The IRA 's campaign on the mainland was ongoing , with the bombing of Chelsea Barracks in October 1981 , the Hyde Park and Regent 's Park bombings in July 1982 and the Harrods bombings in December 1983 . Thatcher herself was the target in the Brighton hotel bombing of October 1984 . British military intelligence informed Thatcher that she could not take the IRA head on and the likelihood of never-ending violence persuaded her to seek a political solution to the Troubles . The Anglo-Irish Agreement 's origins lay in the behind-the-scenes negotiations between the British and Irish foreign offices , co-ordinated by the Cabinet Secretary , Robert Armstrong , and the secretary to the Irish government , Dermot Nally
Brighton hotel bombing
Brighton hotel bombing
Anglo-Irish Agreement