 The SAS raid , codenamed " Operation Nimrod " , was broadcast live at peak time on a bank holiday Monday evening and was viewed by millions of people , mostly in the UK , making it a defining moment in British history . Both the BBC and ITV interrupted their scheduled programming to show the end of the siege , which proved to be a major career break for several journalists . Kate Adie , the BBC 's duty reporter at the embassy when the SAS assault began , went on to report from war zones across the world and eventually to become chief news correspondent for BBC News , while David Goldsmith and his team , responsible for the hidden camera at the back of the embassy , were awarded a BAFTA for their coverage . The success of the operation , combined with the high profile it was given by the media , invoked a sense of national pride compared to Victory in Europe Day — the end of the Second World War in Europe . The operation was declared " an almost unqualified success " . Margaret Thatcher recalled that she was congratulated wherever she went over the following days , and received messages of support and congratulation from other world leaders . However , the incident strained already @-@ tense relations between the UK and Iran following the Iranian Revolution . The Iranian government declared that the siege of the embassy was planned by the British and American governments , and that the hostages who had been killed were martyrs for the Revolution . 
