Thatcher narrowly escaped injury in an IRA assassination attempt at a Brighton hotel early in the morning on 12 October 1984 . Five people were killed , including the wife of minister John Wakeham . Thatcher was staying at the hotel to prepare for the Conservative Party conference , which she insisted should open as scheduled the following day . She delivered her speech as planned , though rewritten from her original draft , in a move that was widely supported across the political spectrum and enhanced her popularity with the public
assassination attempt
Brighton hotel bombing
Margaret Thatcher