On a brighter note, the city welcomed a shiny new shopping centre in the form of Waverley Market, and Mikhail Gorbachev visited Auld Reekie in his role of Chairman for the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Soviet Union.
Take a look through our photo gallery for 18 memories of Edinburgh in 1984 – and before you go, let us know your own recollections in the comments section.
1. Edinburgh in 1984
Take a look through our photo gallery for 18 photo memories of Edinburgh in 1984. Photo: Third Party
2. New plastic seating
Rail passengers sitting on the circular plastic seating on the concourse of Waverley Station, newly modernised in November 1984. Photo: Albert Jordan
3. A lot of hot air
Hot air balloons rise from Holyrood Park silhouetted against the Edinburgh skyline in August 1984. Photo: Alan Macdonald
4. Bernard Street
Exterior of newly-refurbished buildings in Bernard Street Leith in April 1984. Photo: Hamish Campbell