His health was put under strain by the workload and he suffered a heart attack in February 1984 . Returning to report on that year 's conference season , he covered the Brighton hotel bombing , getting a " memorable " interview with Thatcher on the pavement in its immediate aftermath , in which she declares that the Tory conference would take place as normal . An astute observer of the political scene , Cole was one of the earliest to forecast Thatcher 's resignation as Prime Minister in 1990 , in what McKie refers to as " perhaps his greatest exclusive . " Donald Macintyre writes that he " did more than any single figure to create popular understanding of the turbulent 1980s "
Brighton hotel bombing
Brighton hotel bombing
John Cole (journalist)