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London nail bombings: 'I was minutes away from death but being polite saved my life'

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Published date17 April 2024
Publication titleMyLondon (England)
Unbeknownst to them, self-confessed neo-Nazi David Copeland had visited the pub and placed a bomb laced with 1,500 nails at the foot of the bar, according to the BBC. At 6.37pm on April 30, the bomb exploded, tearing through the popular Soho bar, killing three and injuring at least 70 people

Those who died would be later named as John Light, 32, Nick Moore, 31, and Andrea Dykes, 27, who was pregnant at the time. Copeland, who had carried out attacks on Black and Asian communities in Brixton and Brick Lane earlier in the month, was arrested and sentenced to six life sentences for the heinous attacks. As the 25th anniversary of the attacks draw near, MyLondon spoke to survivors and community members about that horrific day.

Gary Fellowes, 65, arrived at the around 6pm after finishing work in Whitehall later than usual. He was meeting friends and was sat at the back of the bar when the bomb exploded.

He said if a friend hadn’t stopped him for a chat, he would have probably died. He told MyLondon: “I was about to go to the bar to get a drink when a friend introduced me to a friend of his and I thought ‘I can’t be rude. Let’s chat for a few minutes before I go get a drink’. It must have been what saved me because the bomb was at the bar.”

The next thing he remembers seeing is a bright blue light flash. He said: “At first, it sounded like metal hitting the ceiling and then I heard someone say ‘oh s’.

"I thought someone had split beer on the jukebox and caused it to smoke up but the next thing I knew was there was this deafening silence and the smell of sulphur. There was so much smoke swirling around and that’s when I knew it was a bomb.”

Gary, an asthmatic, began to worry he may never see his parents again. He eventually stumbled out and made his way up the road to the King’s Arms where staff called an ambulance.

He noticed his boots were singed with metal and his shirt was covered in someone else’s blood. He was treated...

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