Balcombe Street siege

The Balcombe Street siege began on December 6, 1975, when four members of a Provisional Irish Republican Army active service unit were cornered by police after a shooting in Mayfair. The men fled into a block of flats on this quiet residential street and forced their way into number 22b. Inside, they took the two residents, John and Sheila Matthews, as hostages. This act triggered a tense, six-day standoff that became a national media sensation and brought the reality of the Troubles directly into a London living room.