THE TITLE OF THIS AGGRESSIVE POLITICAL SONG refers to 12 October 1984, when an IRA bomb exploded at the Grand Hotel in brighton. The target was that year's Conservative Party conference. Five people were killed and over 30 were injured by the Semtex bomb, which had been planted the previous month and set on a long-delay timer. the attack generated huge international publicity. Even without killing the then prime minister, margaret thatcher, the bomb had been a startling assault on the political establishment: the IRA had come close to killing the British cabinet. they said that they would try again. Their statement famously included the words: "Today we were unlucky, but remember we only have to be lucky once. You will have to be lucky always."Among Irish republicans, Margaret Thatcher was then – and still remains – one of the most hated of all British political figures. She had been prime minister during the 1981 republican hunger strike, which had seen 10 men die after protracted fast in jail. Even before the end of that strike, the IRA had decided to try to kill her.

In September 1986, Patrick Magee (also known as the "Brighton bomber") was found guilty of planting the bomb, exploding it, and five counts of murder. he received eight life sentences: seven for offences relating to the Brighton bombing, and the eighth for a separate bombing conspiracy, but was released from prison in 1999, having served only 14 years in prison (including the time before his sentencing), under the terms of the Good Friday agreement. Following his release Magee was reported to have said "I stand by what I did". [many thanks to Stephen hutchinson for providing this information].the title 'brighton hotel rock' may also be a pun on 'brighton rock', TITLE OF THE 1938 classic novel by English novelist and playwright graham greene (1904-1991). 'Brighton Rock' is a book based in 1930's underworld Brighton. This deep psychological novel is about pinky, a teenage gangster, and his conflict against an amateur detective, Ida, who is intent on bringing Pinky to justice. In many ways 'Brighton Rock' can be classed as a detective novel as it contains certain elements of this particular style of writing. Features characteristically used in such novels include thriller elements, violence and rapidly paced action, all of which are present in 'Brighton Rock'.in 1947 a film based on this novel, STARRING RICHARD ATTENBOROUGH AND DIRECTED BY jOHN bOULTING, came out.