senior Conservatives were staying at The Grand hotel during the Tory Party's annual conference in Brighton.

Little did they know that there was a plot in place to kill her and as many of her cabinet members as possible.

Sir Andrew Bowden, the 94-year-old former MP for Brighton Kemptown, recalling the event said:  “I still remember very vividly what happened, I had been in The Grand until about 11 that evening, having some drinks with some delegates at the conference."I was home before midnight, and had a night cap with my wife, which we often did.

“I was probably in bed latest by midnight, and at about two o’clock [The bomb exploded at 2.54am] I heard a noise and said ‘what the devil is that?’ I had no idea what it was, so there was nothing for me to do at the time.

“Ten minutes later my phone went and I was told there was an explosion at The Grand and that the Prime Minister (PM) was at John Street Police Station with one or two other people.”

Sir Andrew hastily made his way down to the police station to be with Mrs Thatcher.

“I was a part of a small group of people including the police superintendent having contingency plans for anything that might happen whilst the PM was in Brighton.

“What we had agreed on was that if there were anything to happen we would get her out of the Brighton area as quickly as possible. We talked through a number of alternatives, when I got to the police station we were deciding where we were going to advise the PM to go.

“There was a slight disagreement between one or two people within the group, and I could see that the PM was getting rather impatient.

“She said ‘Look, I’ll go wherever you want me to go just make up your minds quickly but make sure I’m back at that conference at 9.30 tomorrow morning'.”

In Steve Ramsey’s book about the Brighton Bomb, Something Has Gone Wrong, police protection officer David Bard recalled: “Some people [were] suggesting that they abandoned the conference. And she [PM Margaret Thatcher] sat upon that straight away, said: ‘No way. We are continuing. They don’t beat us'.”

Margaret Thatcher at The Grand Hotel reopening in 1986 (Image: Simon Dack)

Sir Andrew shared this sentiment when speaking on the impact of the bomb on the city, he said: “The bomb was a shock to the city obviously, but I don’t think it knocked people over. It’s a problem, it’s over and we have to carry on with life.

“Life goes on and I believe a majority of people accepted it on that basis.”

In Steve Ramsey’s book it was also mentioned that it was decided that the PM should go to Lewes Police College for the rest of the night.

The book mentions that she was stopped by a group of reporters as she left Brighton police station and answered a question on the bomb.

She said: “You hear about these atrocities, these bombs, you don’t expect them to happen to you. But life must go on as usual.”

While the PM was at the police station and being advised on her best course of action for safety, a different scene faced the Tory MPs on Brighton seafront.

Norman Tebbit, the then secretary of state for trade and industry, was asleep in his room with his wife when the bomb went off.

Speaking to The Argus on the 30th anniversary of The Grand bomb, the now 93-year-old said: “It woke me up and then the chandelier started swinging and ceiling fell in.

“We were covered in debris, we were completely covered – we were pinned down.”

Norman Tebbit being rescued after the bomb exploded (Image: The Argus)

Trapped by bricks and pieces of furniture, it was a number of hours before the emergency services got to the Conservative MP and his wife Margaret, who was left permanently disabled as a result of the blast.

Asked if he was panicking, he said: “What’s the point in panicking. I was just thinking, I hope somebody gets me out before I bleed to death.”

He was taken to the Royal Sussex County Hospital where doctors asked if he was allergic to anything. The defiant cabinet minister replied “bombs”.

He was later transferred to Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Buckinghamshire where he remained for several weeks.

Keith Joseph leaving The Grand in his dressing gown (Image: Simon Dack)

Five had been killed in the incident.

They were Eric Taylor, North West area chairman of the Conservative Party, Lady Jeanne Shattock, wife of Gordon Shattock, western area chairman of the Conservative Party, Lady Muriel Maclean, wife of Sir Donald Maclean, president of the Scottish Conservatives and Roberta Wakeham, wife of Parliamentary treasury secretary John Wakeham.

Though despite all of this the PM took to the stage the next morning at the Conservative Party Conference.

(Image: Simon Dack / The Argus)

In another extract from Steve Ramsey’s book Sir Robert Armstrong, who died in 2020, who at the time was a cabinet secretary under the PM said: “You have to pick yourself up and carry on.

“In that sense, I think she was quite right. If the Brighton bomb had been allowed to have a bigger effect on this process, the IRA would have won a point, which neither of us wanted them to win, neither the Irish nor we.”

Read exclusive features on the Brighton bomb by author Steve Ramsey later this week.