Regents Park remembers its murdered band - July 20 1982

Police and firemen at the still smouldering bandstand in Regent's Park, London, following the 1982 bombing that killed seven servicemen. The bomb exploded where the band of the Royal Green jackets was playing | Credit PA / The Telegraph, May 14, 2021

The main bandstand in The Regent's Park is located on Holme Green, between the boating lake and Inner Circle. It was moved from Richmond Park to The Regent's Park in the 1970s.

On 20th July 1982, the bandstand was the target of a terrorist attack by the IRA. Seven bandsmen were killed and a further 24 injured during a concert by the band of the Royal Green Jackets. Eight members of the public, who were watching the performance, were also taken to hospital with injuries sustained in the bombing.

Today there is a small memorial plaque on the base of the bandstand that commemorates the seven bandsmen who were killed. Each year the attack's survivors, and the families of those who were killed, gather here for a short but poignant memorial service.

Regents Park bandstand today. Photo courtesy The Royal Parks.

Two years after the bombing, the composer George Lloyd wrote Royal Parks For Brass Band, the second movement of which, In Memoriam is dedicated to the bandsmen who died. The piece still features in many band repertoires.

An earlier bandstand stood near the south-east corner of the boundary of London Zoo.

First published at The Royal Parks.