An Irishman is charged over a bombing that killed four soldiers on horseback in the heart of London in 1982, one of the most high-profile attacks by IRA guerrillas in their campaign to end British rule in Northern Ireland.

"The Metropolitan Police Service has been investigating the explosion near Hyde Park in London which occurred on 20 July 1982. The Crown Prosecution Service has reviewed the evidence gathered and authorised them to charge John Anthony Downey, of County Donegal, Ireland.

It is alleged that Downey is responsible for the improvised explosive device contained in a car parked in South Carriage Drive, which resulted in the deaths of four members of the Royal Household Cavalry, Blues and Royals, as they travelled on their daily route from their barracks to Buckingham Palace.

Downey has been charged with the murders of Roy John Bright, Dennis Richard Anthony Daly, Simon Andrew Tipper and Geoffrey Vernon Young. He has also been charged with intending to cause an explosion likely to endanger life," she said.